The local hospital emergency room is supposed to be where you get immediate care during dire circumstances. However, sometimes emergency rooms fail to provide proper care, leading to severe injuries or death. Emergency room errors can be considered medical malpractice if the care provided does not conform to the accepted standards of care.
Have you received inadequate care that caused you harm in Brooklyn? Bonina & Bonina, PC, handles Medical Malpractice cases in New York when medical care causes an injury or wrongful death. Let’s review the most common errors in NYC emergency rooms and when a medical malpractice lawsuit is warranted.
Failure to Properly Diagnose a Condition
One of the most common emergency room errors is the failure to promptly diagnose a patient’s condition. This means that the medical staff fails to recognize the severity of a patient’s symptoms or overlooks essential symptoms that could have led to an accurate diagnosis. For example, if a patient complains of chest pains, the emergency room staff should perform tests to rule out possible heart-related issues. If they fail to do so and the patient suffers a heart attack, the emergency room could be found negligent and liable for medical malpractice.
Medication Errors that Lead to Serious Injury or Death
Another common error in emergency rooms is medication errors. These errors can occur when a provider gives medications in the wrong dosage or administers the wrong medication. Medications can sometimes interact, causing serious injuries or side effects. Additionally, some patients may have allergies or adverse reactions to certain medications that the provider did not know about or did not care to consider. Medication errors can lead to serious harm to the patient and can even result in death.
Surgical Errors from Inadequate Preparation or Carelessness
Surgical errors in the emergency room are among the most common errors that can lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit. This can happen due to inadequate preparation or carelessness by the medical staff. These errors can include leaving surgical instruments inside the patient’s body, performing surgery on the wrong body part, or administering the wrong anesthesia. These errors can lead to severe injuries, such as internal bleeding, infections, or even death.
Improper or Delayed Treatment of an Illness or Injury
Another common error is improper or delayed treatment of an illness or injury. The emergency room staff must provide prompt and adequate treatment to every patient that comes through their doors. However, sometimes they make mistakes, such as misinterpreting symptoms or failing to order necessary tests. These errors can lead to delayed treatment, which can cause further harm to the patient. For example, they may take uncommon signs of a stroke as migraine headaches or vision problems with another cause. Delaying a stroke diagnosis can cause permanent brain damage and even death.
Misdiagnosis of the Patient’s Condition
Misdiagnosis of a patient’s condition is another error that can lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit. Doctors in the emergency room may misdiagnose a patient’s condition due to fatigue, inadequate information, or inadequate testing. Misdiagnosing a condition can lead to harmful or incorrect treatment that causes injury or death.
NYC Medical Malpractice Attorney
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury due to emergency room errors, it’s essential to consult an experienced Brooklyn medical malpractice attorney. At Bonina & Bonina, P.C., we have experience handling medical malpractice cases. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.