When you experience a poor outcome after consulting a medical professional and undergoing treatment, you might have the basis for a medical malpractice lawsuit. If your suit settles or you win at trial, you could receive compensation for your injuries.
However, you must prove negligence in Connecticut medical malpractice cases. A poor outcome does not necessarily mean your healthcare provider was negligent. The seasoned medical malpractice attorneys at D’Amico & Pettinicchi, LLC, can review your situation and let you know whether a medical malpractice lawsuit is viable in your specific case.
Medicine is not an exact science, and every human body has its own unique quirks that can affect how a disease looks and whether a treatment works or makes things worse. Doctors and other healthcare professionals have little control over many variables that can make a difference.
On the other hand, healthcare professionals do have control over whether they keep up with the latest research and techniques. They control how much time they spend with a patient, how well they listen, and the care they take when reviewing medical records. The medical professional is responsible for keeping their skills sharp, and their attention focused on the patient and their needs.
Sometimes, a doctor uses their best efforts, and the patient dies or is not cured. These results are unfortunate but may not be the doctor’s fault. When a doctor’s carelessness, poor judgment, or lack of attention, knowledge, or skill produces a poor outcome that could’ve been avoided, that doctor may be negligent and guilty of malpractice. Our attorneys in Connecticut can review the medical record, your description of events and discuss your care with medical experts to determine whether malpractice is the reason for your poor outcome.
In any lawsuit seeking compensation for personal injuries, you must prove another party was negligent. The evidence you need to prove negligence varies depending on the circumstances. In a medical malpractice lawsuit, a healthcare provider is negligent when they don’t meet the expected standard of care.
Connecticut General Statutes § 52-184c(a) explains the standard of care. The law says that a patient suing a healthcare provider must prove the provider didn’t use the same degree of knowledge, judgment, and skill that another reasonably prudent provider with the same credentials would have used in similar circumstances. The provider is negligent if they didn’t use the expected knowledge, judgment, and skills and the patient suffered because of the failure.
The law requires your lawyer to make a “reasonable inquiry” first, which means a medical expert with training in the same field or specialty as the provider you wish to sue must also review the medical records. When the expert agrees that the provider did not meet the appropriate standard of care, can explain what they should’ve done differently, and is willing to put their opinion in writing, then you can file a lawsuit against the healthcare provider.
Connecticut sets a two-year deadline for you to file a lawsuit seeking compensation for injuries you suffered due to someone else’s negligence. This deadline applies to medical negligence as well, but there is a twist.
Sometimes, you don’t know that medical negligence occurred. For example, you wouldn’t know that a doctor misdiagnosed you until another doctor provides the correct diagnosis. In situations where malpractice isn’t immediately obvious, you have an extra year to discover the problem. However, you must sue within three years of the malpractice. This time period is different in situations when the negligent care caused death; then the limitation period is two years from the date of death but not more than five years from the date of the negligent care.
Sometimes, people don’t consult a Connecticut attorney until the deadline is close. Connecticut General Statutes § 52-190a allows you to extend the clock for an additional 90 days while your lawyer finds an expert who will provide a written opinion stating the healthcare provider was negligent.
When your healthcare provider does not provide an appropriate level of care and you suffer because of it, the provider should face consequences. You can sue them for their poor care and receive financial compensation.
Our attorneys at D’Amico & Pettinicchi, LLC are skilled at proving negligence in Connecticut medical malpractice cases. Contact us today to explore your legal options. We offer free in-person and remote consultations.
