When you visit the doctor in New Jersey, you do so because you want them to cure whatever is ailing you. You don’t expect to walk out of the office with an additional injury, an illness that has worsened, or a diagnosis that is inappropriate for the situation. Sadly, all of this happens throughout New Jersey medical offices and is known as medical malpractice. However, doctors, nurses, and other medical support staff are held to a standard of care that they must follow or face legal repercussions. Below, you will find the most common types of medical malpractice in New Jersey.
Mistakes in Surgery
Surgical mistakes are in fact frightening. They also happen quite often in New Jersey hospitals. Surgical mistakes that legal malpractice lawyers in NJ handle include the following:
- Errors with anesthesia
- Neglect
- Failure to read the patient’s chart
- Operating on the wrong patient
- Operating on the wrong part of the body
- Leaving surgical tools inside the body
- Inadequate planning before surgery
- Poor communication
Errors in Diagnosing a Patient
Patients often find themselves being misdiagnosed by their doctors. Therefore, in order for patient care to be administered correctly, the patient must be evaluated and diagnosed in a timely manner. All of the following diagnosing errors, according to our medical malpractice lawyers, could lead to major medical bills and even the death of the patient:
- Misdiagnosis
- Failure to diagnose
- Delayed diagnosis
- Failure to refer
Errors with Medication
Another common form of medical malpractice in New Jersey involves errors with medication, which often leads to a malpractice suit against a doctor. Medication errors our lawyers see regularly include the following:
- Mislabeling of medication
- Issuing the wrong prescription
- Issuing a prescription to the wrong patient
- Delivering the incorrect medication
- Failure to warn the patient of side effects
- Failure to check the patient’s chart for drug allergies
- Prescribing the wrong amount of a drug
- Administering the wrong amount of a drug
- Prescribing medications that adversely interact with each other
Errors with Delivery
Are you pregnant? Are you worried that something will go wrong during labor and delivery? If so, yhis is perfectly natural and you are right to worry. The common delivery errors committed by obstetricians in New Jersey include the following:
- Errors in clinical judgment
- Negligent techniques for delivery
- Failure to monitor the health of the mother and baby
- Communication problems between staff
- Inadequate care of the baby prior to labor
- Not ordering the proper prenatal screenings
- Delaying treatment or diagnosis
- Poor documentation of the patient’s history
Errors with Orthopedic Surgery
Orthopedic surgery offers people of all ages numerous benefits. In fact, it can improve mobility and quality of life. Errors with orthopedic surgery include the following:
- Infections that develop post-op
- Errors with medication
- Defective devices
- Improperly placing pins and metal plates
Speak with an Experienced Attorney Today
Do you believe you are a victim of medical malpractice in New Jersey? If so, it’s important that you protect your rights. There is a statute of limitations on malpractice claims, so call the experienced attorneys at the Law Offices of James C. DeZao, P.A. today at (973) 358-6134. As a matter of fact, your consultation is always free.