Imagine the following scenario: You go to the doctor or the hospital for medical care, and the treatment you receive actually makes you worse rather than better. This is the nightmare that thousands of Americans live through each year, sometimes with catastrophic results. While the victims of medical malpractice invariably have dozens of questions, foremost among them is often, “Who is liable for my injuries?” While we would love to provide a simple answer to this question, as is often the case in law, the answer is, “It depends.” It depends, in large part, on whose negligence caused your injuries and their employment relationship to the hospital, clinic, or other facility you visited for care. Below is some basic information about liability in medical malpractice cases. For specific advice about your potential medical malpractice case, please call our office today at (860) 447-3300 or contact us online.
Medical Malpractice and Vicarious Liability
Medical malpractice occurs when a medical professional breaches the prevailing professional standard of care. Under Connecticut Law, that standard of care is the level of care, skill, and treatment that, under the relevant circumstances, is recognized as acceptable and appropriate by reasonably prudent and similar healthcare providers. While people typically associate medical malpractice with doctors and surgeons, many healthcare professional can commit medical malpractice, including:- Nurse practitioners
- Physical therapists
- Pharmacists
- Chiropractors
- Dentists
- Psychologists
What Does Medical Malpractice Look Like?
If you’re confused about what exactly medical malpractice is, keep in mind that not every adverse medical outcome means that malpractice has occurred. The injury must result from the negligence of a medical professional. Examples of mistakes that would likely rise to the level of negligence include:- Operating on the wrong body part
- Operating on the wrong patient
- Performing the incorrect procedure
- Failing to diagnose a disease or condition when a patient presents with symptoms indicative of that disease or condition
- Failing to order certain tests when a reasonable healthcare professional would have ordered them
- Prescribing the wrong medication
- Prescribing an incorrect dosage of medication