Medical Malpractice Attorneys Baton Rouge

It can be a miserable experience when the doctor you depended on makes mistakes that have a significant impact on your health. When your doctor or other healthcare practitioner delivers unreliable services that result in the deterioration of your health, this is considered medical malpractice. We rely on healthcare and medical professionals like doctors, nurses, surgeons, and more to properly diagnose our problems, perform medical or surgical procedures and provide appropriate care to improve our health—not make it worse.

Whenever there is a human component, there is also the capacity for error. When a medical provider fails to adequately provide the care and attention to detail for which they are trained, innocent patients can be left with a devastating injury or lifelong health issues. This is what happens when medical malpractice occurs, which entitles the patient to financial compensation. All of the damages you suffered because of medical malpractice, including any medical bills that were the result of your injuries, can be compensated for.  

Hiring an experienced medical malpractice lawyer can increase your chances of a successful resolution. Dealing with insurance companies can be complicated and frustrating. It isn’t easy to get the settlement you deserve without legal help. Your attorney can represent you and help you receive a fair settlement that accurately reflects how much you should receive in personal injury compensation.

At Murray & Murray, our Baton Rouge attorneys can go over your case and determine what a fair settlement would be. They will support you through this troubling time and provide direction throughout your personal injury case. Call Murray & Murray for a free consultation today.

What Is Medical Malpractice?

If a medical provider has hurt you, this could potentially be medical malpractice. This is entirely based upon the circumstances surrounding your case and whether the damages can be directly tied to the actions of your healthcare practitioner. It doesn’t matter if the injury caused was intentional or a failure to perform job duties satisfactorily. Once your doctor makes an error, it is their responsibility to compensate you for their mistakes. The healthcare organization and their insurance company can be held liable for your injuries. 

It’s important to note that there are circumstances where everything was done correctly, but the outcome could not be prevented. The only way a situation could be medical malpractice is if negligence was involved. Negligence is proved by showing that the doctor was careless or reckless in some way. Your attorney will check if the doctor followed the standard duty of care and if your case has all the elements necessary for a medical malpractice case. The elements of a medical malpractice case are as follows:

Duty Of Care

Your doctor owes you a duty of care because of their duty to provide the best possible care for their patients. Your doctor must uphold a duty of care and provide quality healthcare treatment.

Breach Of Duty

When your doctor fails to provide proper healthcare services and has committed some kind of error, this is a breach of duty. This means that the doctor has failed to uphold the standard of care required for their profession.

Causation

The failure on the part of the doctor has to be directly connected to your personal injury to be considered medical malpractice. If they did not cause your injury or worsen your condition, then they can’t be held liable. 

Losses 

If the malpractice caused losses, like additional medical expenses to fix the healthcare provider’s error, then you have a valid case. Emotional anguish, pain and suffering, and other non-economic losses are also valid in a medical malpractice case. 

There are many types of negligence that can happen, and it isn’t restricted to only one type of medical practice. Some situations that a medical malpractice attorney in Baton Rouge, LA can assist you with include the following:

• Birth injury including broken bones, brain injuries, cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, neonatal errors, fetal hypoxia/anoxia, shoulder dystocia
• Birth defects, possibly from prescribed drugs
• Failure to diagnose a serious or fatal condition that could have been successfully treated otherwise, such as cardiopulmonary arrest, complete bowel obstruction, congestive heart failure, meningitis, myocardial infarction, sepsis, or renal failure
• Misdiagnosis that results in the wrong prescribed treatment
• Surgical errors, including leaving a surgical or foreign object inside the patient or performing the incorrect procedure
• Prescription drugs that were wrongly prescribed or harmfully interacted with another drug 
• Wrongful death 
• Nursing home negligence and abuse
• Spinal cord injuries
• Brain Damage
• Central nervous system damage
• Loss of limb
• Emergency Room mistakes and negligence
• Hospital errors
• Nursing errors

Medical malpractice cases are not just limited to nurses, doctors, surgeons, or hospitals. Your dentist or pharmacist can also be negligent and cause harm to you or a loved one.

What to Know About Medical Malpractice Claims

Medical malpractice lawsuits are different from personal injury claims in many ways.

In Louisiana, the maximum compensation that can be reimbursed from a medical malpractice lawsuit is $500,000. Your Baton Rouge medical malpractice attorney will help guarantee that any damages incurred are factored into your compensation. It’s important to note that any future medical care costs incurred by your injury are not equally limited. 

Medical malpractice claims are complicated and not easy to prove. Your malpractice attorney may need to obtain expert witness testimony that proves your assertion of negligence and medical errors. 

Determining the Value of Your Malpractice Settlement

Even if your claim is capped by Louisiana state law, it is still essential that you thoroughly assess your claim so you can get the total value of your settlement. 

Your medical malpractice lawyer will review your out-of-pocket medical costs, financial expenses, and other damages to itemize the lawsuit. At Murray & Murray, we are with you every step of the process to ensure that everything that should be stated is included.

Here are a few examples of reparations that should factor into your settlement:

Lost Wages

When you experience medical malpractice, you may suffer from lost wages because you have to take time off from work. Your injuries may prevent you from performing normal tasks, making it difficult or impossible for you to work. The amount of money you lost due to the days you missed from work can be included in your compensation. This includes money lost in the past, present, and future, especially if you expect to take additional weeks or months off from work. 

Medical Bills

You may have high medical bills because of injuries that need additional treatment for recovery. For example, you may have received surgery, prescription drugs, and other medical services to help remedy your injury. Any medical treatment you received because of malpractice can be included in your settlement. For example, in the case of permanent disfigurement, you may require a skin graft, plastic surgery, and multiple follow-up appointments. This can be very expensive and time-consuming. 

Physical Therapy

In some cases, you may need to receive additional forms of therapy to help you overcome your injuries, especially if they make parts of your body immobile or difficult to move. You may require physical therapy, massage sessions, and chiropractic treatments to help you recover. 

Transportation

Your injuries may prevent you from driving. If you require paid transportation like taxis or rideshares to get around, this can be included in your settlement. 

Non-Economic Damages

When you are struggling with severe emotions because of your damage, such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, grief, embarrassment, and other negative feelings, they are non-economic damages. Agony and emotional distress can affect your quality of life and prevent you from doing activities you could before the medical malpractice. Your attorney will work with an insurance adjuster to calculate your non-economic damages. 

Caregiver Expenses

You may have to hire a caregiver to take care of you while recovering from your injuries. This can be an extra expense that makes it difficult for you to stay afloat. All of the caregiver expenses that you paid for because of your damages can be added to the total compensation.

Contact a Baton Rouge Medical Malpractice Attorney

Medical malpractice, negligence, lack of experience, and error in judgment—no matter what you call them, all of these fall below the standard of care that you and your loved ones have come to expect from trusted medical professionals. You and your family trust your health and life with the medical providers trained to keep you healthy. When negligence has resulted in injury or suffering, you are entitled to monetary damages. It is only fair you receive compensation for injuries that were not your fault because the financial burden of these injuries can last for months or years. Additionally, the physical damages can make your life difficult and require a long time to recover. 

In the state of Louisiana, when a doctor or hospital fails to diagnose or treat your illness or injury, this is considered grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit.

This applies to medical institutions besides hospitals, such as clinics, pharmacies, physician offices, nursing homes, chiropractors, and more. 

Not every medical accident, unexpected result, or bad outcome constitutes medical malpractice. It takes an experienced Louisiana medical malpractice attorney to know the difference. Because these cases are often complex and costly to pursue, affected patients and their families need to make sure they have a claim worth presenting to a jury.

How a Baton Rouge Medical Malpractice Lawyer Can Help You

You deserve reimbursement to cover any injuries, suffering, and impairment caused by the negligence of a trusted medical professional. Never trust insurance companies to immediately offer what your claim is worth. Their main objective is to protect their profits and settle claims as quickly and cost-effectively as they can. Don’t accept any offers from the other party without first speaking to a knowledgeable personal injury attorney.

The medical malpractice lawyers at Murray & Murray will help you navigate the maze of insurance claims and settlements. We provide an accurate estimation of your settlement and include all of the damages you are owed. While insurance companies often ignore pain and suffering, your attorney will make sure to include this in your settlement because your emotional turmoil is important and makes up a large portion of your compensation. You can easily schedule a free case evaluation with a knowledgeable Baton Rouge, LA attorney so you can understand all your options. Have all your questions answered by speaking to an experienced lawyer who can explain the settlement process. Contact us right away and let us know the particulars of your case. 

If you or a loved one has been disfigured or injured due to negligence or surgical error within the medical industry, or if you have had a misdiagnosis that should not have happened, the personal injury lawyers in Baton Rouge are on your side. This can happen in the case of wrongful death, leaving surviving family members devastated and stuck with expensive medical bills, funeral and burial costs, and other damages. Hospitals, insurance companies, and medical professionals often employ a comprehensive network of resources to avoid paying settlements. By teaming up with equally experienced medical malpractice lawyers, you can fight back to get the compensation you deserve. 

As a victim of medical malpractice, you have the right to compensation, and our medical malpractice attorneys will fight to get you the settlement you deserve. You should receive an amount in damages that completely reflects how badly you’ve been injured. Don’t accept a small settlement that won’t cover the costs of all your burdens. Find out how you can get started and reach out to our law firm. Contact Murray & Murray today for a free consultation.