Is it medical negligence to remove a healthy organ?
Patients facing surgery are often nervous about the procedure they are undergoing and the recovery and/or rehabilitation that may follow it. Hoping that medical negligence doesn’t occur is also normal. Sometimes patients are so anxious they leave surgeons reminder notes on their bodies using markers so they don’t operate on the wrong side.
Fortunately, in the vast majority of cases, everything goes according to plan. But when it doesn’t, things can go horribly awry. That’s when a personal injury lawsuit may arise.
Medical negligence and personal injury lawsuits
One woman recently reportedly woke up from surgery to fuse discs in her lower back to find out that one of the surgeons involved in her case allegedly “declared an emergency” after mistaking her healthy kidney for a tumor–and then promptly removed it.
The surgeon was reportedly only responsible for opening the patient so that other surgeons could perform the spinal fusion operation.
Wrong site, wrong procedure, & never events
These kinds of surgical mistakes are referred to as “wrong-site, wrong-procedure, wrong-patient errors” and, because they should never ever happen, are also called “never events”. And while all medical malpractice lawsuits are complex, those that arise from alleged never events are generally a bit more straight-forward.
In order to recover in a personal injury lawsuit, the victim must establish that the injuries they suffered were due to somebody else’s negligent, reckless, or intentional actions. Once liability is established, compensatory damages for physical and psychological pain, medical expenses and lost income, and other damages depending on the circumstances of the case can be awarded.
In medical malpractice, the standard is whether the doctor, hospital or other medical professional failed to provide the appropriate standard of care, thereby causing harm to the patient.
Contact Noland Law Firm Today
If you or loved one has been injured as a result of medical malpractice, or in any other accident, Noland Law Firm can help maximize the compensation to which you may be entitled. Contact the office today to request a free consultation.
From our office in Liberty, Missouri, we represent injured people and their families throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area and western Missouri, including Clay County, Liberty, Blue Springs, Independence, and Gladstone.
