Medical Malpractice Lawyer in Charlottesville, VA

This is the leading cause of medical malpractice claims in the U.S., according to Diederich Healthcare. Patients suffer harm when a doctor fails to make a timely diagnosis of a condition such as cancer or when a doctor diagnoses a patient with the wrong condition.

Operating on the wrong body part or leaving a foreign object inside of a patient’s body such as a sponge are completely preventable mistakes. They are commonly called “never events.”

Mistakes that medical professionals make before, during and after a child’s delivery can cause birth injuries that lead to permanent health problems. Many children suffer from cerebral palsy, for instance, due to oxygen deprivation during birth.

Patients may suffer severe illness or death if they receive the wrong dose of medication or the wrong type of medication. Errors can occur when a doctor prescribes a drug, a pharmacist fills out the prescription or when a nurse or other health care worker administers the medication.

A patient can suffer serious harm if the patient receives too much or too little anesthesia during an operation. An anesthesiologist may also fail to check what other medications a patient is taking, which can lead to a negative reaction to anesthesia.

Many errors occur when emergency room doctors and nurses try to rush through the diagnosis and treatment of patients. In many cases, injuries result from ER workers’ failure to communicate information about a patient during shift changes or patient handoffs.

Medical professionals spread harmful bacteria if they use unclean equipment or simply fail to wash their hands or use sterilized gloves when they work with patients.