QUESTION
What are my rights when a surgery fails and the doctors say there is nothing else that can be done?
Asked on Jul 08th, 2012 on Personal Injury - New Jersey
More details to this question:
I had multiple surgeries done for a hernia that failed and I was in 4 different hospitals and then finally it gets fixed and they put me on the right medicine to get better, but now it’s all back the same and I’m having more problems. I want to know if there is anything I can do about this considering I have to live the rest of my life with the problems. These specialists and surgeons are saying there is nothing else that can be done for me and I didn’t have these problems until they started cutting on me.
19 ANSWERS
Plaintiff Animal Bites Attorney serving Missoula, MT
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Bulman Law Associates PLLC
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There are no guarantees in medicine.
Answered on Aug 07th, 2012 at 1:09 PM
Appellate Attorney serving Grosse Pointe Farms, MI
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Musilli Brennan Associates, PLLC
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Sadly medical procedures are not without risk. You will need to prove one less more of the treaters was negligent.
Answered on Aug 03rd, 2012 at 3:22 PM
Motor Vehicle Accidents Attorney serving Lincoln, NE
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Lapin Law Offices
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The answer to your question ("What are my rights when a surgery fails and the doctors say there is nothing else that can be done?"), from a legal perspective only, depends on whether any of your doctors, hospitals, nurses or other medical providers committed malpractice, which caused you the "problems" you continue to experience. The reason I say from a "legal prospective only" is because I am not a doctor and cannot provide medical advice. Unless someone committed malpractice, you do not have a legal claim. Sometimes, despite a medical provider's best efforts, some surgeries and other procedures either do not work or cause other problems. This can occur without the medical provider having done anything wrong. Generally, to establish medical malpractice you must prove each of the following: (1) The generally recognized medical standard of care; (2) A deviation from that standard by the doctor; and (3) That the deviation was the proximate cause of your alleged injuries. Basically, you have to prove that the doctor did, or did not do, something that most other doctors would have differently under the same circumstances. In most cases, a doctor must establish (usually through his or her testimony) these items. I would suggest consulting with an attorney who handles medical malpractice cases to learn more about your rights and possible legal options.
Answered on Aug 03rd, 2012 at 9:15 AM
A bad result does not mean the doctor's treatment was incorrect. For whatever reason, some people just have a bad result.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 8:49 PM
Ronald A. Steinberg
Medical Malpractice is called "professional negligence." What that means is that in the course of providing professional services, you claim that the professional failed to provide those services in a manner that conformed to the "standards of practice for that particular professional in the same or similar communities." In other words, since hernia repair is probably performed by a general surgeon, you would need a general surgeon having the same level of skills as your surgeon who would put in writing, and later be willing to testify, that your surgeon either did something wrong, or failed to do something right, and that action or inaction WAS the proximate cause of your problem. From a practical standpoint, surgery in and of itself always has attendant risks. Since you did not specify what went wrong, it is hard to give a specific answer, but for example, sometimes the surgical wounds do not heal properly (called 'wound dihisence'). Sometimes there develops a weakness in the area of the incision, or an infection within the surgical scar. The fact that there is a less-than-favorable result does NOT mean that the doctor did anything wrong. I suggest that you consult with an attorney that specializes in Medical Malpractice. They usually have access to medical personnel who can determine if the case warrants further investigation. If it does, the lawyer will then send all of your records to some medical evaluation group that will examine all of the records, and if the assigned doctor agrees that malpractice occurred, a report will be provided, and the doctor will testify. Since these cases are horrifically expensive, the lawyer has to evaluate whether your injuries and damages will support the investment of tens of thousands of dollars of the lawyer's money.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 8:17 PM
Tax Attorney serving North Smithfield, RI
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It depends - this may just be a bad result - no doctor gives a guaranty he/she merely has to perform in an medically acceptable way.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 8:03 PM
Appellate Practice Attorney serving Bloomfield Hills, MI
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Law Office of William L. Spern
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Contact an attorney who specializes in malpractice. Time is of the essence as there is a two-year statute of limitation from last medical contact or 6-months from the time you knew of should have known.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 8:00 PM
Dennis P. Mikko
The question to ask is whether the actions of the doctors breached the applicable statndard of care. This would have to be determined by hiring an expert to review your medical records. An attorney specializing in medical malpractice could assist you.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 7:54 PM
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney serving Syracuse, NY
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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. A bad result is not enough, and if it is a "judgment call" by the doctor, there is no malpractice, even if the doctor made the wrong call. You will need to get copies of ALL of your medical records and have a surgeon review them; if he/she is willing to testify that your previous surgeon(s) failed to conform to accepted practice, then you have a case.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 7:54 PM
The citizens of Florida decided that doctors should get a free pass from most lawsuits, so the citizens voted for "Tort reform". Tort reform makes it incredibly difficult to sue a physician - both in up front costs and in the work that has to be done before suit is filed. You used to see lawyers advertise all over the place for medical malpractice, now its rarely advertised. So the guy that puts tires on your car can get sued for negligence one day after the tires fall off, at a cost of $401 for filing fees, but the physician who is negligent can't be sued the next day after a botched surgery. The costs to start a medical malpractice case - before a suit is even filed - often exceed $5,000. The hurdles imposed by Tort reform make only the most egregious cases worthwhile. So, to answer your question, here's what you need to do: 1) Be aware that the statute of limits is 2 years and that you have to give a 90 day notice to the physician before filing suit. 2) Go to every medical provider, physician, hospital, and every pharmacy you ever visited for any reason at all within 2 years of the date of the surgeries you are complaining of and get copies of every medical record (usually $1 per page). This often exceeds $1,000. 3) You must find an expert physician in the same field as the physician who you claim committed malpractice. Hire that person to review every medical record you obtained to determine if there is malpractice. (Usually $400 to $800 per hour to read the documents), then pay that physician to write an affidavit that medical malpractice occurred (usually $1,500). The total on this up front cost is often $4,500 - $7,000. 4) If the expert says that malpractice occurred, find a lawyer to take the case.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 5:08 PM
Failed surgery alone is not the basis for a medical malpractice claim. Whether we like it or not some injuries cannot be healed. You need to have a medical expert review your situation to advise whether or not the expert believes malpractice happened.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 2:54 PM
Litigation Attorney serving Olean, NY
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See an attorney as there are product liability cases out there for defective mesh used in hernia surgeries. Good luck.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 2:16 PM
If you believe the specialists and/or surgeons have caused you physical injury and pain then you may seek legal action against them. A lawsuit brought against a doctor or health care facility would be for medical malpractice. Medical malpractice may be defined as a failure by a medical professional to provide a standard level of care to a patient. This may occur in the initial diagnosis of a patient, when a doctor fails to notice an important symptom or simply does not recognize a serious illness for what it is, possibly discharging the patient or providing the wrong treatment. It also may occur before or during any type of medical treatment or in post-operative patient care. Medication errors, surgical injuries, birth injuries, misdiagnosis and anaesthesia errors are some of the most common types of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice cases are highly complicated and require extensive medical expert involvement. For this reason, medical malpractice cases are very expensive and only handled by plaintiff attorneys on a contingency fee basis. This means the attorney will pay the cost of litigating the case, and is only reimbursed the cost and paid his fee if he is successful on the claim. I would recommend you speak with a highly qualified medical malpractice attorney in the area. The med-mal attorney will be able to best advise you as to whether you have a valid case.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:52 PM
Employment Law Attorney serving Beverly Hills, CA
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Dordick Law Corporation
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Medical malpractice has the legal standard off whether the doctor's performance fell below the standard of care. You need an expert physician to opine that these prior doctor's acted below the standard of care. That's te first hurdle. The second hurdle is that you likely signed a consent form acknowledging a host of possible complications. If your current situation is one that was discussed with you or waived by your consent form, then you have that hurdle to overcome as well. My suggestion is that you speak with an experienced medical malpractice attorney to get an opinion of whether you have a case. There are not enough facts provided by you here to make a valid assessment. Nearly all such attorneys will provide you a free consultation. Having copies of your medical records is something you will need to get, but even if you request them, they usually do not produce the entirety of your file. That usually happens only in litigation (assuming of course that they have not sanitized the file by removing or altering records to avoid liability to you for their poor performance).
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:29 PM
Child Custody Attorney serving Malvern, AR
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Law Office of Gregory Crain
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You can attempt a medical malpractice suit.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:28 PM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Oklahoma City, OK
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Frisby Law Firm
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IF the one or more of the doctors in your case committed malpractice, you may be able to sue him/her for medical costs, lost wages, and possibly pain and suffering. However, please understand that just because the procedures where not entirely successful does not automatically mean that malpractice was committed, not all medical procedures are successful. "Malpractice" is when a doctor is careless or otherwise provides medical care that is not up to the generally accepted standards (better known as the ?standard of care?) If you have reason to believe that might be the case, you should collect ALL of your medical records surrounding the treatment and discuss the matter with a medical malpractice attorney. You should be aware all claims have statutes of limitations that apply to them. This means that you must take action on all claims within the required time period(s) or your claims will be barred forever. Contact our office or another competent attorney immediately to discuss the particular facts of any claim you might have to learn what time periods apply to your particular situation. The information here has been prepared for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice or a legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. Transmission of the information is not intended to create, and receipt does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship between the sender and receiver. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:28 PM
Personal Injury Attorney serving Irvine, CA
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Law Offices of C. Mark Hopkins
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A medical malpractice lawsuit against Dr. will not be successful relationship you find at least one board-certified surgeon in the area in question that will say that the medical care rendered was beneath the standard of care in the community. You need to consult a medical malpractice attorney.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:18 PM
There is certain inherent risks that are involved in everything we do, especially medical procedures. If the doctor did everything write and the procedure simply did not work, there is likley no claim. If the doctor failed to perform up to industry standards, etc. or did something wrong, then you might have a claim. This is likely a medical malpractice issue and you would want to consult an attorney who specializes in medical malpractice specifically, as opposed to just personal injury.
Answered on Aug 01st, 2012 at 1:15 PM
Bankruptcy Law Attorney serving Livingston, NJ
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Law Office of Stuart M. Nachbar, P.C.
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You would need to see a medical malpractice lawyer and get an affidavit of merit to prove a medical malpractice claim..good luck.
Answered on Jul 27th, 2012 at 3:18 PM