Carlsbad Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Medical Malpractice at a Glance

A 2016 study from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine determined that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in America, following heart disease and cancer. The study calculated the annual total deaths caused by medical errors to be 251,454.

Medical Malpractice Cases We Handle

At Buckingham & Vega Law Firm, our Carlsbad medical malpractice lawyers have experience successfully representing clients in a wide range of medical malpractice cases. This includes some of the following examples.

Diagnostic Errors

Diagnostic errors are the direct cause of as many as 17% of adverse events in hospital settings. It is also the most cited error in medical malpractice claims. The problem is so widespread that most people will be the victim of at least one diagnostic error over the course of their lifetime. There are two main types of diagnostic errors:

• A missed diagnosis occurs when a treating physician does not diagnose a patient with a health condition despite the presence of symptoms, test results, or other indications of an illness, injury, or disease.
• A misdiagnosis is when a doctor wrongly diagnoses one health condition as another. A patient suffering from stomach cancer who was told they only have anxiety would be the victim of a misdiagnosis.

Surgical Errors

While any type of medical error has the potential for serious harm, injuries related to surgical errors tend to be much more severe. Patients who suffer surgical errors frequently require additional surgeries to not only treat the resulting harm, but may still need the initial surgery needed to treat their original health condition.

Current estimates put the number of annual surgical errors at 4,000, but as medical malpractice attorneys we know that medical malpractice often goes unreported. Surgical errors that cause only minor injuries are still serious matters, especially as they may be precursors to a negligent surgeon’s subsequent larger mistakes.

No matter how serious you may think your surgical error was, contact us as soon as possible if you suffered any of the following errors when going under the knife:

Your doctor’s job is not done when you wake up from surgery, either. If you did not receive proper care instructions or adequate follow-up care from your doctor and later suffered a serious injury as a result, you may be owed compensation for your damages. Speak with a Carlsbad medical malpractice lawyer to determine what compensation you need.

Medication Errors

Prescription medications play an important role in the management of many different health conditions. As patients, we trust our doctors to prescribe the right medication and in the correct dosage. A medication error may occur when:

Birth Injuries

The proper monitoring of both mothers and babies during the birth process is one of the most effective ways to prevent trauma and oxygen deprivation, the most common causes of birth injuries. Despite this, some obstetricians in Carlsbad, NM continually fail their pregnant patients by failing to properly monitor them while in labor.

The medical malpractice lawyers at our law firm have helped secure compensation for patients and families whose children are suffering from many different birth injuries, including:

Birth injuries typically require life-long medical attention and care. Many victims require the support of mobility devices such as wheelchairs, crutches, leg braces, and canes, which can be costly to maintain and upgrade.

Do not let an obstetrician’s negligent actions go unchecked. Contact us to schedule your free consultation with a Carlsbad birth injury lawyer so that together we can decide the best course of action.

What Causes Medical Malpractice?

Every case of medical malpractice is different, requiring its own unique approach. However, in our years spent representing victims who have been harmed by the health care establishment, we have identified the following issues as some of the most common causes of medical malpractice:

Doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals do not get a “free pass” because they work long hours or are scheduled to see a high volume of patients. People’s health and lives are on the line when they go to the doctor, and they deserve to be treated with care, dignity, and respect.

Any time that a medical professional misinterprets test results, makes a surgical error, or brushes off a patient’s concerns, they are causing real and lasting harm. Buckingham & Vega Law Firm holds these men and women accountable for their actions.