If you were hurt by a doctor or surgeon, you may be able to sue for medical malpractice. Get the most for your settlement by following the guidelines below.
Prove Negligence
Every successful personal injury settlement or verdict comes down to this: proving that the other party caused your injuries and resulting damages.
In a medical malpractice case, you must have convincing evidence that the medical provider or facility was negligent and injured you.
Physicians and surgeons are supposed to act with a ‘standard of care’ that other similar medical professionals would have met if they were in the same situation.
To determine if the physician provided you with the appropriate standard of care, your personal injury attorney will rely on medical experts. A doctor associated with the medical malpractice law firm will go over your medical records and provide a professional opinion about whether the medical provider was negligent.
A doctor’s medical opinion carries great weight with insurance companies and juries. So if the attorney’s expert doctor says there was negligence, that’s a strong factor in your favor.
But it’s not enough. To get compensation for your injuries, the expert
How To Get A Better Malpractice Settlementmust show that the doctor or surgeon’s negligence caused your injuries. And this can be more challenging to prove.
Let’s say you have an operation to repair a ruptured spinal disc. There are complications during the surgery, and the resulting investigation shows the surgeon didn’t follow the standard of care required for that procedure.
But the injuries you have – such as tingling and pain in your hands – couldn’t have been caused by that deviance from the standard of care. If your expert witness can’t show a clear link between your symptoms and the improper surgery, you can’t receive compensation.
Value Your Medical Malpractice Claim
First, you need to assign a rough value to your medical malpractice case. The value of the claim is the total losses you’ve endured because of the physician or surgeon’s medical malpractice. Some of the amounts that need to be tallied are:
- Medical bills that you’ve incurred because of the medical mistake or malpractice
- Lost earnings from the period in which you’ve been unable to work; also can include future estimated lost wages
- Reduction in your ability to earn a living in the future
Your medical malpractice attorney will work closely with you to arrive at an approximate settlement figure so you can start negotiations with the insurance company.
There’s no guarantee you will receive that settlement amount, but your attorney will use her knowledge and experience about similar claims to arrive at a possible settlement amount. Click here to learn more about medical malpractice lawyers.
Have Documentation
Every medical malpractice claim comes down to who has the most compelling evidence. The best evidence to prove your injuries and damages are your medical records.
The first step when you retain your attorney is to let them access and review your medical records. However, you can give them a head start by getting copies of your documents when you think you may file a claim.
It can take several weeks to obtain all your medical records, and these cases need to be filed within the state statute of limitations. Sometimes, that limit is only a year or two. So you can get your case rolling faster by getting the requests in for your medical records right away.
When you have your medical records, the medical malpractice lawyer can review them and usually determine if you have a case within a few days.
Remembering the three tips above will give you the best chance to get compensation in your medical malpractice case. You may need weeks or months of recovery and follow-up, and getting your just settlement ensures that you’ll be back on your feet faster.
