Have you suffered a serious injury in an emergency room in Fort Lauderdale, FL? Sadly, medical negligence in emergency rooms is all too common. You may be entitled to compensation for your pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages, and more.
Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers has represented injured patients and families since 1996. Contact our law office in Fort Lauderdale, FL, by calling us at (954) 287-0566 for a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer to discuss your injury from emergency room errors. We are here to help you. We charge no up-front costs for experienced legal representation.
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How Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers Can Help with an Injury Case Involving Emergency Room Errors in Fort Lauderdale
When you visit an emergency room in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, you expect the medical staff to give you the best care possible. You may not even be in a position to make informed decisions about your care. When preventable mistakes in the emergency room injure you, someone should be held accountable for the harm you have suffered.
At Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers, our Fort Lauderdale medical malpractice lawyers are committed to giving you the representation you deserve. Our firm was founded by Gregg M. Hollander, a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum.
Count on Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers to represent you, and we will:
- Provide the individual attention, support, and legal advice you need
- Conduct a careful investigation of your case to determine how you were hurt and what went wrong with your treatment
- Work with medical experts to determine the standard of care, causation, and negligence
- Prove the extent of your personal and financial injuries
- Negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf
- Take your case before a jury if the insurance company won’t offer a fair settlement
When medical providers have let you down and caused you harm, Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers is here to fight on your behalf. Contact our law office for a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, FL to discuss what we can do for you.
How Common Are Emergency Room Errors?
Every year, about 150 million people visit emergency rooms in the United States. Emergency rooms are designed to respond to medical emergencies like acute injuries from car accidents, assault, heart attacks, strokes, and more. Unfortunately, they’re a common site for medical errors.
One study of nearly 2,000 patients in a single emergency room found 20% were the victim of some type of medical error. Around 90% of these mistakes did not cause a significant adverse outcome. Patients most at risk of suffering a medical error in an ER were older and had a more serious reason for visiting the emergency room. A separate study found that patients with abdominal complaints were especially vulnerable to emergency room errors.
Medical errors are believed to be the third leading cause of death in the United States. It’s estimated that 250,000 deaths occur every year due to medical negligence alone.
Overview of Emergency Room Errors
Emergency room errors are a type of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice occurs when medical professionals negligently injure a patient while providing medical care. Medical malpractice cases in an emergency room can involve staff members, doctors, surgeons, nurses, technicians, and hospitals.
If you have suffered a personal injury as a result of an emergency room error, you may be entitled to compensation. This requires proving your injury was the result of medical negligence and not simply an adverse outcome or complication.
What Causes Emergency Room Errors in Fort Lauderdale, FL?
According to a study published in BMC Emergency Medicine, medical negligence in an emergency room is usually the result of human error.
This study found common causes, such as:
- Mistakes by staff members
- Inadequate knowledge or skill set of medical providers
- Failing to follow ER protocols
- Misinterpreting diagnostic tests
- Insufficient assessment
- Failing to order diagnostic tests
- Failing to establish a differential diagnosis
- Poor communication among emergency room staff, providers, and/or patients
- Triage errors that forced patients needing immediate care to wait behind people with less urgent needs
- Overwork due to poor staffing levels
Emergency room mistakes can happen for many reasons. The nature of an emergency room can lend to a higher rate of errors. It can be hard to quickly assess a patient and obtain an accurate, complete medical history in a high-stakes situation.
What Types of Medical Negligence Usually Happen in an Emergency room?
Certain forms of medical errors are more common in emergency rooms than others, including:
- Misdiagnosis. In an emergency room, there may be little time to review the patient’s medical history, order testing, or consider treatment plans. This issue can lead to misdiagnosis, which means the patient may not be treated correctly.
- Delay in treatment. A delay in treatment in an ER can be life-threatening. Triage mistakes, overworked staff, and an overwhelming number of patients mean someone may not receive the treatment they need in time.
- Medication errors. This can include giving the wrong medication, failing to provide medication, dosing errors, or drug interactions.
- Failure to diagnose. This is similar to misdiagnosis. It may happen someone is told there is nothing wrong with them and improperly discharged.
All forms of emergency room errors can have a serious impact on patient care. Mistakes in medical treatment can worsen a patient’s condition, lead to life-threatening complications, or even result in wrongful death.
Who is Liable for Emergency Room Mistakes in Fort Lauderdale?
When you suffer injury due to an emergency room error, multiple parties may share liability. Medical providers like emergency room doctors, nurses, technicians, staff, and even the hospital may be liable for your injuries.
To prove liability for a medical error, you must show that the professional failed to provide the proper standard of care in your situation, leading to your injuries. This almost always requires expert medical testimony and a great deal of evidence.
Contact Our Medical Malpractice Law Firm in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Do you believe you have a malpractice claim for an emergency room error? When ER doctors and staff are negligent and cause serious injury, they should be held accountable. Contact Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers today for a free consultation with a Fort Lauderdale emergency room errors lawyer to discuss your case.
We will help you explore your legal options after your emergency room errors in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
