When your health fails, you turn to your doctor. You trust they will use their knowledge and experience to effectively care for you.
Unfortunately, doctors and other healthcare professionals are not infallible. Sometimes their actions fall below the recognized standards of care.
As a result, you or a loved one may be left with serious, and sometimes, lifelong physical or psychological limitations and disabilities.
You may be eligible to file a medical malpractice claim and hold the healthcare professional responsible.
You need an experienced and committed medical malpractice lawyer on your side. At Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico, we have decades of combined legal experience.
If you think you are the victim of medical practice, speak with one of our legal professionals today.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice is a specialized type of personal injury. It refers to an error or failure of a healthcare professional to meet the standard of care that a healthcare professional with the same education and experience under the same circumstances would have met.
Who Can Be Held Liable for Medical Malpractice?
When you think of medical malpractice, you probably think of a negligent general practitioner. However, there is a vast amount of healthcare professionals who can be liable for medical malpractice, including the following:
- Specialist doctors,
- Nurses,
- Nursing assistants,
- Therapists,
- Counselors,
- Surgeons,
- Hospitals, and
- Dentists.
Specialist doctors can include anesthesiologists, cardiologists, oncologists, and neurologists.
What Are Medical Malpractice Injuries?
Medical malpractice is more common than you think. Typical medical malpractice injuries include the following:
- Surgical errors,
- Failure to diagnose a condition,
- Infection,
- Brain injury,
- Birth injuries,
- Delayed diagnosis,
- Prescription errors,
- Anesthesia errors,
- Misdiagnosis,
- Emergency room errors,
- Amputations, and
- Failure to provide follow-up care or treatment.
Failure to diagnose encompasses a larger area, such as failure to diagnose cancer, a heart attack, or a stroke.
What Compensation Can I Recover in a Medical Malpractice Claim?
No two medical malpractice cases result in the same injuries and financial turmoil. So it’s hard to put an exact value on your case without reviewing the surrounding facts and circumstances.
At Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico, our seasoned attorneys have experience in calculating fair damages.
Maryland law allows for recovery from physical injuries as well as emotional and psychological injuries. We know money can never heal your injuries or reverse the damage done. Our goal is to make you as whole as possible.
Economic Damages
Economic damages refer to quantifiable financial injuries, such as medical expenses and loss of income.
Recoverable medical expenses include the following:
- Doctor visits,
- Hospital stays,
- Surgeries,
- Medications,
- Tests,
- Rehabilitation, and
- Home nursing care.
Any time off work and changes to employment that result in less income can be recovered. For example, suppose a doctor’s failure to diagnose a heart attack caused the patient to suffer a second, more serious heart attack.
If the patient needs to change their status from a full-time employee to a part-time employee, they may be able to recover the income difference between full and part-time.
Noneconomic Damages
Noneconomic damages refer to damages that are emotional and psychological. The calculation of these damages is subjective. Typical noneconomic damages include:
- Pain and suffering,
- Emotional distress,
- Loss of enjoyment of life,
- Reduction in quality of life, and
- Loss of consortium.
Maryland law has a cap, or limit, on the amount of noneconomic damages. You are not able to recover more noneconomic damages than the limit.
Note that your economic expenses do not have a cap and are not included in this calculation.
Why Do You Need Medical Malpractice Lawyers in Essex?
Medical malpractice is a complicated area of law. Having a medical malpractice lawyer represent you is highly recommended.
Maryland, unlike most other states, is a pure contributory negligence state. Victims of medical malpractice and other personal injuries can only recover if they are not responsible for their injuries.
Suppose the medical professional can prove you are at least 1% responsible for your injuries. In that case, you won’t be able to recover any compensation, even though the medical professional is 99% responsible for your injuries.
You need a medical malpractice lawyer to protect the integrity of your case. Hospitals and doctors are protected by big law firms with unlimited resources and expert witnesses ready to tear apart your case.
You need a team of fearless and dedicated medical malpractice lawyers on your side with the resources and experience required to counter the attacks against your case.
How Long Do You Have to Bring a Medical Malpractice Claim?
Personal injury cases have deadlines for victims to bring their lawsuits. This deadline is called the statute of limitations. Once this deadline passes, you are generally barred from financial recovery.
Medical malpractice claims are not like car accidents or slip and fall incidents where the victim knows immediately that they are injured.
You may not realize your healthcare provider’s error or failure to act until years later when you begin to suffer symptoms or are diagnosed with a condition.
Because of this, Maryland law has a special statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims. Medical malpractice victims must bring their claim:
- Three years from the date the injury was discovered, but
- No later than five years from the date of the injury.
We don’t want you to lose your opportunity to recover. Therefore, you must contact a medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible.
Even if you think your deadline expired, contact our office. Rare exceptions to the medical malpractice statute of limitations may be applicable.
Contact an Essex Lawyer for Your Medical Malpractice Case
Just because a lawyer practices personal injury does not mean they have the experience and resources to tackle a medical malpractice claim.
At Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico, we are national leaders in medical malpractice and complex mass tort cases. We have secured millions of dollars for our clients.
Contact our office and set up a free case consultation with one of our medical negligence lawyers in Essex.
FAQs
Here are some common questions about medical malpractice claims.
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Medical Malpractice Attorney?
We operate on a contingency basis. We won’t ask you for any money upfront. We only get paid if we secure a negotiated settlement or court verdict in your favor. You won’t owe us anything if you don’t win your case.
How Do You File a Medical Malpractice Claim?
Maryland medical malpractice law is very detailed and requires a knowledgeable attorney. There are specific requirements that must be met in order to move forward with your lawsuit.
Our experienced attorneys at Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico understand the legal processes involved in medical malpractice claims. We will file your case in the proper place.
Do I Need a Medical Malpractice Attorney with Trial Experience?
Most medical malpractice cases are settled outside of the courtroom during negotiations. Only a tiny percentage proceed to trial. However, if your case does move to trial, you don’t want to be left with an unexperienced trial attorney.
Our lawyers have a vast amount of trial experience. We are not afraid to take your case to trial if the insurance companies fail to offer you a settlement that sufficiently compensates you for your injuries.