Medical Malpractice Attorney in Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Our medical malpractice lawyers understand the unique challenges a malpractice claim presents. We have the knowledge, the experience, and the determination to handle every claim from start to finish. Medical malpractice injuries can leave victims struggling day-to-day – or they can leave a family without a loved one. Surgical errors, medication errors, and many other causes can rob victims of their health and well-being. Our goal is to get the justice and compensation you need to move forward. We’ve served clients throughout the area for over 30 years. At Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C., we know how to handle medical malpractice claims and we know how to fight for you. Call us or contact us online now for a free claim review and advice about your best legal options. The consultation is confidential and comes with no obligations on your part. Contact a medical malpractice lawyer today.

What Do You Need to Prove in a Medical Malpractice Case?

Medical malpractice claims are a specialized type of claim dealing with the negligence of health care providers. Medical malpractice claims can vary in the types of injuries, the types of proof, and the types of compensation available, but they generally follow these elements: 1. The medical provider owed you a duty. A duty may take many forms. A few examples are a doctor and patient relationship, receiving emergency medical treatment, or when you’re provided with medication by a pharmacist. It’s important to know what type of relationship a victim has with their provider. A classic case of medical malpractice is one where a victim hires a doctor to perform surgery and the doctor makes errors during the surgery. If you hire a doctor to perform surgery, and that doctor does so, you now have a doctor and patient relationship. Your doctor now owes you a duty to perform the surgery according to a standard of care. In Virginia, the standard of care is that medical practitioners owe a degree of skill and diligence that would be practiced by a “reasonably prudent practitioner” in their field. In other words, the standard of care can be thought of as the amount of skill and degree of care that an average provider in that specialty would give. A medical review panel may be involved in determining what the standard of care was. To prove the duty, your claim will need medical records, receipts, and other documents that show that a medical provider has treated you. To demonstrate a standard of care, a medical malpractice claim needs to show what level of skill and diligence a reasonable practitioner in that specialty would have. This will likely require expert testimony and review by a panel of medical experts. 2. The medical provider was negligent in their duty and did not meet the standard of care. If the medical provider did not meet the standard of care then they have breached their duty. For example, if a doctor does not perform surgery with skill and care equal to, or better than a “reasonably prudent practitioner” then they have breached their duty and may be found to have been negligent. It can be challenging to show what a reasonably prudent practitioner would have done in the circumstances. A claim will likely draw on medical records, witness testimony, and the testimony of medical experts. 3. The medical provider’s negligence caused your injury. It isn’t enough to find out that a doctor was negligent in the performance of duties. That negligence must cause you harm. In a case where a healthy patient goes in for routine surgery, it may be easier to connect the medical practitioner’s negligence and the injury. When the patient is chronically ill or is hurt after treatment, it may be more difficult to find the connection between the practitioner’s negligence and the patient’s injury. To prove this element, expert testimony likely will be required. 4. Damages resulted from your injury. A medical malpractice claim needs to prove that a victim’s injury directly caused damages. For example, a surgical error harms nerves and results in lost sensation, or a doctor fails to diagnosis a condition leading to untreated harmful disease. If the link between injury and damage can be proven, damages can include pain and suffering, medical bills, lost income, and in some cases punitive damages, among others.

Common Types of Medical Malpractice

Medical professionals are people and sometimes people make errors. These errors may be the result of negligence. Despite training, professional certifications, and hospital procedures, accidents still happen. Some of the most common medical malpractice claims include:

Medical Malpractice

Anesthesia Errors

Anesthesia uses powerful sedatives and other medications to prepare patients for surgery. Property administered anesthesia can sedate patients and make complex surgeries easier, and safer, for both patients and doctors.

Unfortunately, things can go wrong. Patients can have reactions to common anesthetic medications. Sometimes these reactions are out of the blue, sometimes they result from an anesthesiologist failing to review the patient’s records. Anesthesia can also be over-administered or under-administered by the anesthesiologist, leading to health complications, surgical complications, and even death.

Birth Injuries

There are many ways for a pregnancy to experience complications. That’s why medical professionals are present. Unfortunately, these professionals sometimes can be the source of harm during child birth. Improper use of tools and techniques may injure the child or the mother.

The doctor may incorrectly use birth assisting technologies such as vacuum methods or forceps when delivering a child. This can result in permanent damage to a child. It’s also possible a doctor fails to correctly monitor a birth for signs that the child is in trouble. If the doctor does not administer the care a child needs, the child could suffer an injury resulting in permanent damage and even death.

There are many ways a child or a mother can be injured during childbirth. A medical malpractice claim may help an injured child and their family get the help they need for their recovery.

Medication Errors

We rely upon doctors to give patients the medication that they need, when they need it. We also rely on them to know what medicines will work for patients and what dosage they should take. We count on pharmacists to fill the prescriptions as they are written.

Sadly, medical professionals can accidentally prescribe medication that isn’t right for a patient. Patients can suffer allergic reactions if they’re given a medicine that doesn’t work with their body. Incorrect medications or dosages can have long-term or fatal effects.

Pharmacists may fill prescriptions incorrectly, put medications in the incorrect bottle, and fail to warn patients of side effects and interactions with other medications. Writing and filling prescriptions is a complex process. Things can and do go wrong.

Misdiagnosis or Failure to Diagnose

Doctors are expected to improve the health of their patients. However, doctors can miss or misinterpret symptoms when evaluating a patient. They may fail to connect the dots of patient symptoms, or they may see problems that aren’t there. If a doctor misdiagnoses a condition, patients can receive costly and ineffective care that may result in injury. If a doctor fails to diagnose a condition it can go untreated, causing a patient harm.

Nursing Home Injuries

When we are unable to care for our loved ones, we may rely on a nursing home to provide them the care and treatment they need. We rely on the medical professionals there to give our loved ones the care they need. We also rely upon them to monitor our loved one’s health and to contact other medical personnel when needed. Nursing homes should be a place of comfort and care, but too often neglect and negligence can lead to the injury or death of a loved one.

Surgical Error

Surgical errors can cost a victim everything. Long-term injury, complications, and death are all possible. However, these errors are usually preventable. Failure to follow hospital procedure, fatigue, and poor planning for a surgery are only a few of the reasons that things can go wrong. When a patient is injured by a preventable error, a medical malpractice claim can help them secure the compensation they need to recover.

Compensation in a Medical Malpractice Claim

A medical malpractice claim can include many types of damages. These damages may include:

Medical bills and future treatment. A medical malpractice victim may incur significant medical bills as a part of the treatment that led to the injury. There may also be long-lasting bills that accrue as you recover. A medical malpractice claim can include the compensation you need to recover from your injury and rebuild your life.

Lost income now and in the future. Medical malpractice injuries can leave you out of work in the short and long term. Perhaps you’ll be out of work for a few weeks while you heal, or perhaps the injury had more serious consequences that will leave you out of work in the future. A medical malpractice claim can include the lost income and wages that you need to move forward.

Pain and suffering. The pain from medical malpractice injuries can last a lifetime. Not only can medical malpractice physically injure you in the short term, but it can also cause long-lasting pain and emotional suffering. A medical malpractice claim can include pain and suffering damages to compensate a victim.

Punitive damages. Punitive damages may be available in rare cases where the actions of the medical provider were particularly reckless or negligent. Punitive damages are intended to punish the person responsible and send a message to others. In Virginia, these damages are capped at $350,000.

Medical malpractice claims are complex, but our experienced attorneys have the knowledge and the resources to fight for maximum compensation for you.

How Our Virginia Beach Medical Malpractice Lawyers Can Help You

We understand the challenges that come with a medical malpractice claim. Medical malpractice claims can be difficult to prove, and insurers will fight every step of the way, but we will persevere. We understand that a medical malpractice claim is about getting victims the compensation they need to heal and move on with their lives. The lawyers at Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. are prepared to work hard to pursue fair and just compensation for you. Over the years our lawyers have fought and won large verdicts and settlements for victims injured by medical malpractice. We’ve handled claims ranging from birth injuries to surgical errors and everything in between. Our priority is you. Doctors, hospitals, and insurers may refuse to take responsibility. We’ll fight for you, build your claim, and advocate for your interests. Your injuries will take time to heal. Focus on your recovery and we’ll handle your claim. Medical malpractice claims are complex and overwhelming. Medical records, witness statements, expert testimony, and detailed medical knowledge will be essential. We know how to build your case from start to finish, and we know how to fight for the compensation that you need. We have a proven track record of success handling medical malpractice claims. We’re ready to fight for victims and their families in Virginia Beach and surrounding communities in Tidewater Virginia. If you’ve been hurt by the reckless actions of a doctor, nurse, or another medical professional, contact us today.

Let the Virginia Beach Medical Malpractice Attorneys Be Your Voice

Medical malpractice victims often feel that they aren’t being heard. Medical professionals and hospitals don’t want to hear when they’ve made a mistake. Insurers don’t want to pay, even when they should. At Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. we hear you. We’ve represented medical malpractice injury victims for over 30 years. We know the challenges of a medical malpractice claim and we know how to fight for you. Contact us today for a free and confidential consultation.