Medical Malpractice – Mistakes May Lead to Medical Malpractice
Medical Malpractice
Medical Misdiagnosis in New York hospitals is a growing concern among health care providers. If someone is brought into your emergency room and tests show otherwise, you can waste hours of time with a range of possible tests, which may not lead to a diagnosis. When a doctor presents a patient with the results, there is a temptation to immediately recommend treatment based on the physician’s interpretation of the test results. However, if that same test is done again, maybe with a different set of symptoms, the likelihood of having a similar outcome changes. This phenomenon has caused many patients to delay seeing a doctor, due to concerns about being given a false diagnosis.
YouTube video explains medical malpractice in hospitals
What makes it particularly frustrating is that most doctors are trained on how to perform diagnostic tests, and know very little about how patients experience symptoms and their individual responses to medications and treatment. The result is that when a new patient comes through the ER, the attending doctor usually has a limited understanding of the patient’s experience and that of their family, friends, and medical history. It is not uncommon for doctor’s to ask the same set of questions repeatedly to the same patients, to ensure they are on the same page regarding the diagnosis. This is a concern because as time goes on, changes in a patient’s response to treatment can be misinterpreted as a new, or even worsening, condition.
As a result, some medical conditions go unrecognized for months, even years. The most common mistakes are failure to correctly diagnose a disorder or other condition as well as misdiagnosing or mistreating a disorder. In some cases, doctors fail to treat patients for a condition due to misdiagnosis or misidentification. In other cases, there may be an actual physical problem causing the misdiagnosis, but it is thought that the condition is self-limited and will resolve on its own. In these instances, the patient may continue to suffer unnecessarily as a result of misdiagnosis.
Mistakes May Lead to Medical Malpractice
Other reasons that can cause misdiagnosed conditions include under-diagnosis and over-diagnosis. Under-diagnosis occurs when a doctor makes the mistake of diagnosing an illness based on symptoms that resemble those of another illness. For example, people with high fevers may be diagnosed with diabetes if symptoms of influenza are exhibited. Over-diagnosis occurs when a doctor makes the mistake of misinterpreting diagnostic tests (e.g., blood tests, urine tests, etc.) that are designed to detect certain conditions that are not actually considered to be serious medical conditions. For example, some patients with low potassium may be given potassium supplements even though they do not have hypokalemia.
There are many steps you can take to avoid medical misdiagnosis. First, if you have any concerns about your health or symptoms, contact your primary care physician without delay. Next, if you are having difficulty determining whether your symptoms are serious medical conditions, seek the assistance of a medical practitioner. Lastly, when in doubt, always follow up with a physician regarding your health. You never know when a misdiagnosis can lead to serious consequences.
Although medical misdiagnosis can result in serious consequences, it is often easy to distinguish it from legitimate medical errors. For example, most common medical malpractice cases involve a delay in treatment that causes damage to the patient. However, if a medical professional fails to appropriately treat a patient, a legal case can be filed against that doctor. If you are a victim of medical malpractice, it is important to find a qualified medical malpractice attorney to represent you. An experienced medical malpractice attorney can help ensure that your lawsuit is properly filed and that your due compensation is received by the individual or institutions responsible for your injury.