The diagnosis of a serious disease can strike apprehension into the heart of a Pittsburgh resident. For example, a person recently diagnosed with cancer may fear that they will not live long enough to see their children grow up or that they may not be able to accomplish all of their life’s dreams before they pass on. However, thanks to modern medicine and the regulated practices of medical professionals many people who are diagnosed with serious diseases often fully recover and continue enjoying their lives long into the future.
However, unfortunate cases of misdiagnoses do occur, and when they do individuals whose bodies are fighting serious illnesses may have to wait in order to receive the life-saving treatments that they need. A misdiagnosis occurs when a medical professional fails to follow proper protocols to arrive at a correct diagnosis, and a patient’s condition goes untreated until the proper diagnosis is achieved. Sometimes doctors overlook symptoms or conditions in their patients that could have helped them arrive at proper diagnoses and could have allowed their patients to begin treatments sooner.
A misdiagnosis or the failure of a doctor to diagnose a patient with a serious illness can be fatal. It can result in a patient enduring significant health complications, sustained pain and suffering and other preventable losses had the diagnosis been made at a more appropriate time. It may result in a patient being away from their job and unable to support their family as they suffer from their ailment.
The attorneys of Savinis, Kane & Gallucci, LLC, hope that no readers of their personal injury blog ever have to deal with a medical misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose situation. However, should such a situation occur, victims of medical malpractice may want to review the firm’s website for more information.