PART I OF II. What is Medical malpractice?

Medical malpractice claims and lawsuits can arise when people are injured by acts of a doctor, nurse, psychiatrist, dentist, chiropractor, podiatrist, hospital, or other healthcare provider which was a “deviation of the standard of medical care.” In legal theory when one’s actions cause an injury to another person (but the actions do not rise to the level of a crime), they are said to be a "tort," or civil wrong, which can provide the basis for a lawsuit. When someone is determined to be legally responsible for injuring someone else, they are liable for the injury, and may be made to pay the injured person compensatory damages.

Terms definition:
Compensatory damages attempt to put an injured person back in the position he or she was in before being injured. In some cases, punitive damages are also awarded in these lawsuits.

Punitive damages are intended to punish wrongdoers and prevent them from harming others.

Specifically medical negligence & malpractice can include
• Missed diagnosis; Mis-diagnosis ; Delayed diagnosis
• Lack of informed consent
• Other Doctor, hospital & healthcare provider deviations in the standard of medical care.
• HMO misconduct
• Adverse drug reactions and their mis-handling
• Improperly prescribed, dispensed or filled medication
The common denominator in all the above is a deviation from the medical standard of care.

This is usually interpreted to be a deviation from what a prudent physician or other healthcare professional of similar training would do or not do in similar circumstances.
It is because of that definition that a medical expert of the same training is called upon to testify on his opinion whether or not the standard of medical care had been met or not.

What is Wrongful Death?
Wrongful death as a legal term is a death that has been caused by the fault of another person. For example, deaths caused by drunk driving, the manufacture of a defective or dangerous product, the construction of an unsound structure or building, or failing to diagnose a fatal disease may be considered under the law as "wrongful deaths".

• Wrongful death lawsuits or claims are generally filed by family members or beneficiaries of the decedent. In some instances, these claims are filed in order to obtain monetary damages to cover the earnings the deceased person would have provided.

Preventable Adverse Events
The National Quality Forum created a list of adverse malpractice issues.
This list contains serious medical malpractice events with dire consequences. They should not happen because they are so easily preventable.

These listed issues are:
• Switching donor eggs or sperm, resulting in paternity mixups
• Leaving of sponges or instruments inside a surgery patient.
• Disappearance of a patient from a facility.
• Medication errors (wrong drug, wrong patient, wrong dose, etc.)
• Giving wrong blood type.
• Electric shock to a patient.
• Fall of a patient.
• Surgery performed on the wrong body side or organ or on the wrong patient.
• Death during or after surgery on a healthy patient under anesthesia.
• Contaminated drugs or medical devices.
• Medical device malfunction or improper use.
• Air embolisms.
• Babies discharged to wrong parents.
• Patient suicide.
• Death or injury to a mother during low-risk pregnancy.
• patient developing hypoglycemia.
• Failing to identify high bilirubin in infants leading to death.
• Advanced pressure sores.
• Death or injury in spine manipulative therapy.
• Oxygen or other gas lines being switched or contaminated.
• Burn of a patient.
• Injury or death from restraints.
• Impersonation of a health care worker.
• Kidnapping of a patient.
• Assault of a patient or Assault or battery between staffers.

How successful are plaintiffs in medical malpractice litigation?
Using North Carolina data, Neil Vidmar, Russell M. Robinson II Professor of Law at Duke University Law School, and author of Medical Malpractice and the American Jury: Confronting the Myths About Jury Incompetence, Deep Pockets and Outrageous Damage Awards (1995), concludes that most claims grow from serious injuries. Minor or emotional injuries accounted for less than 5 percent of claims. Most claims are based on disability, or death. Just 17 out of 895 cases got anything at all. Among the 895 North Carolina cases Vidmar examined, just eighty-four reached the stage of trial by jury. Plaintiffs prevailed on the issue of liability in seventeen of the cases. There were three awards of at least $1 million, along with one for $750,000 and two for $300,000.

The remainder of the trials, though, resulted in much more modest sums, down to $4,000. "The most striking impression from these verdict statistics is that plaintiffs did not do well with juries," writes Vidmar. "They won less than one case in five. When they did receive an award, the amount was usually low."

REFERENCES:
Book I - “Medical Malpractice Expert Witnessing: Introductory Guide for Physicians and Medical Professionals” (Hardcover) by Perry Hookman, MD (Author) : 592 pages.27 chapters. Publisher: CRC; Potomac Press; Language: English ISBN-10: 1420058959 ISBN-13: 978-1420058956; Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.1 x 1.4 inches; Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds; price $239.95.
For author information visit www.Hookman.com; for book purchase visit www.MedMalBook.com

Book II –“Medical Expert Testimony: Advanced Syllabus for Physicians and Medical Professionals”
(Hardcover) by Perry Hookman MD (Author) 32 chapters; 936 pages. Proj.Pub date Spring 2009. Publisher: Potomac Press-CRC; ; Language: English ISBN: 978-0-9817570-0-1; ISBN:10:0-9817570-0-6 - Barcode (9780981757001.eps) Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.1 x 2.1 inches; Shipping Weight: 3.0 pounds; Price $289.95; includes CD-ROM. For author information visit www.Hookman.com; for book purchase visit www.MedMalBook.com