Doral Palms Hospital is a relatively small hospital able to house up to 88 patients. It is located near the Vanderbilt Park in Miami-Dade County. With the small number of patients that they are able to care for at any given time, as a prospective patient, you would assume that the quality of service and care provided by this facility would be of a higher quality than from a hospital that is able to care for hundreds of patients.
This could be true, but it could also have no relevance. That just indicates that there will be fewer medical professionals working at the facility. It is possible to become a victim of medical malpractice at any facility you go seek aid from, even one that focuses only on ‘one patient’ at a time. Any medical provider is able to perform a medical negligence like a cardiologist, an anesthesiologist, a gynecologist, a pediatrician, a nurse, a surgeon, an obstetrician, and more.
Whenever you are in the presence of a medical provider, you need to remain vigilant and never let your guard down. The best way to avoid becoming a victim of medical malpractice is becoming educated on the notion.
Doral Palms Hospital offers the following services where a medical negligence could lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit:
- Services of Alcohol And/Or Drug
- Services of Clinical Laboratory
- Services of Diagnostic Radiology
- Services of Dietary
- Services of Outpatient
- Services of Pharmacy
- Services of Physical Therapy
- Services of Psychiatric
- Services of Respiratory Care
- Services of Social
At the moment of a medical malpractice situation, many patients might remain unaware of the occurrence at that moment. It may take weeks, months, and even years before the medical negligence of a healthcare professional becomes visible to the patient. For that reason, as mentioned before, becoming knowledgeable about the notion of medical malpractice is a key element in preventing additional damages to yourself and ensuring that you can file a medical malpractice lawsuit in time, essential aspects that our team of best medical malpractice lawyers in Miami, FL comprehend.
Scenarios Leading to Medical Malpractice
In order for a medical malpractice situation to happen, there must have been some form of medical negligence. Furthermore, in order for a medical malpractice lawsuit to be valid, the medical negligence committed must have injured or killed the patient. Those elements are just a basic requirement in order to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. Now, let’s discover some scenarios during your treatment that could potentially become a medical malpractice case:
- Discharged too soon malpractice lawsuit: Many people wonder whether being discharged from the medical facility too soon can amount to a medical malpractice; well it can. If a physician decides to discharge you before you are medically stable enough and you obtain an injury after your discharge, you might have a medical malpractice claim at your hands. Often times, hospitals will discharge patients quickly to get new patients in because they may be overcrowded, a mistake that could cost the well-being of the patient. Medical providers are supposed to ensure that you are stable enough before allowing you to go. They might believe that they are no longer liable the moment you step foot outside the hospital door, but that is simply not true.
- Patient abandonment medical malpractice lawsuit: What is patient abandonment? This notion refers to the relationship between the doctor and patient being terminated with no apparent valid reason. Let’s say that you are being treated at the hospital for pneumonia, a critical condition that can lead to death if left untreated. You do not have the means to pay for your medical bills, and the doctor decides that he wants to end the relationship with you and abandons you. If by abandoning you, you suffer additional damages, that would be considered medical malpractice. Patient abandonment can occur with any medical provider, not just with a doctor. They have to have a valid reason in order for it not to be considered patient abandonment like lacking the skill to treat your condition.
- Birth-related medical malpractice lawsuit: This type of medical malpractice can happen when negligence is performed by a health care provider or entity, that can lead to one of the following: injury to the baby or mother during her delivery or throughout her pregnancy, wrongful birth (when the parents would have aborted their child had they known their baby was suffering some type of condition or birth defect), and wrongful pregnancy (when failure of becoming pregnant occurs). These three occurrences have their limits on the damages and who can be sued. Discover more in detail here.
- Diagnostic medical malpractice lawsuit: The vast majority of medical malpractice claims stem from this scenario: misdiagnosis of an injury, illness, or condition that you may have. When we speak about “misdiagnosis” we are referring to your current issue not being given the proper diagnosis. In addition to misdiagnosis, patients often experience a delay in their diagnosis or are not even given one at all. Did you know that twelve million Americans become victims of a misdiagnosis each year? Shocking, right? How can that even be possible? With all of the technology and advances in medicine, how are patients still at the hands of so many risks?
The number of different scenarios that a patient can go through and experience medical malpractice is of a great abundance. When a patient has experienced medical malpractice at Doral Palms Hospital, they should contact experienced medical malpractice attorneys at Percy Martinez Law Firm in Miami, FL to discuss what options may be available to them for their specific case.
Procedure of Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
If you intend on filing a medical malpractice lawsuit, you must know the steps it takes in order to achieve it and the provisions needed. Medical malpractice claims are extremely complex. They involve many legal issues like causation and “standard of care” that the normal individual might not comprehend. For that matter, it is important that victims of medical malpractice seek a reliable lawyer to combat by their side and help them file a medical malpractice lawsuit. This following information will help you better understand:
- First of all, in order for a situation of medical negligence to be considered medical malpractice, the care provided by the physician must have fallen below the medical standard of care. Secondly, that lack of care must have resulted in your injury/death, and lastly, that the damage done was substantial. In other words, no harm, no foul. In order to show how the medical standard of care was not closely followed, an expert witness will prove the medical negligence performed by the alleged physician.
- In conjunction with your potential medical malpractice lawsuit, many states mandate that you also file an affidavit of merit. If you want to know whether your particular case requires one, and if it does, that you receive the best advice in order to have a successful claim, contact our skilled team of Miami medical malpractice attorneys. By doing so, you ensure that your claim is not dismissed by the court.
Before comprehending the steps to file a medical malpractice lawsuit, you must have a firm understanding of the various medical positions that you could be in that can amount to one. Many individuals might not know that even a bedsore due to not moving a patient can lead to a medical malpractice case. If you are unsure whether the medical treatment received at Doral Palms Hospital could be a possible medical malpractice claim, consult free-of-charge with an expert attorney from our Miami Firm for medical malpractice.
Figures and Facts of US Medical Malpractice
Many Americans are unaware of the scary reality of the medical field. They place their trust in the system that is meant to care for them and make them better, but often times, fail to do so. Just look at these numbers and facts so you can grasp a better understanding of it:
- The cap for non-economic damages in the state of Florida is between 500k to 1 million
- General surgery claims of medical negligence tend to surface the most
- More people die from medical malpractice than from vehicle crashes on an annual basis
- On average, misdiagnosis occurs at least once in an individual’s life, amounting to 14 million cases each year
- Florida is in the top 5 states for medical malpractice payouts
- In 2013, 31% of medical malpractice claims were due to death as an aftermath, and 33% of those allegations were for errors with their diagnosis
- Wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits are comprised of 15% of them being due to medical malpractice
- About 20,000 claims for medical malpractice will be filed every year
Chart shows Claims of Medical Negligence Received by NHS in 2013 by specialty
| Orthopedic surgery | 15% |
| Casualty/ A&E | 12% |
| General Surgery | 11% |
| Obstetrics | 11% |
| Gynecology | 6% |
| General Medicine | 6% |
| Radiology | 3% |
| Urology | 2% |
| Pediatrics | 2% |
| Psychiatry/ Mental Health | 2% |
| Other (aggregated specialties) | 30% |
*Information provided by Negligenceclaimline
Cases of Medical Malpractice in Florida
Perforated Artery
In 2006, a woman was suffering from headaches and sought aid at University of Florida’s Shands Teaching Hospital. They discovered that she had a non-bleeding aneurysm in her brain and proceeded to perform surgery on her. They inserted coils into her aneurysm, but a mistake was made—they perforated an artery in her brain, leading her down a road of disastrous consequences. The woman suffered significant permanent brain damage and was awarded 23 million dollars as compensation for those damages.
Distractions in the Delivery Room
A Florida couple was awarded 33.8 million dollars after their new born baby suffered permanent brain damage. It was found that the doctor delivering the infant was constantly leaving the room of operation to talk on his phone and was distracted and failed to notice that the baby was in fetal distress. This resulted in a lack of oxygen of the baby resulting in cerebral palsy and scoliosis. The baby cannot speak, eat on his own, or breathe.
Reaching Out to a Practiced Lawyer for Medical Malpractice in Miami, FL
The best road to take when you have encountered a moment of medical negligence or your loved one is suffering due to the effects of the medical mistake is to reach out to a lawyer experienced in medical malpractice at Percy Martinez Law Firm Miami, FL. As you have learned by all of this information, medical lawsuits are complex and cannot be attained by just any personal injury lawyer. Our firm has a proven record, along with our compassionate nature. If you are too hurt to come to us, do not worry, we will go to you. Call us today; you really have nothing to lose.
References:
- http://www.hospital-data.com/hospitals/DORAL-PALMS-HOSPITAL-MIAMI.html
- https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/if-youre-discharged-too-soon-is-it-medical-malpractice.html
- https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/birth-related-medical-malpractice-30150.html
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/12-million-americans-misdiagnosed-each-year-study-says/
- https://www.negligenceclaimline.co.uk/advice/Key-Statistics-for-Clinical-Negligence-Claims-Against-the-NHS
- https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/legal-regulatory-issues/29-statistics-on-medical-malpractice-payouts-and-lawsuits.html
- https://wmwlawfirm.com/medical-malpractice-statistics-lawsuit-information/
- https://www.grossmanroth.com/jury-awards-florida-woman-23-million-in-medical-malpractice-lawsuit/
- https://www.medmalfirm.com/resources/articles/florida-couple-awarded-33-8-million-medical-malpractice-case
- https://www.google.com/search?q=cases+of+medical+malpractice+in+florida&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwitrbHMppLdAhXus1kKHVdzAk4Q_AUIDCgD&biw=1920&bih=933#imgrc=tlfS2lwHtQiMgM
- https://www.google.com/search?q=hospital+malpractice&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjy3Kf4qJLdAhXBtlkKHdRKD1sQ_AUIDCgD&biw=1920&bih=933#imgrc=Jt8KgFx8r1_efM