Medical Malpractice

Medical Malpractice In Albany, Georgia

When you entrust your medical treatment to a doctor or any other healthcare professional, they have a solemn moral, ethical, and legal duty to provide you with quality care and to heal you (as much as is possible) rather than harm you.

Unfortunately, in certain cases, doctors and other healthcare professionals do not live up to the standard of care in their field. In these cases, they may act negligently, may fail to act when action is necessary, or may act incorrectly when they should have known better. This can cause serious harm to a patient—up to and including death.

What Can Be Considered “Medical Malpractice” In Albany, Georgia?

In order for a behavior to be considered medical practice, it must:

• Be committed by someone with a duty of care: Medical malpractice can only be committed by a healthcare professional who has a duty to provide treatment according to a standard of care in their medical field.
• Violate the standard of care. Medical malpractice must fail to meet the standards of acceptable medical treatment that would be reasonably expected of similar health professionals in similar circumstances.
• Cause an injury through negligence. In addition to violating the standard of care, medical malpractice must include an injury caused by negligence that the patient would not have otherwise sustained.

What Are Examples Of Medical Malpractice?

Some examples of medical malpractice include:

• Surgical errors/wrong site of surgery
• Disregarding patient history
• Misreading or failure to order lab results or other significant tests
• Failure to recognize clear symptoms or diagnose correctly
• Failure to provide proper treatment upon diagnosis
• Mistakes in prescriptions (wrong medication, wrong dosage, etc.)
• Premature discharge or failure to safely discharge
• Failure to provide aftercare/follow-ups
• Anesthesia errors
• Prenatal and labor and delivery errors
• Infection as a result of unsanitary conditions

Is There A Statute Of Limitations For Medical Malpractice Cases In Albany, Georgia?

Yes, there is a statute of limitations for Albany, GA medical malpractice cases. A Georgia malpractice plaintiff or their next of kin has two years from the date of injury (or wrongful death) to sue for financial damages.

In addition, Georgia’s “statute of repose” means that in cases of medical malpractice where the harm or injury to the patient takes time to actually manifest—even if it causes the patient’s death—the statute of limitations is five years from the date of the error. This means that once five years have passed since the error, no lawsuit for damages can be filed, no matter how clear the connection is between the error and the patient’s injury or death.

There is an exception for foreign objects left in the body and discovered later: in those cases, you have one year from the date of discovery of the foreign object to file your claim.

I Believe I Have A Medical Malpractice Case In Albany, GA. What Do I Do Now?

If you believe that you or a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of medical malpractice, you should contact an experienced, knowledgeable Albany, GA medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. It is essential that you find a specialist attorney who truly knows the ins and outs of Georgia medical malpractice cases. These cases tend to be extremely complex, and you deserve an expert attorney who can give you the best possible chance at the recovery you deserve. You will find exactly that sort of attorney at Phillips & Nemajovsky, P.C. Attorneys at Law. Call us for an initial consultation on your case today.