As long as medical malpractice lawsuits are concerned, some consider them to be too tough, and some consider them too long. Some others are confused about the time the lawsuit will take and whether or not they should expect a favorable outcome from it. Positive people expect a huge amount of settlements and conclusions in few months.
The reality, however, lies somewhere in the middle and this is why you should speak with medical malpractice lawyers before making any decision. So, before you move on to get help of an Atlanta Medical Malpractice Attorney, here are a few things that you should know about the process.
You have to prove that your health professional was negligent
Proving a medical malpractice case is often difficult as you have to fight against the doctors and the Nursing Home authorities. It is important for you to establish the existence of a patient-Health Care professional relationship and prove that the practices was negligent by breaching the standard of care that the patient needed. It has to be proved that the cause of your actual damages was the negligent action of the health practicioner. Medical malpractice cases are tough since it takes technical expectives and numerous resources to prove that opposition did not meet the standard of care. This is why it is better to work with a lawyer.
There is a statute of limitations that has to be followed
If you are looking forward to file a lawsuit, there is a statute of limitations in your state that will dictate the amount of time you have to file the case. The time limits are state specific and you can get up to 2 years of time to comments a claim. The two years’ time starts from the date you discovered the claim, which means the date on which you understand that you have been a victim of medical practice. Find out the statute of limitations of your state before taking any action.
It is not possible to sue the hospital and not the physician
Whenever an employee acted in a negligent manner under the direction of his employer, which is a hospital, the employer is liable for the injuries sustained by the patient. There are several cases where physicians are not deemed as direct employees of the hospital what as independent contractors. However, rarely can you only hold the hospital responsible and not the physician. Most medical malpractice lawsuits will name the defendants as the hospital, the physician, and the hospital staff, who were collectively responsible for being negligent towards the patient.
Medical malpractice cases are lengthy
You may take a lot of time to discovered the negligence of the physician after sustaining the injury. Once you initiate the case, it will take a considerable amount of time to go through all the medical records and determine the context of care offers to you. Expert medical opinions are then taken to build a solid case around breach of standard of care.
For now that you are aware of the important facts about medical malpractice cases, it is smarter to work with an attorney to file a claim and win a settlement amount.