Defining Medical Negligence:
When a Doctor’s Error Becomes a Lawsuit
When you seek medical care, you trust that doctors and other healthcare professionals will provide the best medical care possible. Unfortunately, the “best” care is not always possible.
Under the law, health care providers are generally expected to provide patients with medical care which is generally accepted in the community by similar health care providers. This is typically described as the accepted “standard of medical care” at issue. Medical negligence occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from this accepted standard, directly causing harm to a patient.
In Pennsylvania, there are specific legal elements that must be proven to establish medical malpractice against a doctor or other medical professional. To successfully pursue a medical malpractice claim in Pennsylvania, you must demonstrate the presence of four key elements, often referred to as the “four D’s” or the “four elements” (Duty, Dereliction, Direct Cause, Damages):
Duty of Care
This is the foundational element. It means that a professional relationship existed between you and the healthcare provider. When a doctor agrees to treat you, they owe you a professional duty to provide the accepted standard of care for the medical condition at issue. This relationship typically begins when a doctor or medical professional accepts you as a patient and you rely on their expertise.
Dereliction (Breach of Duty/Negligence)
This is the core of a malpractice claim. It means the healthcare provider failed to meet the accepted “standard of care.” The standard of care is defined as the level of skill, knowledge, and procedures that a reasonably prudent and competent healthcare professional, in the same specialty and under similar circumstances, would have used.
Examples of how a doctor or medical professional might breach this duty include:
- Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis: Failing to correctly identify a condition or delaying a diagnosis, leading to the patient not receiving timely or appropriate treatment.
- Surgical Errors: Technical mistakes which cause unintended perforations or other damage to internal organs, nerves, ducts, or blood vessels; performing a procedure on the wrong body part, or leaving surgical instruments inside the patient.
- Medication Errors: Prescribing the wrong drug, incorrect dosage, or failing to check for dangerous drug interactions or patient allergies.
- Failure to Treat: Discharging a patient too early, failing to refer to a specialist when necessary, or not responding to abnormal test results.
- Anesthesia Errors: Administering too much or too little anesthesia, or failing to properly monitor a patient during a procedure.
- Birth Injuries: Negligence during prenatal care, labor and delivery, or after birth that harms the mother or baby.
Direct Cause (Causation)
It’s not enough to simply show that a doctor made a mistake. You must also prove that the healthcare provider’s negligence (breach of duty) was a direct and substantial factor in causing your injury or worsening your condition. This means there must be a clear link between the negligent act and the harm you suffered.
For example, if a doctor misdiagnoses cancer, you must show that the delay in diagnosis caused the cancer to progress to a more severe stage, leading to a poorer prognosis or more aggressive treatment than would have been necessary with a timely diagnosis.
Damages
Finally, you must demonstrate that you suffered actual, quantifiable harm or losses as a result of the injury caused by the medical negligence. Damages can be categorized as:
- Economic Damages: Tangible losses such as past and future medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and rehabilitation costs.
- Non-Economic Damages: Intangible losses like pain and suffering, emotional distress, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium (i.e., companionship, support, and conjugal relations).
The Role of Expert Witnesses: Proving these elements in Pennsylvania almost always requires the testimony of qualified medical experts. These experts will explain what the appropriate standard of care was, how the defendant deviated from it, and how that deviation directly caused your injuries.
If you suspect that a doctor or other medical professional’s negligence has caused you or a loved one harm, it’s crucial to consult with an experienced Pennsylvania medical malpractice attorney. They can evaluate your situation, gather necessary evidence, and determine if your case meets the legal criteria for a valid medical malpractice claim.
The attorneys of Lupetin & Unatin are experienced and compassionate medical malpractice attorneys based in Pittsburgh, PA and serving all of Western Pennsylvania. We invite you to contact us to schedule a free medical malpractice case evaluation.