Can I file a lawsuit against my surgeon who waited eight days after spinal fusion surgery to realize hardware had broken my back?

While you can always sue a doctor for medical malpractice the important questions are whether you have a chance at winning your case. At it's core, to win your malpractice case you must prove that your surgeon did or did not do something that the majority of other surgeons performing the same spinal fusion surgery would have done it differently. In most cases, you need another surgeon to testify that your surgeon violated the standard of care for surgeons performing spinal fusion surgery. Just because you ended up with a bad result does not necessarily mean that your did something wrong. There are always risks, complications and possible side effects with most medical procedures especially surgery. There are other requirements you must prove to win your case but the one listed above is usually the most difficult to prove. As I am not a surgeon I cannot answer whether your surgeon committed malpractice. Key questions that would need to be answered include, but are not limited to: (1) what caused your hardware to break your back; (2) should the surgeon have known that the hardware broke your back; and (3) whether, had the surgeon realized the problem with the hardware sooner, your surgeon could have prevented your nerve damage and pain. You should talk to a medical malpractice attorney to learn more about your rights and options.

You would have to have a doctor willing to testify that the surgeon was negligent and the negligence caused the medical problems you are now experiencing. I cannot tell from what you state in your question whether the doctor was negligent or whether the negligence caused you damages.

You need to urgently get to a medical malpractice attorney. The statute of limitations is one year. Whether it's 1 year from the date of the surgery or 1 year from the day you learned your back was broken is an issue. But if you serve what is known as a 364 notice on or before the 365th day from the surgery, you will be fine on that issue. The 364 letter must be sent certified mail providing your notice of intent to sue with the reasoning behind it. You should have an attorney prepare this for you. If you file within 90 days of the 1 year date, the time to file your lawsuit is extended 90 days from the date you mail the 364 letter. As for the liability issue, you need to have an expert (another physician) opine that your surgeon acted below the standard of care. If your broken back was a potential hazard discussed with you prior to the surgery, you may have consented to the surgery in spite of that knowledge. But his failure to disclose the broken back may be a viable issue in any event if you can prove damages on that issue.

You can sue anyone you want. If you want to win, however, then you need a medical expert having the same credentials as the person you intend to sue, who will say that the surgeon did something that he should not have done, or failed to do something that he should have done, AND that act or failure to act CAUSED your problem.

Only if the delay caused substantial complications and financial damages.

You have 1 year within which to bring such a lawsuit in California. You need to take action immediately if you are going to do anything. You can send a letter informing the surgeon you intend to file a lawsuit for the incident (explaining generally what happened and your damages) which can extend the statute 90 days. You MUST send that letter before your 1 year statute of limitations runs out. You will need to talk with a medical malpractice attorney and have to find a medical doctor of the same specialty to testify that what the doctor did fell below the standard of practice and caused your harm. This is very expensive. It may be very difficult for you to get an attorney this late in the process.

Yes you can file a personal injury law suit.

In SC, it appears that you may have a viable medical malpractice claim. You should consult with a local attorney as soon as possible regarding this matter.

Maybe, but what damage did you suffer because of that eight-day delay? Unless you can prove that you would not have suffered that nerve damage or pain beyond that eight-day period had your surgeon timely recognized the broken hardware, there's likely no case that makes sense to pursue. You should note that a two-year statute of limitations applies to your claim, beginning on the date of the surgery, which means that although you have a good amount of time to pursue the claim, if you pursue it at all, you should be sure to contact an attorney right away.

To file a medical malpractice case, you must have an expert witness who will testify that actions of the doctor were below the acceptable standard of care. You would be best served by discussing this matter with an attorney who specializes in medical malpractice. That attorney will be able to better evaluate your case after reviewing all of the facts and your medical records.

YES. Contact a medmal attorney to discuss ASAP! Good luck.

In order to prove a medical malpractice case, a claimant must prove a failure to conform to accepted practice, resulting in an injury. You will need to get copies of ALL of your medical records and have a doctor review them; if he/she is willing to testify that the doctor failed to conform to accepted practice, then you have a case. The delay in determining that the hardware had broken is the least of it, there is a big question as to how and why it became broken. But you also have to prove how much worse you are as a result of the malpractice. These cases are difficult and expensive to prove and they do not settle out of court. So unless you have catastrophic injuries, it does not make financial sense to go forward even if malpractice was committed