Tag: Medical malpractice

by Incredible Planet Staff

Nine Steps When Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit in Indiana


Business

If you or your loved one has been injured or worse, unexpectedly died in an Indiana medical facility while placed under medical care, there may be a medical malpractice claim you can pursue.

Medical malpractice, in general terms, is considered unskilled, improper, or even negligent handling of a patient in a health care institution by a professional or personnel.

However, you should know that a medical malpractice lawsuit can lead to a long process, maybe taking months or even years. Generally, Indiana law generally needs a suit that is based on medical negligence dated within two years when you got injured or hurt, you need to get immediately begin with the legal claim as fast as possible.

Here are 15 steps how you can file an Indianapolis medical malpractice claim.

  1. Get an Indiana lawyer who is expect in medical malpractice.

A lawyer who is proficient in medical negligence cases before the Indiana courts may give you a practical assessment during your initial meeting. In most cases, consultations are free.

  1. Compile medical records.

A formal written request may be needed to ask your hospital or medical office as well as health care provider regarding your records.

  1. Evaluate the negligence in the case you are pursuing.

A good medical malpractice lawyer will look into whether you have indeed a basis to sue a medical professional or institution for possible medical malpractice. The lawyer may send the medical details to health experts for possible review to ensure that there is basis to say there is negligence on the part of the medical professional or institution.

  1. File a copy of the complaint before the state’s Department of Insurance.

Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Division keeps records of actions related to medical malpractices in the state. The division will forward your complaint to the institution or the health care provider.

  1. Ask that a medical review panel be formed.

After filing a complaint, you can ask for a medical review panel who can review the complaint. Usually, the panel may consist of three health care providers as well as a lawyer.

Your attorney can then submit to the panel written evidence substantiating the medical malpractice claim before the panel.

The panel will then look whether the evidence you or your lawyer has given supports the basis the defendant or defendants failed to act within the accepted care standards.

  1. Decide if you want to go forward.

After getting the report from the state’s medical review panel, you and your attorney can check whether you need to go the court. If you do, remember that members of the panel can be called by the court to testify as experts.

If you do proceed, the attorney you hired will then can a file a lawsuit before the court.

  1. Be open to negotiations.

Do not be surprised when the defendant, say a medical professional or institution, can get in touch with you or offer some form of settlement. In many cases, the complainant’s case could be settled out of the court. Of course, a possible out-of-court settlement may quicken the resolution of the case, saving time and expenses. Whether you plan to pursue the case or settle before it begins, it is your decision. But of course, you should decide such a decision with your lawyer.

  1. Get your day in court.

If the settlement fails, you may expect the complaint to go to court. The trial may involve the comprehensive airing of your evidence, along with testimonies from both your camp and the defendant’s.

  1. Be ready for the verdict.

When you push through with the court proceedings, be open to any possible outcome. Make sure your lawyer is on top of this.


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by Incredible Planet Staff

3 Important Aspects of Medical Practice People Should Know About


Technology

According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the third leading cause of death in the United States is none other than medical negligence. It is just right behind cancer and heart disease. Believe it or not, at least $3 billion U.S. dollars are being spent in payouts. It is really alarming.

Medical negligence basically involves a medical error; hence the term. This could be anything from diagnosis to health management to treatment to medication dosage to aftercare. This is why a medical malpractice law is put in place to help patients recover compensation from any harm that could result from sub-standard treatment.

More importantly, there are things that you can do to avoid becoming a victim of this very unfortunate situation.

Determining a Medical Malpractice

A malpractice claim will only exist if and only if a provider’s negligence results in damages or injuries to a patient. However, just because you experience a bad outcome does not mean it is already subject to medical negligence. Likewise, healthcare providers are responsible for informing patients that the latter received a medical error from a previous provider.

It is worth noting, however, that the prosecution of medical malpractice cases can be stressful and time-consuming, let alone expensive. Statistics say that medical errors are responsible for the death of around 200,000 patients in the U.S. each year, but as far as personal injury lawsuits are concerned, only 15% are filed. Not just that, 80% of those lawsuits end with no payment whatsoever.

This brings us to the next topic.

Hiring a Medical Practice Attorney

Contacting a seasoned and professional malpractice attorney should always be your first step. This person is capable of conducting a thorough review of the case details, which could include anything from interviews with patients, friends, and family members to securing pertinent medical records. Doing so will allow the attorney to assess whether the case should be deemed is actionable.

Keep in mind that it can be quite difficult to either settle or negotiate the negligence in the courtroom, especially if there is no prior thorough investigation conducted into the issue. There is where an attorney can help. He knows and understands the type of information needed to be retrieved. Above all, he has concrete knowledge about how the case should proceed. Meaning, this legal professional knows where to start investigating your claim and how to get the information needed in order to acquire leverage. Otherwise, you will not be able to bolster the case. Experienced attorneys also understand when there is a need to hire experts who can prove what happened.

Preventing The Possibility

There is no doubt that being proactive about medical care is important. Hence, you must perform research in order to have more knowledge about your health condition. Also, you want to document this as well as the symptoms you see. It is even imperative that you ask health-care providers a written list of questions that they think are important, and you must insist to have complete answers.

It is also critical to never let yourself be intimidated by the medical system. Do not just speak up; be the advocate of your own well-being, too! If you start to sense that something is wrong, speak up and/or ask your healthcare provider. While trusting your doctor or nurse is given, it is also significant for you to listen to your body and make use of common sense. It is also advantageous to have a friend or family member accompany you when visiting healthcare providers.

At the end of the day, medical malpractice can be avoided. You just have to be vigilant. Even more so, you need to have a go-to lawyer in case this unfortunate event happens. It is better to have one than nothing.