Medical malpractice cases can be very complex. Luckily our Minneapolis medical malpractice lawyers have thorough knowledge of all relevant laws. If a loved one has sustained an injury due to a medical procedure, you should definitely call our experts at Weston Law for assistance. Definitely don’t wait with this.
Our team at our Minnesota office has many years of experience handling various medical malpractice claims. Our team will litigate lawsuits on behalf of our clients, who may be patients or surviving family members of patients.
What is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice refers to professional negligence by a doctor or professional health care provider that leads to substandard treatment, resulting in injury to a patient.
You put a lot of trust in doctors, surgeons and nurses who are responsible for your well-being. Unfortunately, they also can make big medical mistakes if they are not careful. These mistakes or actions (or lack thereof) of the healthcare professional may be subject to medical malpractice.
There are 3 different types of medical malpractice.
Get in touch with us today, to learn about your specific case. Or read more about medical malpractice below. We will answer some of the most common questions here.
How Our Medical Malpractice Lawyers Work
Our Medical malpractice lawyers at Weston Law will perform the following tasks:
- We will work with medical experts to develop expert reports and case theories. We will also get testimonies to support the plaintiff’s case
- Our team will gather and analyze medical records to understand the full picture.
- We will take depositions of medical personnel, medical experts, and other third parties
- IME’s (short for independent medical examinations) will be set up to obtain an objective evaluation of the injured plaintiff’s condition.
- We will work with legal nurse consultants. This will help us to decipher doctor’s notes, review different medical records and analyze case merits.
- A lot more medical research will be performed to get the best overview of whether or not medical malpractice was the case.
It’s also important to note that a medical malpractice lawyer often specializes in specific types of medical malpractice cases such as surgery mistakes, birth injuries, dental malpractice, or nursing home abuse.
Common Causes of Medical Malpractice in Minnesota
At Weston Law, these are some of the typical causes of medical malpractice that we have experienced:
- A misdiagnosis
- Surgical Mistakes
- Neglecting of a patient
- Prescribing the wrong medication
- Providing the wrong treatment
- Performing nonconsensual surgery
- Refusing to offer proper treatment
- Delaying the necessary treatment
- Failing to inform you of the risks of treatment or a procedure
- Failing to refer a case to a specialist
- Pregnancy and childbirth errors
- Inadequate follow-up after procedure
- Negligence by the nursing staff
- Medical Device Errors
- Anesthesia Errors
- Post-surgical infections
- Errors due to bad training or inadequate staffing
These are some of the common issues. By no means is this a full overview of all causes.
When am I Eligible to Pursue Compensation?
How Can I Prove Medical Malpractice?
To prove medical malpractice, the patient must show that the healthcare professional acted negligently. That negligence directly caused harm to the patient.
These are some things to keep in mind to prove there is a case of medical malpractice:
- Damages: The injury has caused either economic or non-economic damages to the patient. When the patient suffers from emotional suffering or incurred additional medical bills,
- Duty of Care: The medical professional has a duty of care towards the treating patient. It’s his responsibility to treat the patient to the best of his abilities, and within the accepted standards of care.
- Breach of Duty: The medical professional has clearly violated above duty of care towards the patient.
- Causation: The patient has to prove that above breach of duty is directly related to the injury caused.
When all these things can be proven, a strong medical malpractice case can be started against the medical professional.
The Minnesota Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations
In Minnesota, medical malpractice cases are governed by the state’s statute of limitations. This is important to mention, because this statute creates a deadline for filing a medical malpractice lawsuit in court.
In Minnesota, the deadline is four years starting from the date ‘’the cause of action’’ accrued.
If the injury is obvious and it happens on the same day it occurs, it will start running on that day. Many times an injury happens later after the treatment, sometimes even months or years later. In these cases, the four-year window starts when the injured person knows, or should have known, something was wrong. This is also known as the ‘’discovery rule’’.
If you have been the victim of medical malpractice, get in touch with one of our personal injury attorney in Minnesota today. We will help and build your case to the best of our abilities.