As a patient in the care of a medical professional, few things are as devastating to your mental and physical health as an inaccurate or belated diagnosis.
A late diagnosis can cause severe health complications that could have been avoided had you received timely, adequate medical care.
Filing a medical malpractice claim in civil court can help you recover cash compensation for your medical bills, wage loss, and even emotional turmoil. If you’ve suffered injuries at the hands of a medical professional, an injury attorney from Spencer Callahan Injury Lawyers can help you recover full compensation.
What Is a Delayed Diagnosis?
Many of the medical malpractice claims filed today center on inaccurate or otherwise imperfect diagnoses of disease or illness.
Sometimes, a doctor we trust mistakes one type of illness for another. On other occasions, a doctor might miss a diagnosis completely, mistakenly informing a patient of their clean bill of health while a devastating condition lurks hidden beneath the surface.
Other times, a doctor might make the correct diagnosis—but not in a timeframe that suits your needs. A delayed medical diagnosis involves getting a correct diagnosis of your medical condition—but only after a delay. Often, this delay in recognizing the underlying condition can lead to serious complications.
Delayed diagnoses may be common, but that doesn’t make them any less devastating. When you or a loved one’s medical condition is worsened by a doctor’s ability to diagnose and treat the condition on a timely schedule, you may be entitled to compensation.
Examples of Delayed Diagnosis
When a doctor fails to make the correct diagnosis for your condition in a reasonable amount of time, you may have a textbook case of a delayed diagnosis and grounds for a malpractice suit.
Some examples of delayed diagnosis include a doctor:
- Waving off your reported symptoms
- Losing or misplacing important test results
- Failing to refer you to a specialist for further evaluation, when it’s clearly appropriate
- Refusing or failing to order additional testing after noticing or becoming aware of a problem
Any or all of these behaviors could go against what would be considered reasonable behavior or care in the circumstances. If you’re unsure where your experience could rise to the level of malpractice, contact an attorney for an evaluation.
How to Prove Medical Negligence in Malpractice Cases
Not all errors related to diagnosis are necessarily the fruit of medical negligence. However, if you’re going to recover compensation for the damages and injuries you suffered, you have to be able to demonstrate that the following elements of malpractice applied:
- A professional patient-doctor relationship existed.
- The doctor failed to take reasonable care and was negligent with the timing of your diagnosis.
- This negligence resulted in actual harm to you, the patient.
Get Help from a Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Even in cut-and-dry cases of negligence, it can be difficult to prove that the mistake rises to the level of malpractice—much less negotiate for a fair settlement. Fortunately, an experienced medical malpractice lawyer with Spencer Calahan Injury Lawyers can help.
Call 225-387-2323 or fill out the form to the right to schedule a free consultation.
