Medical Negligence After An Auto Accident- Who Is Responsible For Compensation?

If you are injured in an auto accident, an auto accident lawyer can help you to receive compensation for your injuries by proving that they were caused by driver negligence.

This could be from mistakes made by the driver of a vehicle in which you were a passenger, or by the driver of another vehicle that caused your vehicle to become involved in an accident. The insurance company of the offending driver is then responsible for expenses incurred for injuries sustained in the accident.

However, who is responsible when you are injured further by medical malpractice or negligence during the treatment for your injuries?

Compensation for Medical Negligence

Medical negligence can occur at any point of treatment. Negligence is the failure of a medical care provider to provide a minimum standard of care, as determined by their training.

Negligence at the scene of the accident

Emergency medical technicians, who are the first providers of medical treatment at the site of a serious auto accident, can fail to recognize a serious injury and provide improper emergency care. They may also administer medication that is harmful to the victim, or withhold medication that is necessary to prevent further physical damage to the victim.

Negligence at the hospital

Hospital staff is expected to follow protocol for reducing the spread of drug resistant bacteria such as MRSA, such as changing gloves after handling each individual patient, frequent hand washing with special antibacterial soaps, and cleaning invasive tools and machinery.

This type of bacteria is easily spread in hospitals, where compromised immune systems, massive use of antibiotics, and open wounds abound. Patients that contract MRSA in a hospital setting are often in more danger of prolonged illness or death from the infection than from their original injuries.

Medical malpractice by physicians

Malpractice occurs when a physician either performs a medical procedure that causes further harm to a patient, or by refraining from performing a procedure and causing harm.

A medical malpractice attorney will fight for compensation for victims in these types of cases. In order to show malpractice, the attorney must prove the following:

​Obligation

A physician has an obligation to provide treatment that meets a standard that matches their training and education. This standard is determined by both local norms and by national certification boards.

Failure to perform their obligation

The attorney must show that the physician failed to live up to their obligation to provide effective treatment. This can be proven by obtaining the testimony of other physicians or medical experts to determine the proper course of action that should have been taken.

Cause and effect

The attorney must prove that the physician's actions were a direct cause of the patient's condition.

Compensation

A medical malpractice attorney can seek compensation for the physical issues caused by the physician's errors. They can also seek further damages for pain and mental anguish that resulted from the injuries or illness.

If the malpractice shows extreme negligence by the physician, a civil court may also award punitive damages as a warning to the offending physician and an incentive to other physicians who may not be living up to their oath to "do no harm."

For more information, contact Davidson Law Center Inc or a similar firm.

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