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November 19, 2020 by PILLI Law

Rare Conditions and Medical Malpractice

Personal Injury Lawyer

In medical negligence lawsuits, the defense will throw every single defense against the wall to see if it will stick. They can be wrong nine out of ten times, but that tenth time can cost the plaintiff a verdict. There are stock defenses that defense lawyers use in every medical malpractice case when available. By contrast, if a plaintiff’s medical negligence lawyer were to make every possible argument, including contradictory ones, the jury would laugh him or her out of the courtroom immediately.

One common defense is the rare condition defense. It crops up in those cases when an individual has a rare medical condition or has an atypical presentation of a common medical condition. In these instances, the defense will argue that the doctor misdiagnosed the condition because it is not a common one or because the presentation was not classic. This argument is often faulty.

In virtually every case involving a missed diagnosis, such as a missed heart attack, pulmonary embolism, ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, cancer or vasculitis, the standard of care is dictated by the differential method of diagnosis. Every doctor is taught the differential method of diagnosis. It has several core principles. One core principle is that the doctor is required to establish the patient’s chief complaint, take a history and perform a physical exam. After completing these three steps, the physician should make a list of all potential medical conditions that could explain the patient’s symptoms. This is called the differential diagnosis.

Another core principle is that the physician has a duty to rule out those conditions that do not fit in explaining the patient’s symptoms. This can be done through testing, such as blood work, urinalysis and imaging such as MRI, CT scan or x-ray, genetic testing. EEG, EMG or other tests. The working diagnosis derived from the history and physical exam drives the testing required to rule in or rule out the final and correct diagnosis.

Another core principle is that when items on the differential diagnosis list are life-threatening, the physician has a duty to rule those in or out through appropriate testing first in order to save the patient’s life if it is at risk. Therefore, when heart attack or pulmonary embolism is on the differential list, the physician should move quickly to rule those items out since either one can cause immediate death.

Frequently, a misdiagnosis occurs because the physician jumps to conclusions or skips portions of the workup in establishing a differential diagnosis. The physician may rule out serious, life-threatening medical conditions based on a hunch or the failure to fully listen to the patient.

A rare condition or an unusual presentation of a common condition may or may not furnish a valid excuse for a physician’s failure to diagnose. If the physician does not create a complete differential list or rules conditions out without appropriate testing or inquiry, then the doctor may not have a valid excuse for failing to come to the proper diagnosis.

A misdiagnosis can have devastating consequences. The misdiagnosis can result in a delay in treatment or a delay in diagnosis. Delayed treatment or delayed diagnosis can result in a medical condition progressing from an early, treatable stage to a later, deadly stage. Thus, when confronted with the rare cause defense, your medical negligence lawyer will look to the differential diagnosis to see if in fact the misdiagnosis was warranted.

If you have questions about a case, contact a personal injury attorney, like Mishkind Kulwicki Law Co., L.P.A.,a personal injury attorney, for advice.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With: personal injury attorney

June 18, 2020 by PILLI Law

Find a Hospital Accident Attorney For Your Case

Personal Injury Attorney

Determining if you have a case for a hospital accident lawyer can be complicated. You may be concerned that if you bring anything up to a hospital accident lawyer they will not give you the time of day. However, it is important to know that even if you are not sure if you have the necessary evidence, your hospital accident attorney, like a medical malpractice attorney can help gather evidence that you were not able to get. They are also very familiar with the legal proceedings of hospital accident cases and medical malpractice cases and know where to look for evidence and know which laws will apply. Even if you are unsure of what to do, the best thing you can do when you come home from the hospital is to seek out a hospital accident lawyer. 

When might I have a hospital accident case?

You may wonder if you have a case at all. There are a few things that can help you determine this. If you have left the hospital with an illness or injury that you did not have when you were admitted, this does not necessarily mean that you have a hospital accident case on your hands. When determining if a lawsuit is applicable, you will want to know that the person who was responsible for providing you with care (a doctor, a nurse) failed to give you reasonable care. So, if you were walking down the hospital’s hallway on your way to visit a family member who got out of surgery and you tripped over your own shoelaces and broke your arm, you would likely not have substantial evidence for a claim. In this circumstance, the accident was your fault and you could have been more careful. 

What do you mean when you talk about “reasonable care?”

The reasonable standard of care is an important idea when it comes to hospital accident cases. When we want to know if the person responsible for taking care of you did the best they could, we will look to see if other experts would have done the same thing. If a doctor determined that amputation was the best way to save you from a deadly injury and you believe they could have saved you without amputating an arm, we would discuss this with other expert medical witnesses. We would want to know if another doctor who has the same amount of training in the same situation would have done the exact same thing. If other doctors believe this was the best course of treatment, it would be hard to prove that negligence occurred. However, if other medical providers stated that more could have been done to save your limb, we may have good evidence in our hospital accident case.

If you would like to speak with a hospital accident attorney, please contact a law office now. 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: personal injury attorney

February 6, 2020 by PILLI Law

What is a Contingency Fee?

When you are involved in a personal injury incident — whether it is a motor vehicle accident, slip and fall, medical malpractice, or even a dog bite — you may need to seek the assistance of a personal injury attorney to pursue a personal injury claim. Usually, a personal injury attorney is contacted as soon as the injury is incurred so an individual can understand their legal options in this situation. 

You may notice that when you speak with a personal injury attorney, like a personal injury attorney in Atlanta, GA, not only is the consultation free but there is nothing charged upfront once the attorney is retained. This is because personal injury attorneys work on what is called a “contingency fee” basis. Contingency fees are a contractual agreement between an attorney and a client simply stating that the client will not owe anything until — or unless — a settlement is reached in the case. This also means that any filing fees, costs for expert witnesses, or cost for medical records and bills will be paid out-of-pocket by the attorney. In most personal injury contracts, attorneys ask for a percentage of the awarded money once your case reaches a settlement. This may also mean, depending on the contract, that if you do not get paid from this lawsuit, neither will they, no matter how much they worked on your case. When the attorney meets their end of the contact at the end of the case, they are paid out of the settlement. There may be other stipulations in a case such as paying back any deposition or filing fees. 

The benefit of a contract on a contingency basis is that the involved parties do not have to pay for anything while they are in the process of treating for injuries that they sustained as a result of the incident at hand. This relieves some of the stress a victim is going through, as they know they should be covered while they treat their injuries.

Speaking with an attorney is very imperative to any personal injury case. Should you or someone you know be the victim of a personal injury caused by the negligence of another party, be sure to speak with an attorney as soon as possible. It is important to understand that talking with an attorney comes at no cost of an individual, and if you do decide to pursue a claim you will not have to pay an attorney either. Speak with a skilled attorney about your case as soon as possible.

Thanks to the law office of Andrew R. Lynch, P.C. for their insight into what working on a contingency fee basis is.

Filed Under: Personal Injury Tagged With: personal injury attorney

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