When we go to a doctor, we hope that they will employ all medical means to diagnose our illness in a timely manner. If you go to a doctor, you are entitled to believe that he or she will meet or exceed the medical standard. If your doctor fails to diagnose a serious illness, it could lead to inadequate treatment or no treatment at all for a life-threatening disease, putting your life in danger. Doctors are supposed to be trusted professionals. When they fail to do their jobs, you may have a case of medical malpractice.
Unfortunately, there are many cases where a doctor’s failure to diagnose has seriously injured or killed a patient. Doctors have failed to diagnose countless cases of cancer, heart attacks, infections, serious injuries, strokes, diabetes, pulmonary embolisms, just to name a few. These failures can be caused by negligent acts, including:
- Failure to conduct reasonable medical tests
- Incorrect diagnosis
- Failure to meet medical standard of care
Does Failure To Diagnoses Always Amount To Medical Malpractice?
Medical professionals make mistakes that don’t always constitute medical malpractice. In order for a case to be actionable, damage was suffered, the doctor-patient relationship must exist, the medical negligence must have occurred, and actual loss occurred. To meet the legal standard for negligent care, a doctor must not have met the medical standard of care. To test this, expert testimony must often be used to prove your doctor departed from accepted medical practice.
Contact Cohn Lifland Today
If you or a loved one feel as though a medical professional made a mistake that has led to injury or death, you should speak to an attorney about your situation. You may be entitled to damages regarding medical bills, pain and suffering, and much more.
If you need an effective and dedicated firm, contact Cohn Lifland today. Feel free to reach out to us online or call 201-845-9600 today to find out how. From our office in Saddle Brook, our lawyers help clients throughout northern New Jersey.