Diagnostic Errors

Whether a patient goes to a doctor’s office/hospital for a routine checkup or to determine whether the symptoms they are experiencing are actually signs of a medical condition, they should feel assured that their doctor will take all the necessary steps to make a proper diagnosis and provide appropriate treatment where required.

Patients expect to receive the best medical care when they have serious medical conditions such as appendicitis, diabetes, sexually transmitted diseases, hypertension, kidney disease, heart attack, glaucoma, breast cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer. Often, however, doctors fail to properly analyze the symptoms present in patients and in the end, the patients suffer. Unfortunately, diagnostic errors are among the most common medical malpractice claims seen by medical negligence attorneys in the United States. According to the Wrong Diagnosis website, misdiagnosis occurs at a rate of 20-40% in hospital emergency rooms.

A commentary published in a March 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association stated, “Misdiagnosis accounts for an estimated 40,000 to 80,000 hospital deaths per year and… tort claims for diagnostic errors — defined as diagnoses that are missed, wrong or delayed — are nearly twice as common as claims for medication errors.”

Types of misdiagnosis include, but are not limited to:

1. Misdiagnosis—erroneous medical diagnosis resulting in patient injury or death.
2. Missed or delayed diagnosis—doctors either failing to diagnose an illness or disease entirely, or making a medical diagnosis too late.
3. Failure to recognize and treat complications—relating to an illness or disease in both an effective and timely fashion.

When medical errors like these occur, the life of a patient can change forever. This is especially true for cancer patients since early diagnosis and treatment are necessary to prolong their lives. Loved ones of patients who were misdiagnosed suffer also through additional financial concerns as well as emotional suffering. When this happens, you need someone to protect your interests to make sure that your medical condition is taken seriously and your legal rights are enforced.

Misdiagnosis usually occurs because patients are not given the full attention that they deserve from their doctors. Doctors are often in a rush in emergency rooms and hospitals and do not take the time to thoroughly examine patients and consider all of their symptoms. When a patient has symptoms that a doctor is not familiar with, they are responsible for consulting with other physicians, medical books and recent research articles to make the proper diagnosis. Failure to do this leads to misdiagnosis wherein legal responsibility arises.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of a diagnosis error made by a doctor or medical professional, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries and damages. There is a time restraint on when you can file your claim, so consult with a medical malpractice attorney today. Contacting a knowledgeable lawyer capable of evaluating diagnostic error is the first step toward obtaining justice. With more than 50 years of experience litigating all types of personal injury and wrongful death claims, including those relating to medical and diagnosis errors, the Miami medical malpractice lawyers of Gerson & Schwartz, PA strive to provide negligence victims with the exemplary legal representation so they may have a better chance at obtaining appropriate compensation.