U.S. medical care facilities have been praised for their quality of care and innovations in healthcare. On the flip side of that coin, there have been unprecedented medical malpractice settlements across the 50 states, including in Pennsylvania. For those who worry that they or a loved one did not receive appropriate medical care, and that improper care resulted in injury, there are legal options. Medical malpractice is a category of personal injury suits that covers those accidentally or intentionally injured by a medical professional or facility.
Many people thinking about pursuing a medical malpractice suit wonder who can be sued after an injury. Obviously, the doctor, if the doctor’s actions deviated from generally accepted standards of practice. Also, the hospital can be sued for improper care or inadequate training. In addition, local, state or federal agencies that operate hospital facilities can be sued if they do not properly monitor and uphold regulations and it results in injury.
Keep in mind that these accusations often are not attributed to just one of the categories of organization and staff listed above. It is entirely possible that two or more parties could be negligent for a medical injury. A full investigation can help to establish fault for an injury. Medical records will be scoured as will many other reports, statements and condition of facilities, if applicable.
While these accidents are seemingly not 100 precent preventable, they certainly could stand to diminish in occurrence. The hope is that these injuries will all but disappear in the future. Until then, the injured will need some type of retribution for medical injuries related to negligence. Since medical costs are very high, it only makes sense that those costs can be covered by the negligent party.
Source: injury.findlaw.com, “Medical Malpractice In-Depth,” Accessed May 23, 2016