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Baltimore Surgery Malpractice Lawyers
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Surgical Malpractice In Maryland
Surgical treatments have certain dangers, however, this does not legitimize mistakes that cause injuries and fatalities. If a preventable surgical mistake causes damage to a patient, he or she has the right to bring a medical malpractice claim for compensation. If you or a loved one has been hurt as the result of a surgeon’s or medical malpractice, you should contact a skilled Baltimore surgery malpractice lawyer as soon as possible. Our legal team at Hyatt & Goldbloom has recovered millions of dollars on behalf of our clients in settlements and favorable jury verdicts. Don’t let surgical carelessness go unnoticed. Allow our medical malpractice attorneys to be your advocate. For a free evaluation of your case, contact our office right now.
What Is Surgical Malpractice?
A surgical mistake is defined as an avoidable mistake that happens during surgery. Surgical malpractice lawsuits are also based on any error that occurs throughout surgery, regardless of the cause. To have a valid claim, you must show that the surgeon, medical team, or hospital provided you with medical care that was below the accepted medical standard of care.
Furthermore, surgeons in Maryland are required by law to inform a patient of the possible hazards and advantages of, as well as alternatives to any surgical procedure. The surgeon must also get the patient’s written consent before proceeding. This duty is referred to as “informed consent.” If a surgeon fails to obtain your informed consent but nevertheless performs surgery resulting in your harm, you may have a case for surgical malpractice and should contact a Baltimore surgery malpractice lawyer who has experience representing these types of cases.
Common Surgical Errors In Maryland
There are a lot of things that can go wrong during even the most typical surgical operations, which is why safe hospitals and surgical teams take extreme measures. However, when faced with a particularly careless healthcare provider, all the precautions in the world will occasionally fail. During routine as well as critical operations, there are several surgical blunders that commonly occur:
Nerve Injuries
Surgeons are frequently called upon to operate near nerves, and surgical instruments may cut or damage a nerve. If the patient is in an uncomfortable position while under anesthesia, a pinched nerve can occur and cause serious long-term issues for the patient.
Anesthesia Errors
Excess anesthesia may result in oxygen deprivation and cause brain damage. However, if not enough anesthesia is given, a patient can wake up during surgery and experience severe agony and future trauma from the event.
Surgical Equipment Left Inside a Patient
Scalpels, clamps, sponges, and other surgical instruments are sometimes left in a patient’s body by the operating team without their knowledge. Surgical staff must adhere to strict procedures such as a “standard materials checklist” to avoid this from happening.
Wrong Body Part Surgery
Instead of treating inflammation, surgeons occasionally opt to remove a healthy organ from the “wrong side” in a “corrective procedure.” Rather than removing an unhealthy organ, they may amputate the incorrect limb.
Wrong Patient Surgery
Patients who have undergone the wrong surgery or had healthy organs that were unnecessarily removed as a result of a lack of preoperative verification or inadequate hospital procedure.
Reasons for Surgical Errors In Maryland
A negligence theory underpins medical malpractice claims. This means that contrary to the beliefs of some injured people, not every medical mistake is caused by malpractice. Surgeons can and do fail, and the law does not demand perfection from the surgeons involved in the procedure, especially if there are high risks. To support a medical malpractice claim in Maryland, the victim must show that the error was unjustified in light of the circumstances given by the surgeon. It begins with showing that the surgeon committed an act or omission considered negligent. Some of the most common types of surgical errors in Maryland include the following:
Incompetence
Inexperienced surgeons frequently lack the needed skill level to do specialist operations effectively. If they are not qualified and prepared to perform surgery and it fails, they may be held accountable by a Baltimore surgery malpractice lawyer.
Insufficient Preoperative Planning
A surgeon must be ready for a procedure not just based on the patient’s medical record, but also on possible issues. In addition, the surgical team has an obligation to ensure that all necessary equipment is available and prepared for use as needed by the surgeon.
Improper Procedures
Surgeons who take shortcuts or skip particular stages in a surgical procedure may harm a patient.
Poor Communication
When surgeons don’t talk to each other during surgery, it’s possible that they will make mistakes like wrong-side surgery, failing to check that all surgical equipment is ready, or mixing up the patient’s medication dosage, resulting in a medication error.
Fatigue
Surgeons who work long hours and conduct multiple operations are more susceptible to fatigue, which is a major cause of surgical mistakes.
Drugs/Alcohol
Surgical mistakes can occur when surgeons abuse drugs or alcohol to “self-medicate” or deal with stress, which can have an impact on their surgical performance and result in a medical catastrophe.
Neglect
Surgeons who do not take appropriate precautions, such as failing to ensure that instruments have been properly sterilized or using antiquated surgical equipment, may be held accountable for surgical malpractice.
Surgical malpractice claims are difficult, given the inherent dangers in all medical treatments, even minor operations. The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to contact our Baltimore surgery malpractice lawyers at Hyatt & Goldbloom.
Hemorrhaging During Surgery And Negligence
Surgical procedures have various dangers, although surgical negligence might cause the surgery to be deadly. The most frequent cause of death in the operating room is bleeding, which is known as hemorrhage. Surgeons and staff must respond promptly to stop excessive bleeding when patients lose a lot of blood fast. If severe hemorrhaging continues for a long time, the patient may suffer from numerous serious — frequently fatal – complications such as cardiac arrest, critically low blood pressure or oxygen in the body, or permanent brain or spinal cord injury. Researchers discovered that surgical blunders caused significant blood loss in a study of complicated operations:
- 27% involved inappropriate judgments by surgeons, anesthesiologists, or the surgical team
- 26% were caused by a lack of necessary skills
- 34% involved poor communication between surgeons and anesthesiologists
- 3% involved failure to recognize bleeding during an endoscopy
- 3% were caused by poor use of surgical tools
Furthermore, because of anesthesia problems, such as a lack of emergency anesthesiologists or delays in starting transfusions or ordering blood products, or a shortage of transfusion instruments, patients’ bleeding became less manageable.
Contact Our Baltimore Surgical Malpractice Lawyer
At Hyatt & Goldbloom, we’re committed to assisting surgical mistake victims in Maryland. We have a well-deserved reputation for providing strong representation and fighting tirelessly for our client’s rights. When you consult with our Baltimore surgery malpractice lawyer, we will utilize our talents and experience to demonstrate how the surgeon, medical team, or hospital was negligent so that you may obtain the compensation you deserve. Please contact our office now to schedule a free consultation and learn more about how we can help.