A Malpractice Attorney Can Help You if Anesthesia Goes Wrong
Derived from a Greek phrase that means “loss of sensation,” anesthesia is the temporary state of induced loss of sensation or awareness. A patient is often anesthetized before undergoing a medical procedure.
There are four main types of anesthetics:
Development of anesthesia has made it possible for patients to undergo medical procedures painlessly, be it the removal of wisdom teeth or organ transplant. There are, however, a number of risks involved when anesthesia is administered. Since this is one area of medicine where even the tiniest negligence can cause devastating consequences, only experienced, qualified and pedantically careful medical professional should administer anesthesia.
It is a job that requires a lot a responsibility since they hold the life of numerous patients in their hands. Every year at least one in 200,000 medical procedures results in wrongful death due to anesthesia errors.
An anesthesia error will fall under the category of medical malpractice. In such cases, a medical malpractice lawyer will be able to give you the proper guidance in order to file a lawsuit to achieve effective results.
An anesthesia error can occur due to various reasons such as if the wrong dosage, improper monitoring or wrong administration. Since only about 4% of such problems are caused by faulty equipment, medical negligence by the healthcare professionals is the main cause of such fatal mistakes.
Here are some of the common anesthetic errors
The medical practitioner who is responsible for giving anesthesia should carefully scrutinize the patient’s medical history thoroughly while remaining closely focused on the patient’s condition and watch out for vital signs. He should also constantly monitor the equipment and the number of drugs that are being administered.
Though it may seem insignificant at the time, even the slightest anesthetic error may have lifelong consequences. The list of possible injuries is quite overwhelming. Some of the possible results of an anesthesia error include blurred vision, dizziness, seizures, pneumonia, blood clots, nerve damage and damages to various vital organs such as trachea, asphyxia, heart, lungs, brain as well as mental trauma, stroke, birth injuries that will lead to coma stage or death.
If your family member or loved one have been victims of a faulty medical procedure, you have every right to ask questions about how and why this occurred. If you believe that this was caused due to medical negligence, then the best option would be to consult a qualified medical malpractice lawyer.
Now let’s take a look at how medical malpractice claims are proved by the court of law.
A medical malpractice case can only be considered to be legitimate if your medical care officer committed a severe act of negligence. Most doctors, nurses, and anesthesiologist will deny all such charges. These kinds of claims are taken very seriously since it can seriously impact a medical care practitioner’s reputation as well as future.
Having a witness who is an expert in the medical field is crucial. He/she should be willing to testify on your behalf. This is a very important requirement because, without a witness, your chances of winning the case is close to nil.
The medical malpractice insurance carrier will extend a small settlement in return of a more general release that will close all doors for you to take any further action. This is only a tactic applied by the insurance company in order to avoid paying a large settlement or verdict.
With an experienced medical malpractice lawyer in PA working for you, winning fair compensation for your loss will not be too difficult. He will assist you to carefully build a solid case by appointing expert medical witnesses who will be able to scrutinize the case details and other documents and notes from the procedure to establish the reason the error took place. Once you have created a strong case, then you can effectively move towards filing a medical malpractice lawsuit.
If you or your loved one have gone through a catastrophic injury due to an anesthesia error, Alvin F. de Levie can help you! Talk to one of our medical malpractice lawyers at 844-777-2529, to find out what your next step should be.
Alvin F. de Levie is a 1973, Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the Pennsylvania State University and a 1976 graduate of the Villanova University School of Law. He is an expert in Pennsylvania Law revolving around medical malpractice and personal injury.
Mr. de Levie has consistently been voted by his peers to receive Martindale-Hubbell's "AV Preeminent" 5.0 out of 5.0 rating. An AV Preeminent rating is the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards.
