Both failure to diagnose and delayed diagnosis, a closely related and similar issue, are possible grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. This is something that needs to be discussed with a skilled attorney familiar with handling cases such as this. This is an extremely difficult area of the law and your attorney’s experience will be a boon to ensuring a just settlement for your case.
The facts are that with some kinds of conditions, any delay in treatment or diagnosis allows the disease to progress beyond the stage where anyone is able to do anything about it. For instance, not diagnosing cancer in time will often boil down to life or death for the patient, while the doctor still carries on practice no matter what the outcome may be.
Recent figures show that approximately 40% of all medical malpractice claims are the result of a failure to diagnose a disease. If you or someone in your family is in or has been in a situation like this, then you urgently need to know what your legal rights are and how you may be able to file a med mal lawsuit.
If your condition was not diagnosed at all, the failure to do so is considered negligent and you may be eligible for compensation to pay for your bills and suffering. It is considered to be negligence because the physician has a duty to be able to spot the signs and symptoms of various conditions. If the doctor sees things they can’t figure out, it’s up to them to find the cause of your medical problems.
If they do not do that, this may result in a delayed diagnosis, an underdiagnosis (that something is not as serious as it may very well be on further examination) or a total failure to diagnose. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that if a person’s medical condition is not treated and they don’t even get the chance to have treatment because their doctor didn’t do his or her job, then the underlying condition may well escalate in to something a bit more deadly.
The shocking thing that most people don’t realize is that insurance companies may also be held responsible and accountable for a failure to diagnose. How is this possible you ask? Look at the higher number of medical malpractice claims over the last few years. Then check the stats for cancer. Cancer is one of “the” most common conditions that physicians fail to diagnose. Insurance companies have been forking over money for failing to diagnose cancer as compared to any other claims.
While it might sound on the surface like it’s no big deal that a doctor failed to diagnose a medical condition, after all they are human beings as well, the ultimate price to be paid for something like this may well be paid by the death of a patient. In a world that thinks medical doctors have all the answers, a failure to diagnose comes as a terribly upsetting shock. Yet another reason why you need to consult with a seasoned medical malpractice attorney who is familiar with these kinds of cases.
Don’t wait to speak to an attorney about a situation that may be classified as medical malpractice, as the statute of limitations in many states is fairly short. If you wait too long, you won’t be able to file a med mal claim.
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