If you believe that your doctor or healthcare staff have neglected you – or – you have been misdiagnosed with an illness, you might be wondering whether or not you can sue your doctor for negligence or injury.
Typically, if you sue, such a case involves a physician and then a whole lot of more physicians. The thing is that in today’s world, doctors are actually employees, which means that if you have a strong case, you can file a lawsuit against a doctor, a hospital, and any employee of the clinic or hospital.
Physicians Are Employees Like Everyone Else
If a physician is arguably negligent or fails to diagnose some potential problem that leads to damages – generally – the proper defendants, in that case, will be those physicians. There may as well be ancillary personnel involved. There may as well be an employer, a hospital, or a health company that employs physicians and their ancillary helpers.
Employers Can Be Held Responsible
All of these individuals can be named in the lawsuit. When you name these individuals – you generally name their employers as well. This aspect comes under the doctrine known as respondeat superior. In this case, the employer is actually responsible for the actions and inactions of its employees.
It is important to mention here that these aspects can come in handy when you plead these cases. So, you will want to name every potential defendant, and by doing so, you open a number of potential sources for payment available to a successful plaintiff.
On that note, it is a place where having medical knowledge and, more importantly, experience in doing this type of work – ends up manifesting itself as a better outcome for the potential plaintiff. So, you are encouraged to consider bringing this type of lawsuit if you feel you have been a victim in one of such circumstances.
It is equally important to discuss your case and relevant scenarios with an experienced injury lawyer, such as the Peterson Law Office lawyers, as an attorney who specializes in this field will be in the ideal position to guide you about the next steps so that you can receive compensation for the damages.
The Importance of Getting An Experienced Lawyer
If you want to sue a healthcare professional or a hospital for negligence, pain, suffering, or the failure to diagnose your illness, you must ensure to hire an experienced lawyer. The underlying reason is that an experienced lawyer will ensure a better outcome in the long term.
At the time of hiring a lawyer, you shouldn’t be afraid of asking questions. As a matter of fact, you should ensure that you understand what the potential plan is for the litigation. Make sure to have a good working relationship with your attorney because you need to have that relationship.
To set the right expectations from your lawyer, make sure to ask them about when they will be able to respond to your emails or return your calls. This way, you will feel less disappointed later as you will know what to expect and how long you will be hearing from your attorney.
Tell Your Lawyer Everything
Your lawyer is the only person you can trust in such cases. Instead of talking to the wrong people and sharing your experience over social media, you should discuss everything with your lawyer. In other words, make sure your lawyer knows all the facts they need to do their job and do it well.
So, as mentioned before – you can absolutely sue your doctor. You can also sue other health professionals who may have been part of the treatment. While you are at it, you can also name the employer, the health service entity, the hospital, and all other entities where negligence possibly may accrue.
All these aspects need to be named in the initial pleading, as this is the best time to do so. The thing is that it is much easier to dismiss defendants in the course of a lawsuit early as opposed to adding them later.
Steps Needed to Sue a Doctor
You will also want to identify whether there was a problem as early as possible. You might be aware of the statute of limitations wherein if you wish to bring a lawsuit, you may not be able to as it might be time-barred.
Step1: Identification
So, the first step is to identify whether or not negligence occurs. And you will want to do this with the help of a lawyer as soon as possible. You can do so by requesting medical records and having them reviewed by an attorney – possibly with the help of an expert attorney.
The expert will be able to more or less look at the medicine involved and ensure that there could potentially be a case there.
Step 2: Medical Records
The next step is to collect all your medical records so you can have them viewed by a qualified and experienced attorney. The attorney may or may not require the assistance of a medical expert who is well-versed in that particular area of medicine or healthcare.
Again, you will want to get in touch with a lawyer as soon as possible if you get the slightest indication that your doctor or healthcare unit has failed to diagnose your illness the right way. Keep in mind that in legal issues, time is always a big factor, as it can make a real difference in whether you are successful or not in the long run.
The Takeaway
Nobody likes or wants to sue their doctor, as it is not a fun scenario. It is also not something that people are looking at to grab money. Nobody wants to go through a case of medical negligence, pain, and suffering because if you aren’t in a situation that violates what is known as the standard of care – you will do yourself a great deal of damage.
The best thing to do is to talk to an experienced lawyer who has dealt with such types of cases before so you can win the case and receive compensation for the damages.