Medical Malpractice, How It Works.It is understood by default that a healthcare service provider must adhere to laws and acceptable standards of practice while providing treatment to a patient. Failure to do so may cause the patient injury. As such a health care provider who fails to provide proper treatment that causes such an injury to a patient, is then known as Medical Malpractice and countries like the USA and the United Kingdom have stipulated harsh punishments for Medical negligence. What are the parties to a medical malpractice claim? In a simple case, the parties would be the plaintiff and the defendant. The patient who complains of service provided to him by the healthcare service provider is the plaintiff whereas the defendant would be the healthcare service provider who provided treatment to the patient. To proceed with a case certain elements must be present, which are legally known as 'cause of action' and must contain the following: 1) The duty which was performed by the healthcare service provider. 2) The healthcare service provider breached the duty by providing treatment which does not adhere to standards of practice. 3) An injury was caused to the patient by the possible breach of duty by the service provider and most importantly.... 4) The damages caused to the patient due to the breach of the duty. The medical malpractice case procedure. 1) The plaintiff files a claim or a lawsuit in the court detailing the treatment and the damages caused. 2) Plaintiff shares information with the attorney of the service provider. This information would include all relevant documentation. This generally happens in the timeframe between the filing of a lawsuit and the trial. This is known as the 'discovery phase'.. 3) Once the trial begins, both the parties present their witnesses to the court. The presiding judge takes note of the the facts. To ensure that the trial proceeds in a very neutral manner, the judge may ask that expert testimony be given only by those meeting certain qualifications and experience in the field. 4) If the plaintiff wins the case, he can claim for compensatory damages from the healthcare service provider. In some cases, the plaintiff can also claim punitive damages from the service provider. Although the American Medical Association (AMA) and medical malpractice insurance companies have openly condemned Medical malpractice litigation, it is the only means of redress for an individual that has been severely harmed by a medical practitioner. While it is true that with the cost of medical malpractice insurance, and the paperwork involved with treatment, have overwhelmed the medical community, constructively speaking, medical malpractice litigation is the channel through which a patient can seek equity for a bodily injury caused to him/her. |