QUESTION
Do I have a case of medical malpractice and how do I sue?
Asked on Oct 26th, 2013 on Personal Injury - Michigan
More details to this question:
Doctor said I was a candidate for lasik surgery. He performed the surgery and now my eyes are worse than before surgery. After being examined by another doctor, I was told that I was not a candidate and lasik was not a solution to my vision problems. Now, I have a problem that could possibly be corrected by another type of surgery but no guarantees.
11 ANSWERS
Employment Law Attorney serving Beverly Hills, CA
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Dordick Law Corporation
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There are attorney's that specialize in Lasik malpractice. Search for one or more in your area.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 8:06 PM
James Eugene Hasser
It takes a medical expert to answer that question. Medical malpractice lawyers typically have such an expert available. Consider consulting one. Good luck.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 7:56 PM
1 Award
If the second ophthalmologist is correct, you may have a case that can be successfully pursued. You will need to find a lawyer who represents patients in medical malpractice cases to investigate your case for you. Medical malpractice cases are generally very difficult to successfully pursue. The statute of limitations is three years from the date of injury.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 7:32 AM
Appellate Attorney serving Grosse Pointe Farms, MI
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Musilli Brennan Associates, PLLC
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You have the basis for a potential malpractice suit.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 7:31 AM
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney serving Syracuse, NY
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Andrew T. Velonis, P.C.
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In order to prove a medical malpractice case, a claimant must prove a failure to conform to accepted practice, resulting in an injury. Expert testimony from a physician is required. These cases are difficult and expensive to prove and they do not settle out of court. Absent catastrophic injuries, it does not make financial sense to go forward even if malpractice was committed.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 1:49 AM
Personal Injury Attorney serving Kent, WA
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Law Offices of Wayne J. Wimer, Inc. P.S.
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Medical negligence cases are extremely difficult since before you have a medical procedure, you are basically required to sign an informed consent form whereby you are warned of virtually all risks associated with the operation. If you signed such a form and the wording of the form included the outcome that you ended up with, the case gets more difficult. If the doctor who will correct the problem is willing to testify that there was medical negligence involved and that the negligence caused your problems, then the case may have merit many doctors will tell you that the other doctor shouldn't have done this surgery, and then if you ask them to so testify, they will back track and say they never told you this before. The only way to know if you in fact have a viable claim is to have a doctor with the same licensing willing to testify that there was medical negligence involved and that the neglect caused you to have to have a corrective surgery. This in turn would require hiring an "expert witness" to review your records before you ever proceed to the next step.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 1:46 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Anderson, SC
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The David F. Stoddard Law Firm
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To successfully sue for malpractice, you need three things: 1. Evidence that the doctor/nurse deviated from acceptable standards of due care, either by act or omission. This is also referred to as negligence. A bad outcome, in of itself, is not evidence of negligence. You need a doctor to testify that the doctor/nurse was negligent. 2. Evidence that the negligence cause some harm. 3. Significant damages. If the negligence caused minor damages, it would not be economically feasible to bring a ,malpractice case, because the cost in expert witness fees would exceed your damages. Some malpractice attorneys who require at least $500,000 in medical bills or lost wages caused by the negligence before they will consider the case. You should try to find a medical malpractice attorney to review your case.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 1:42 AM
Personal Injury Attorney serving Charlotte, NC
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Paul Whitfield and Associates P.A.
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You have a medical problem. One doctor says yes. The other says no. you need to get an opinion of one you trust. The fact that you had surgery means nothing. some surgeries don't have good results and that may have nothing to do with malpractice. some things just don't work. Some people die., all kinds of things happen with surgery. Heart attack, stroke, death from anesthesia, etc etc etc.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 1:23 AM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Madison, WI
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Richard B. Jacobson & Associates, LLC
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You might have a case of medical malpractice. It depends on whether the doctor who operated on you fell below the standard of care of his specialty in your geographical area. For this an expert opinion is almost always needed. (It sounds like your second doctor might have reached such an opinion already, but docs don't enjoy testifying against other docs.) The way to proceed is to explore the issue with a skilled medical malpractice lawyer. I'd be glad to discuss it with you if you like. You can also find lawyers who declare that they practice in med-mal cases in your yellow pages, or by calling the Lawyer Referral Service at your State Bar.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 12:53 AM
Edwin K. Niles
Yes, but med mal cases are extraordinarily expensive to pursue. Get a free consultation from an attorney who does these cases.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 12:46 AM
Ronald A. Steinberg
Get a lawyer. If you were not a candidate, then the surgery was not necessary.
Answered on Oct 29th, 2013 at 12:34 AM