If you sustained a severe injury or lost a loved one due to medical negligence, you deserve to hold the at-fault parties responsible for their failures. Unfortunately, medical malpractice can be challenging to prove, and the insurance companies and hospitals often fight these types of cases to avoid paying any compensation.

An Erie medical malpractice lawyer could help investigate your claim, determine your legal options, and advocate for your right to recover compensation. Our personal injury attorneys have significant experience helping injured parties through these challenging claims.

What is Medical Negligence?

Medical negligence happens when a healthcare professional fails to provide adequate care according to medical standards. Typically, this failure results from an inaccurate diagnosis, lack of treatment, or inappropriate treatment. For example, a doctor may assume that a medical condition is harmless or less severe than it actually is. This could result in a failure to order testing that could have revealed the correct diagnosis and prevented a severe injury or death.

Proving medical malpractice typically requires establishing that the injured individual was a patient of the negligent medical provider, the healthcare provider did not act per accepted medical standards, the patient suffered injuries or damages, and the harm resulted from the medical professional’s breach of the duty of care. A skilled Erie malpractice attorney could help determine the liable parties and how their actions deviated from the standard of care. State law permits an injured individual or the deceased person’s family member to seek compensation for the damages caused by the negligent medical professionals and hospitals.

What Common Medical Mistakes Give Rise to Malpractice Claims?

Importantly, not all adverse medical outcomes give a patient the legal right to recover for any harm they suffered. Medical malpractice claims require a mistake that a reasonable doctor or other medical provider would not have made under the circumstances. Some examples of the type of mistakes that may give an individual the right to seek compensation for medical negligence include:

  • Failure to diagnose or misdiagnosing an illness or disease
  • Failure to disclose or warn a patient of potential side effects of medication or a medical procedure
  • Errors in surgery
  • Errors in prescribing medication
  • Incompetent treatment or care

Proving that a doctor or other medical care provider deviated from the accepted standard of care can be a difficult task for an injured individual. A knowledgeable Erie lawyer understands how to prove that a healthcare professional acted negligently in a medical malpractice case.

Deadline for Filing a Medical Malpractice Claim

Under state law, there is typically a two-year statute of limitations for cases involving medical malpractice, according to 42 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes § 5524. If a lawsuit is not filed within this timeframe, the injured individual may be barred from recovering compensation for their damages. However, state law does allow for some exceptions that may extend the period for filing a medical malpractice claim. One exception involves the discovery rule, which relates to when an illness or injury was discovered following medical negligence.

Retaining an Erie attorney soon after discovering an injury could help ensure that a medical malpractice claim is filed within the statute of limitations. These cases take time to investigate, so it is crucial to reach out to legal counsel as soon as possible.

Contact an Erie Medical Malpractice Attorney Today

When you are sick or injured, you typically turn to medical professionals for diagnosis and treatment. You expect the doctors and medical personnel to be competent and provide suitable care for your illness or injury. However, when healthcare providers act negligently, their mistakes can cause severe injuries or even death.

An Erie medical malpractice lawyer understands the complexities of these types of cases and could advise you throughout every stage of the proceedings. Schedule your case consultation today to help determine the merits of your claim.

LOWENTHAL AND ABRAMS, P.C.

LOWENTHAL AND ABRAMS, P.C.
N/a
national trial lawyers
philadelphia life awesome attorneys
Suburban life
newsweek top attorney
ASLA award
million dollar advocated forum 
million dollar advocated forum 
bbb accredited business
2019-10-BEST-PIA
Silver Badge
best personal injury lawyers in Philadelphia 2022 award
How Can We Help?

Contact us for a FREE consultation. No fee unless compensated.

Bala Cynwyd
Philadelphia
Harrisburg
Pittsburgh
Erie
Cherry Hill
New Brunswick
New York