Why Most Victims of Medical Malpractice Never Collect A Dime
January 18, 2008 12:58 pm Choosing a Lawyer, Lawsuits, Medical MalpracticeSTATISTICS DON’T LIE!
The medical profession brings health and hope to millions of Americans every day; however, far too many are injured or killed due to medical mistakes. In 1999, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a report documenting that as many as 98,000 patients die each year as a result of medical errors in hospitals. That’s more people than are killed by guns each year! Compound hospital deaths with the unreported mistakes made in other healthcare settings (physicians’ offices, urgent care centers, nursing homes, pharmacies and home care) and the magnitude of medical malpractice becomes staggering. In addition to the high-costs of medical mistakes in terms of lives and quality of life, our nation pays an estimated $74 billion per year in costs due to preventable errors.
THE FIRST STEP IS RECOGNIZING THAT MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!
No one wants to think that THEIR doctor could commit malpractice. This belief is often held not out of blind trust in the physician, but out of a common misperception that bad things only happen to other people. Some people have had the same family physician for decades, and could never believe their trusted friend would cause them harm. The truth is that Medical Malpractice can happen to any of us, including our parents, children and friends, at any time. It happens in big cities, small towns and rural outposts. It CAN happen to you.
THE SECOND STEP IS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
If you feel you may have been the victim of Medical Malpractice, the WORST thing you can do is nothing. In
THE THIRD STEP IS TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY WITH EXPERIENCE HANDLING MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CASES.
Not every attorney handles medical malpractice cases, and not every attorney should. They are expensive, require hundreds of hours of preparation and there is no guarantee of success in the end. Medical Malpractice is a highly specialized area of law requiring knowledge of special rules pertaining to the area, as well as knowledge of biology, chemistry, and a thorough understanding of the medical procedure involved. Hiring an attorney who can’t or won’t do the preparation necessary to properly present your case, or who doesn’t have the resources to spend the tens of thousands of dollars necessary to bring your case to trial could prove fatal to your case.
DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE!
Some people may hesitate to pursue a potential case out of mistaken belief that litigation is in some way related to rising medical costs. The TRUTH is that while medical costs have increased by 113% since 1987, the amount spent by the healthcare industry on medical malpractice insurance has only increased by 52% over the same period of time. According to the director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, insurance companies are raising rates because of poor returns on their investments, not because of litigation and justice. Numerous studies have debunked the medical profession’s false claim that malpractice cases are driving doctors away or putting them out of business. The “caps” placed on non-economic damages in some states have been totally ineffective in stemming the increased cost of malpractice insurance; malpractice insurance rates in states with such caps are actually higher than states without caps. The most effective way to reduce malpractice premiums is to take away the license of repeat offenders, which the medical profession has vigorously opposed.
We would be pleased to answer any questions you may have regarding medical malpractice.
Thanks for reading,
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
agee@zifflaw.com
January 22nd, 2008 at 7:29 am
Medical malpractice, an action caused by someone in the medical team that has issued you care, and with unworthy results. I should know in April of 2004 I was a victim of a medical mistake, they with held this mistake from me and so did 5 hospitals. Only after a heart catherazation in Jan. of 2005 was I made aware that the surgeon whom preformed my heart surgery, or someone of this team had left a suture needle in my area of my heart and chest wall. I had lived in pain from moments after surgery, I complained the whole time, no one would listen, and they had tons of x-rays of the needle. But no need to tell me, I was the poor unsepecting person, I just thought I was dying from my heart. What a way to live for almost 10 months to think your dying at the age of 31. Anyway, after careful consideration, I hired Attorneys, and found that they (the ones I had) didn’t care about me but there own benifits. It is a costly process I know, but I took over my own case as Prose’ and represent myself. Although, as this was a State Hospital it is against the State of New York. I didn’t say all Lawyers are bad, but it seems that in order to fight this the cost of medical experts are more expensive than what the compinsation would be, so I get turned down. I will not except that, my case speaks for itself, I had to go under a new surgery to have the needle removed in Jan. 17th 2007. Yes I lived in pain for almost 3 years. To this day my scar tissue has also caused me pain, I have been emotionally, Physically and finacially, scared. My question is once the Doctors have ruined your life, your career, your family life, who picks up the peices? I need a lawyer who can take over my case and win. I am tired. I just want the debt covered and to be compensated for my lost career, and family life. But the Medical field will prevail again I am sure. They have no leash to hold them accountable for what they do. The State Health Department, yeah against the State owned Hospital as if they are going to find anything they will tell me, there pay checks are cut by the same people and the Attorney General’s office I fight them, aren’t they put in office to protect the citizens from decite of business, and defend them, not the root of the problem. It is confusing, the system we have puit into place. The Doctors,they seem to have a way to blame patients and lawyers for there problems and mistakes rather than stand up and admit there wrong doing. I know that animals are treated better than I was, I was a victim of intentional fraud and decite, so the Doctor and Hospital could just keep quite maybe it would all go away, well I didn’t.
Feel like helping with this one?
January 22nd, 2008 at 1:03 pm
This man, David Vance, was given an overdose of Percocets 3 days in a row and then was sent home w.o any treatment. We talked to & showed our video to maybe a dozen local attorneys here in Macon, GA without any interest. I have now gone to the court of public opinion to help fight future abuse like David had to suffer through.