Hurt in a Car Accident or
Motorcycle Crash? Lost a Loved
One in a Wrongful Death?
Boca Raton Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Boca Raton, FL Hospital Error Lawyer
Call Us Today 561-367-8777
At Whittel & Melton, our medical malpractice attorneys represent victims of medical negligence throughout the state of Florida, including claims against doctors, hospitals, nurses and all other medical professionals whose avoidable mistakes resulted in injuries, harm or death to the patient. Nearly 250,000 patients are killed every year in the United States due to medical mistakes, ranking this the third leading cause of death in the country.
If you or someone you love has been the victim of medical malpractice, our Boca Raton Medical Malpractice Lawyers at Whittel & Melton are happy to meet with you for a free consultation where we can openly discuss your case without any further obligation. We can guide you down the right path for pursuing a successful medical malpractice claim against the medical practitioners who are responsible for your suffering.
What is Medical Malpractice?
All medical professionals and health care providers can be held legally liable for any harm, injuries or death they cause to a patient through their own mistakes or carelessness. Medical malpractice occurs when the medical provider fails to meet the standard of care accepted in the medical community according to the specialty and level of expertise.
In medical malpractice claims, our attorneys must be able to prove that the healthcare provider in question failed to meet the accepted standards of care according to law and professional agreements. All medical professionals owe their patients a duty of care, and when they fail to act according to the normal standards, then they have breached this duty, which means they can be held liable for your suffering and all damages incurred as a result.
Not being happy with the results of a medical treatment or surgery does not mean that medical malpractice occurred. If the results you received from a medical treatment or surgery were not as expected, this does not mean the doctors and supporting medical staff can be sued for malpractice. Examples of medical malpractice are failing to diagnose a disease or medical condition, prescribing the wrong medications or wrong dosages, operating on the wrong part, etc. Our Boca Medical Malpractice Lawyers at Whittel & Melton are more than happy to meet with you to hear your version of events and determine if you have a valid claim for medical malpractice. Call us today at 561-367-8777 or contact us online for a free case evaluation.
Medical Malpractice Cases Handled by Our Boca Raton Attorneys at Whittel & Melton
At Whittel & Melton we have experience handling a vast variety of complex medical malpractice cases. We have handled everything from birth injuries to wrongful death caused by unnecessary and avoidable mistakes:
- Failure to diagnose or failure to timely diagnose: this refers to a scenario in which a doctor failed to follow the correct steps in order to diagnose a patient’s medical condition. This may include not following the correct follow up procedures, not ordering the correct medical tests, or the wrong interpretation of lab results. When this occurs a patient can lose valuable time and the best chances of a positive outcome.
- Hospital malpractice: Hospitals are responsible for the actions of its medical staff, including medical technicians, nurses, and other medical care providers. Mistakes by any medical staff can lead to severe harm or death to a patient.
- Birth injuries: Childbirth is associated as one of the most joyful occasions in a person’s life, but when medical professionals make mistakes during labor and delivery, the consequences can be dire to the newborn child or to the mother.
- Wrong interpretation of lab results: misreading lab results or hiding results from the patient is a form of medical malpractice. It is extremely important for lab results to be interpreted correctly, as this is how a proper diagnosis and proper treatment plan can be implemented so that the patient has the optimum chances of recovering.
- Surgical mistakes: surgical mistakes can occur when a surgeon performs an operation on the wrong part of the body, performs an operation on the wrong patient, left a medical device or tool inside a patient, or performed an unnecessary surgery on a patient that had a direct negative effect on the patient’s health.
- Anesthesia errors: When too little or too much anesthesia is given to a patient prior to a surgery, this can lead to oxygen deprivation resulting in brain injury, stroke and even death to the patient.
Other cases our medical malpractice attorneys handle:
- Nursing home errors
- Brain damage
- Bone fractures
- Brachial plexus
- Emergency room errors
- Early discharge
- Wrong prescriptions
- Infections
- Misuse of medical tools
- Nerve damage
If you or anyone you love suffered from any harm as a direct result of medical malpractice, we advise you to contact our skilled and experienced Boca Raton Medical Malpractice Attorneys today. Call us now at 561-367-8777 to get the legal help you need.
How Can I Prove Medical Malpractice?
When a medical professional fails to provide their patient with the proper standard of care and causes injuries or harm, then the at-fault medical professional should be held liable for all the damages caused to the victim. However, medical malpractice claims are some of the most complex cases and require skilled attorneys who know how to obtain the correct evidence in order to prove the carelessness of the healthcare provider in question resulted in damages. Our attorneys will need to prove the following four elements:
- 1. Doctor-patient relationship: These is established when a medical professional including surgeons, physicians, nurses, anesthesiologists, obstetricians and all medical staff agree to handle you as a patient. Once this is established, then the medical practitioners responsible for your care owe you a duty of care and can be held liable if negligent acts or omissions are made.
- 2. Breach of duty: the second step is to establish that the medical professional acted carelessly while handling you as a patient and therefore breached their duty to you. We must show that the medical professional failed to act in a way that another competent medical professional placed in the same or similar situation would have acted.
- 3. Direct cause: the third element we must prove is that the negligent acts or omission made by the health care provider caused you to suffer harm or injury. In other words, we must show that the harm you suffered would not have existed had the medical provider acted within their acceptable standard of care.
- 4. Damages: In order to build a strong case we need to demonstrate that the negligent or careless acts resulted in direct damages, including monetary and non-monetary losses like lost wages due to inability to work, medical bills, pain, suffering, disability and loss of enjoyment of life.
The above elements are often referred to as the Four D’s of Medical Malpractice: Duty, Deviation, Direct Cause and Damages.
We urge you to speak with our skilled and qualified Boca Raton Medical Malpractice Attorneys at Whittel & Melton right away so that we can fully explain your legal rights. We understand these are hard times and you need someone to fight for your rights and secure the full and fair compensation you need to fully recover from your losses. Call us today at 561-367-8777 or contact us online.
When Do I Need to Hire a Medical Malpractice Attorney?
You should get in touch with us at the first signs you suspect you have been the victim of medical malpractice. We will review your potential claim for free and help you determine if you have a valid malpractice claim.
At Whittel & Melton, we have skills, experience, resources, and strategies to identify if you have been the victim of an avoidable medical mistake. We will consult with medical and financial experts in order to secure their testimonies for trial to show that the injuries you suffered are directly linked to a negligent or careless act or omission.
We don’t want to see you lose your chance to obtain justice, so we strongly recommend refraining from singing any agreements that the at-fault medical provider or medical facility may offer you. We also advise to avoid speaking openly about your potential claim with anyone or posting about it on social media without consulting with your medical malpractice attorney first.
If you or a family member has suffered from medical malpractice, please do not hesitate to call us now at 561-367-8777. At Whittel & Melton, we have the experience and resources to build a successful case on your behalf, and we are available 24/7 to assist you. Contact us online to arrange a free meeting with our attorneys in Boca Raton.