Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice is the result of a healthcare provider’s failure to provide the expected standard of care to a patient. The expected standard of care means that a healthcare provider must use the same degree of skill and learning, under the same or similar circumstances, that are used by other members of the medical profession. Unfortunately, some doctors cause harm through their mistakes, ignorance, negligence, lack of skill and misdiagnosis.
At The Law Offices of William F. Horsley, P.A., we relentlessly pursue compensation for our injured clients. Our success is based on years of experience litigating
all types of personal injury
and wrongful death claims. Our objective is justice for injured people.
Healthcare professionals are only required to give a standard of care that is ordinary or normal. A physician can be negligent in a variety of ways. Some of the most common ways that medical malpractice occurs is through failure or errors in timely diagnosis, ordering appropriate treatment, ordering necessary tests and proper medication, consulting with specialists, and surgical procedures. Although there are numerous types of malpractice claims, the most common claims are:
The U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a report estimating that as many as 98,000 patients die each year as a result of medical errors in hospitals. Compound this number with the unreported mistakes made in other healthcare settings (physicians’ offices, urgent care centers, nursing homes, pharmacies and home care) and the magnitude of medical malpractice becomes staggering. In addition to the high costs of medical mistakes in terms of people’s lives and quality of life, our nation pays an estimated $17 billion per year in costs due to preventable errors.
It is an attorney's obligation to determine as quickly and efficiently as possible whether there is a good, actionable case. Medical malpractice cases are by their very nature complex, expensive to pursue, have a high risk of no recovery, and often involve a client's "personal" attachment.
In North Carolina, medical malpractice actions must be commenced within two years of the act or omission giving rise to the injury, or within two years of the date of discovery, to a maximum of four years following the date of the act or omission. Medical malpractice actions for objects left inside the body may be commenced within one year of the date of discovery, to a maximum of 10 years after the date of the act giving rise to the injury. Under North Carolina law, a minor must file suit within one year of his or her 18th birthday
Determining if you have a potential case for medical negligence or malpractice is difficult, at best. One sign that you may have a potential case would be an unexpected or very different result from a surgery or medical treatment. Additionally, death or severe injury that occurs as a result of "routine" treatments or surgeries where the physician or doctor can give no reasonable explanation for the death or worsened condition of the patient, may give cause to consider that medical malpractice may have occurred.
If your attorney is able prove your medical malpractice case and the medical provider is found negligent, then you are entitled to recover “damages.” Damages are intended to help you return to the condition you were in prior to the injury. There are several forms of damages that you may recover in a medical malpractice award – economic (for lost wages or medical expenses), non-economic (for pain and suffering), or punitive (to punish reckless behavior) damages. You may also receive compensation for future medical expenses and loss of future earnings. Punitive damages occur only in rare cases when it is proved that the medical practitioner had malicious intent.
The Law Offices of William F. Horsley, P.A. has experience helping victims of medical malpractice in the state of North Carolina. Please contact us if you have any questions about an injury you have suffered, or to report a personal injury case that you have. You may call us at 1-800-953-2542 or contact us through our
online form.
For more information, please see our Medical Malpractice
Frequently Asked Questions.
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