What is medical malpractice?
Medical malpractice is when a health care provider causes an injury or death to a patient by failing to provide a reasonable standard of care.

What is a reasonable standard of care?
This is the level of care and skill that an average qualified medical provider would provide to a patient seeking medical care for similar symptoms under similar conditions.

How does a case become medical malpractice?
A court will review the case and consider what a reasonable medical provider would have done under the same circumstances. If the medical provider did not meet that standard, they could be found negligent.

What kind of mistake is considered medical malpractice?

• Permission was not clearly given before your operation.
• The doctor misdiagnosed your condition.
• You operation was performed incorrectly.
• A problem arose, which should have been anticipated by the medical provider.

How do I know if I have a case?
A bad surgical outcome does not mean a doctor was negligent. Generally, it must be proven that no reasonable health care provider would have performed your procedure the way it was performed. It must be proven that your health care provider’s negligence was the cause of your injury or the death of a loved one.

I signed a consent form before my surgery. Do I still have a case?
It is common for patients to sign a consent, or approval, for a doctor to perform surgery. The form usually consents to the specific surgery as well as to any other procedures that may arise or become necessary. Before signing the consent, your doctor must explain the procedure to you specifically, including all risks of the surgery and consequences of not having the surgery. Regardless of whether or not you signed a consent form, if you can prove your physician misrepresented or failed to adequately inform you of the risks and benefits before the surgery, your consent may be invalid.