What We Do For You
Medical malpractice law deals with mistakes, negligence, or wrongdoing by a medical professional or facility.
Medical malpractice cases can include negligent care or treatment, errors or mistakes in medical procedures and surgeries, failure to diagnose, mistakes in medication or dosage, inadequate credentialing, training, or supervision, and lack of informed consent.
These cases often have lasting impacts on the quality of life for the victim and, in the most unfortunate of circumstances, can even result in death.
Medical malpractice lawyers in Maryland can help you navigate the complexities these types of cases can often bring.
At the law firm of Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico, we understand how difficult it can be to process your experience and attempt to make sense of being harmed by a healthcare provider.
We have the trial-tested expertise and results-driven mindset to take on the complexities of your case. Our team of dedicated medical malpractice litigators can help you or your loved one get the justice you deserve.
To get started, please contact us today.
Types of Medical Malpractice Cases We Handle
Our Maryland medical malpractice lawyers at Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico, LLC, dedicate their practice to helping clients recover damages from negligent doctors and other healthcare providers.
We handle several different types of medical malpractice claims, some of which are described in more detail below.
Medication Errors
Medication errors cause an alarming number of deaths each year. In the United States, between seven and nine thousands people die annually due to medication errors, and hundreds of thousands of people fail to report complications caused by medication issues.
Medication errors can happen in several ways, including:
- Administering a medication the patient is allergic to,
- Injecting more medication than a patient needs,
- Poor handwriting that results in the incorrect prescription being filled,
- Administering an expired medication,
- Injecting a patient while distracted, or
- Administering a patient’s medication ahead of schedule.
Many medications carry several side effects, making it difficult to distinguish them from signs of a medication error.
A qualified medical expert can review your medical charts and determine whether a medication error caused complications that resulted in financial losses.
Misdiagnosis
The last thing you expect after a doctor visit is to receive the incorrect diagnosis from your physician. A misdiagnosis can complicate your recovery and extend the treatment process until the doctor realizes their mistake.
If the misdiagnosis worsens your condition, you can file a medical malpractice claim to recover the costs of any additional care needed due to the doctor’s mistake.
It is not enough to show that a doctor simply diagnosed your condition incorrectly. You must show that the misdiagnosis was the result of negligence.
That means proving that a medical professional with similar training and experience would have properly diagnosed your condition. Actions that can demonstrate a negligent misdiagnosis include:
- Failing to order appropriate tests,
- Missing easily recognizable signs or symptoms of a condition,
- Misreading test results,
- Failing to consider a patient’s medical history, and
- Failing to diagnose a condition in a timely manner.
A misdiagnosis can inflict deadly complications and result in the need for additional medical treatment. If a medical provider failed to correctly diagnose your condition, contact our medical malpractice lawyers of Maryland today.
Anesthesia Issues
Many patients receive anesthesia during surgical operations to put them to sleep and numb their senses. Anesthesia is typically administered through a breathing tube, inhaled through a mask, or injected through an IV.
Anesthesia can cause complications when an anesthesiologist administers too much or too little for the operation. Failure to properly monitor your vital signs and breathing can result in complications.
Additionally, your medical provider should give you adequate instructions to prepare for the surgery, like whether to refrain from eating or drinking before the procedure. A failure to provide these instructions can result in post-anesthesia complications.
Premature Discharge
A premature discharge can result in a patient’s death. A doctor must fulfill their obligation to treat a patient as a similarly trained medical professional would in similar circumstances.
That may include running various tests to help ascertain the condition the patient is suffering from. If a doctor neglects to do any additional tests and opts to discharge the patient too soon, it may be considered a premature discharge.
A qualified Maryland medical malpractice lawyer can gather information to prove that the medical provider’s actions fell below the acceptable standard of care for similarly trained professionals.
Surgical Mistakes
Any error during surgery is considered a surgical error or mistake. Some of the most common surgery errors in the United States are operating on the incorrect body part or performing the incorrect procedure.
Another example of a surgical error is failing to use the proper surgical technique in performing surgery. Hospitals implement measures like standardized checklists, regular training, and ongoing quality improvement initiatives to decrease surgical errors.
Birth Injuries
A birth injury is a physical injury that happens during childbirth, affecting either the mother or the baby. Some common birth injuries that affect infants include:
- Vacuum extraction and forceps injuries, including bruises and broken bones;
- Birth asphyxia and other forms of oxygen deprivation;
- Brachial plexus injuries, which typically affect the shoulders, hands, and arms;
- Cerebral palsy resulting from a lack of oxygen during birth.
Birth injuries that can affect the mother include:
- Uterine rupture,
- Infection,
- Prolapsed uterus,
- C-section errors,
- Abnormal uterine bleeding,
- Hemorrhaging; and
- Pulmonary embolism.
There are multiple potential causes of a birth injury, including mistakes during delivery, poor pregnancy care, and medication errors. Contact Maryland medical malpractice attorneys, Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico to determine whether you qualify to file a claim.
How to Prove Medical Malpractice
To prove medical malpractice, you must show that the provider’s negligence made you suffer additional or worsened injuries. To prove negligence, you must show:
- You were in a doctor-patient relationship with the defendant;
- The doctor-patient relationship imposed a duty of care on the defendant to comply with the generally accepted standard of care for similarly trained professionals;
- The medical provider breached their duty by deviating from the generally accepted standard of care;
- You suffered injuries due to the medical provider’s breach; and
- You suffered losses due to your injuries.
Your medical malpractice attorney will hire a medical expert to testify about the applicable standard of care and how the defendant breached it.
Before you proceed with a medical malpractice lawsuit, you must file a certificate from a qualified medical expert verifying that they reviewed your claim and believes that the defendant deviated from the generally accepted medical standard of care and the deviation caused your injuries.
Who Is Liable for Medical Malpractice?
In some cases, medical malpractice is committed by multiple parties within an institution, including:
- Emergency medical staff,
- Anesthesiologists,
- Medical support staff,
- General physicians,
- Surgeons,
- Hospitals,
- In-home care providers;
- Nurses, and
- Pharmacists.
A medical malpractice attorney can review the facts of your claim and determine who is liable for your losses.
Damages Available in a Medical Malpractice Case
The plaintiff in a medical malpractice claim can pursue economic and noneconomic damages.
Economic damages aim to compensate the plaintiff for the actual, monetary damages caused by their injuries. Examples of economic damages include:
- Medical costs,
- Lost wages, and
- Loss of future earning capacity.
Medical bills can pile up quickly, especially when surgical procedures are required. The amount of economic damages you can recover will depend on the facts of your case.
Noneconomic damages aim to compensate the plaintiff for their abstract, personal losses caused by their injuries. Examples of non-economic damages include:
- Emotional distress,
- Loss of consortium,
- Pain and suffering, and
- Loss of enjoyment of life.
Non-economic losses represent intangible losses that are unique to each plaintiff. We can hire an economic expert to assign a monetary value to your non-economic losses.
How Can an Attorney Help with Your Claim? Contact Our Maryland Medical Malpractice Lawyers to Find Out
Hiring a Maryland medical malpractice lawyer to represent you can increase your chances of maximizing your financial recovery. A medical malpractice attorney can assist your case by:
- Compiling invoices and financial documents to calculate the value of your losses;
- Locating a qualified medical professional to testify as an expert witness;
- Determining who is liable for your losses;
- Showing how the at-fault party’s negligence resulted in your losses; and
- Prepare your case for trial.
Although we cannot take away your suffering, we can help you recover a settlement to reimburse you for your losses. Otherwise, we will not hesitate to take your case to trial.
Contact a Maryland medical malpractice attorney at Baird Mandalas Brockstedt & Federico so we can start reviewing your case.