Lee’s Summit, MO Medical Malpractice Attorney

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice and medical negligence cases are more common than you might think. These cases often involve doctor malpractice, pharmaceutical errors, nursing mistakes and more. If you are looking for a Lee’s Summit medical malpractice attorney, know that Dempsey Kingsland & Osteen is dedicated to working on your behalf to obtain fair results for your medical malpractice case. 

Medical Malpractice Lawsuits vs. Personal Injury Claims

In many instances, when a person is injured by someone else’s negligent actions, they have a right to file a personal injury claim. At Dempsey Kingsland & Osteen, we also handle personal injury claims, but medical malpractice is a more specific subset of personal injury law that requires the presence of additional elements beyond a standard personal injury case. Medical malpractice lawsuits are brought exclusively against healthcare providers while personal injury claims can be filed in many circumstances, including after motor vehicle accidents, defective products, slip and fall cases, and others.

Elements of a Medical Malpractice Claim

The elements of a personal injury claim are similar to a medical malpractice case in that a plaintiff must prove that the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care, that duty was breached, and as a result, the plaintiff sustained actual damage. 

Additionally, in medical malpractice cases, the healthcare provider must have breached a certain standard of care. According to Mo. Rev. Stat. § 538.210(1) a healthcare provider must use the degree of skill and learning ordinarily used under the same or similar circumstances by members of the same profession with similar knowledge and education. To be deemed negligent, the healthcare provider must have acted in a way that was unreasonable for the situation according to similarly trained professionals. Your medical malpractice lawyer in Lee’s Summit can help you determine if your situation satisfies all the required elements to file a claim. 

What Questions Will Your Lee’s Summit Medical Malpractice Attorney Ask?

It is important for your attorney to have all the facts of the case so they can determine whether you have a valid claim and who to file it against. Our medical malpractice attorneys in Lee’s Summit are known for their ability to take on complex cases and win. We are often referred large cases by other law firms because of our reputation as successful litigators and negotiators. These are some of the questions we may ask to better understand your case:

• What medical condition led you or your loved one to seek treatment?;
• When did you receive treatment for the condition;
• Where did you receive treatment?;
• Who provided the treatment to you?;
• What specific treatment did the medical professional provide?; and
• How has the treatment hurt you physically, emotionally and financially?

Compiling your medical records will be an important part of the process. This also includes insurance statements and invoices. If you need assistance obtaining those records, your Lee’s Summit medical malpractice attorney can help. 

What to Do If You Believe You Have Experienced Medical Malpractice?

It can be very stressful to realize that you have been wronged by a trusted healthcare professional. It is important to remain calm and assess what is in your best interest going forward. You only have two years to file a medical malpractice claim under the Missouri statute of limitations, although some exceptions do apply. Keep in mind that the sooner you can reach out to a Lee’s Summit medical malpractice attorney, the better your chances may be to recover meaningful compensation. Here are a few things to consider if you believe you have experienced medical malpractice. 

Do Not Discuss Malpractice with the Healthcare Professional

Avoid a direct discussion about medical malpractice with your doctor or other negligent healthcare provider until after you have consulted a Lee’s Summit medical malpractice attorney. Your attorney will help you determine the best legal strategy for your claim. Direct confrontation with a potential defendant is rarely beneficial for your results. Likewise, refrain from public accusations on social media and other online platforms. Though you may be intending to help others avoid a similar situation, you may open the door for the doctor to consider a defamation lawsuit. 

Find Another Healthcare Provider

There is nothing more important than your health and well-being. If you experienced a medical error that caused you serious harm, you should seek assistance from someone else. Returning to your original healthcare provider could put you at risk of additional negligence. It is important to provide your new doctor with all of your previous medical history and your suspicions of medical malpractice so that they can make an informed decision about how to address your condition. They can also document and comment about your condition in your medical record, which may be a good indicator of whether they agree with the potentially negligent doctor’s actions. 

Obtain Your Medical Records

You have a right to access your own medical records, which is important because this documentation should be one of the most crucial indicators of medical malpractice. Your medical records may contain information proving when you were misdiagnosed or incorrectly treated. In some cases, it may uncover facts that you may not have otherwise known about such as incorrect diagnostic results, misinterpreted prescription requests, or filing errors that caused your records to include someone else’s information. There are a lot of reasons your medical records are important and you should try to obtain as much information as possible. 

Journal Your Experience

You cannot always rely on doctors and nurses, especially negligent ones, to keep thorough records for you. Even if you cannot recall all of the medical jargon used in your conversations with your healthcare provider, it is important to record dates and as much information as you can recall. 

Some of the things you will want to record in your journal include your symptoms and when they started or when you injury occurred, any diagnostics that were done, the treatment provided, how you felt after the treatment, or how your condition changed without treatment. If you voiced any concerns to the healthcare provider, try and record those, along with their response. 

It is important to capture how the medical error has impacted your life. For example, if you were coaching your child’s baseball team at the time of the injury or illness and now you cannot even throw a ball, that is a big change to your enjoyment of life. 

Track Your Expenses

Injuries and illnesses can have a big impact on your finances. You may have to take significant time off work, or in some cases, be unable to return to work at all. Your medical expenses, and any costs associated with additional care such as in-home services or childcare that are necessary because of your condition, may be compensable, and it is a good idea to keep an accurate record so that your medical malpractice lawyer in Missouri can accurately determine the value of your claim. 

Find the Best Malpractice Attorney in Lee’s Summit

The team at Dempsey Kingsland & Osteen has over 100 years of combined trial experience and a successful record of obtaining maximum compensation for those injured by someone else’s negligent behavior. We have two medical experts on staff to ensure we make informed decisions, enabling us to secure the best possible outcomes for our clients. Contact us to schedule your free case consultation.