Medical Malpractice Lawyers: A Guide for Parents

Medical Malpractice Lawyers: A Guide for Parents

A good parent spends considerable time and effort trying to make sure their child grows and develops academically, emotionally, mentally, and physically. A good parent will go to great lengths to protect their child from harm – in the earlier years, making sure they hold your hand when crossing the street to the later years, teaching them about the dangers of getting in the car with a drunk driver. And throughout childhood – from infancy to late adolescence – a good parent takes their child to the doctor for regular wellness visits and for the occasional sick visit. These are all ways a parent can help keep their child from harm. If you are a parent, you likely can think of other actions you take to ensure your child’s safety and wellbeing.

But what happens when a visit to the doctor ends up harming your child? What happens when your child’s doctor – or other healthcare professional – makes a mistake that ends up causing serious harm to your child?  

It is unimaginably difficult when your child suffers an injury at the hands of medical professionals. A parent had placed their trust in the medical professionals to care for and help the child and, instead, the child suffered an injury because of a medical mistake. A good professional to contact in this scenario is a medical malpractice lawyer (also referred to as a “medical negligence lawyer”). This lawyer can answer questions that you have, ease concerns, and guide you every step of the way. With a medical negligence lawyer’s assistance, you can be relieved of certain burdens so you can focus your attention on the care and wellbeing of your child. The following is a list of some of the steps a medical malpractice firm takes to help you with your birth injury case. 

GUIDING YOU IN ATTAINING THE PROPER CARE FOR YOUR CHILD

When your child suffers a serious injury, it’s common for you to be so overwhelmed that you don’t know what to do next. You don’t know how to deal with this massive injury that is afflicting your child. You don’t know whom to talk to, how to navigate various hospital systems, and how to obtain the appropriate medical care for your child. A medical negligence attorney can help by connecting you with the proper healthcare professionals who can provide thorough medical evaluations, early intervention, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and other critical care.

PRESERVING YOUR RIGHTS TO FILE A CLAIM

In Pennsylvania, you can file a medical malpractice claim up to two years after the child turns 18 (i.e., up until their 20th birthday). But you should never wait that long to consult a law firm. If your child suffered a medical negligence injury, you need to contact a medical malpractice patient’s rights advocates as soon as possible to preserve your claims.

While your child’s case doesn’t expire until your child turns 20, your case expires two years after you knew or should have known that your child’s injury was someone’s fault.

Let’s say your four-year old child needed to have their enlarged tonsils removed and you took them to a hospital in Philadelphia for the procedure. The anesthesiologist in charge of your child’s sedation gave your child too much anesthesia and, as a result of the excessive anesthesia, your child suffered a seizure that led to brain damage. You should contact a Philadelphia medical malpractice lawyer immediately so you can understand how to preserve your Philadelphia medical malpractice claim. Legally, your child has until they’re 20 years old to file a medical malpractice case in Philadelphia against the Philadelphia hospital and medical team. But your case – as the parent of the harmed child – expires only two years after you knew or should have known that the anesthesiologist’s medical mistake caused your child’s brain damage.

Medical malpractice attorneys in Pennsylvania know the medical malpractice statute of limitations and contacting them as soon as possible ensures that you don’t lose your right to file your medical negligence lawsuit.

COLLECTING CRUCIAL EVIDENCE

Another way medical malpractice lawyers can help you is by collecting evidence that could be crucial to your medical injury lawsuit. Perhaps your baby was injured during labor at a Philadelphia hospital. A birth injury lawyer in Philadelphia would be the one to turn to. They can help you understand which several documents are necessary to prove your case. The medical terms may seem complicated and the medical records may be hard to understand. That’s why you need an experienced medical malpractice patients’ rights advocate to help you. They will review and digest all the necessary information that is essential to your child’s birth injury or medical negligence lawsuit. They will build a case that proves that the healthcare professionals’ actions or omissions caused your child’s injuries. This evidence will also help establish the extent of your child’s injuries, detailing every related issue, whether it’s physical or emotional.

NAVIGATING COMPLEX SYSTEMS

An experienced medical negligence law firm is obviously equipped to handle the complicated legal system with its various statutes, discovery schedules, motion practice, brief-writing, and depositions. They can also help navigate other complex systems that may arise. Whether it’s a large hospital system that refuses to give you medical records, for example, or the need to find a lifecare planner to help you figure out the costs of caring for your child over their lifetime, medical malpractice lawyers can help navigate these complicated systems.

OBTAINING MONEY DAMAGES

It goes without saying that no amount of money will take away the pain your child and your family feel after a medical mistake caused their injury. But, under our system of laws, an injured child and their aggrieved parent can collect compensation for the child’s injuries. Sometimes those injuries are related to temporary or permanent disabilities or incapacities in a broad range of contexts: emotional, developmental, behavioral, mental, and physical. And the parent can suffer too – in particular, emotional distress and, of course, the exorbitant costs of caring for the child in their post-injury condition. How could anyone possibly quantify all of the suffering of a child and parent? It’s not easy, but at least when you hire an experienced medical malpractice team, you can rest assured that you will get the most compensation possible for your case.

Bearing witness to your child’s suffering is extremely difficult for a parent. Let experienced medical malpractice attorneys ease some of your burden so you can shift your focus to loving and caring for your child. Find your medical malpractice support team at  VSCP Law.