Advocating for Patients Harmed by Healthcare Mistakes
We count on doctors, surgeons, nurses, and pharmacists to provide the best care possible. Many medical professionals meet high standards of care, keeping us healthy and safe. Yet medical professionals can make mistakes and have serious errors in judgment. When mistakes happen, patients’ lives could be at risk.
If you’ve suffered a serious illness or injury at the hands of a medical professional, Bye, Goff & Rohde is here to help. We’ve been Wisconsin’s personal injury powerhouse since 1974, and we are staunch advocates for patients who’ve suffered because of preventable mistakes.
Serious illnesses and medical injuries need serious lawyers. That’s why our law firm is here to help. To request a free consultation with experienced Wisconsin medical malpractice attorneys, contact our law firm today.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
In simple terms, medical malpractice occurs when a doctor, nurse, surgeon, or medical facility provides substandard treatment that causes harm to a patient. These could involve mistakes in diagnosis, improper analysis of test results or X-rays, mistakes made during an operation, or infections during a hospital stay.
Medical malpractice can affect patients of all ages, resulting in serious health problems, progression of an illness, disability, and disfigurement. In some tragic cases, the medical professional’s negligence can cause or contribute to a patient’s death.
How Do You Know If You Have a Medical Malpractice Case?
A poor medical outcome doesn’t mean that you’re the victim of medical malpractice. There are certain legal principles that need to be in place in order to take legal action.
Key Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case
These elements are important when working on any case that involves the negligence of healthcare professionals.
- Doctor-Patient Relationship: The foundation of a medical malpractice claim. The relationship exists when the doctor diagnoses, treats, or agrees to treat a patient.
- Standard of Care: This refers to the level of quality a healthcare professional is expected to provide to their patient.
- Breach of the Standard of Care: This means that a healthcare professional failed to adhere to the accepted standard of care while treating a patient.
- Causation of Harm: In breaching the standard of care, the healthcare professional caused the patient’s illness or injury.
- Damages: The patient suffered financial and other losses because of the healthcare professional’s actions.
Signs of Medical Malpractice
Here are some potential warning signs that your treatment was ineffective or you’ve been injured while under a medical professional’s care:
- Your health condition or symptoms get worse after undergoing treatment without any explanation
- You receive a second opinion or a diagnosis from another doctor about a condition that was missed
- You experience unexpected complications after a medical procedure
- You experience serious side effects after taking prescription medication
As soon as you experience any concerning pain, discomfort, or changes in your health, be sure to seek immediate medical attention. When your condition improves, you can contact the Wisconsin medical negligence lawyers at Bye, Goff & Rohde to learn if you have a case.
Common Types of Medical Malpractice Cases
Below are just a few of the common kinds of medical malpractice claims that our Wisconsin attorneys can help with. If you suffer any kind of adverse health effects after receiving care from a medical facility, reach out to our law firm. Our attorneys can help determine if you have a legal claim.
Failure to Diagnose
When a doctor fails to diagnose a health condition, it can have serious repercussions later in a patient’s life. For example, when a doctor fails to diagnose heart disease, their patient has a much higher risk of suffering a heart attack or cardiac episode that could have been prevented with proper care.
Delayed Diagnosis
A delayed diagnosis can be just as bad as a failure to diagnose. In cases of delayed cancer diagnosis, for example, patients may require more aggressive treatment to get their cancer under control. Had the patient been diagnosed sooner, they may have had less invasive options for care.
Misdiagnosis of a Medical Condition
Some patients may suffer from a much more serious health problem, but their doctor misdiagnoses their condition. In these situations, a serious health problem may go untreated, resulting in the need for more invasive medical procedures later on.
Errors in the Emergency Room
Those who work in an ER are under a great deal of pressure. Yet the fast-paced environment is not an excuse for providing substandard care. When emergency room mistakes happen, the lawyers at Bye, Goff & Rhode can help victims of negligence hold medical personnel accountable for their actions.
Birth Injuries
When birth injuries happen, they can impact a child’s growth and development. Oxygen deprivation during childbirth could impair cognitive function. Fractures to bones or joints during delivery could lead to nerve damage and issues with proper motor function. Misuse of tools during delivery can even cause lasting disfigurement.
Surgical Errors
Examples of surgical error include operating on the wrong body part or side of the body, excessive blood loss, leaving surgical equipment inside a patient, and failing to monitor a patient’s vital signs. These kinds of medical mistakes could put a patient’s life at risk. Our medical malpractice lawyers can hold surgeons accountable when they put patients’ lives in danger.
Anesthesia Mistakes
Anesthesiologists must be attentive throughout the surgery to ensure the patient is free from pain and not fully conscious. Major errors with general anesthesia and sedation could involve adverse or allergic reactions to the anesthetic, too little anesthetic, or too much anesthesia.
Negligent Post-Op Care
Surgeons must provide detailed post-op care instructions so patients can avoid infections and other life-threatening complications during their surgical recovery. Without good post-op care, patients may suffer from excessive bleeding, deep vein thrombosis, and even a pulmonary embolism.
Prescription and Pharmacy Errors
We count on doctors to prescribe medications that are safe for us and that will not have adverse effects with other drugs we may be taking. Similarly, we expect these medications to be filled properly by pharmacists. When doctors prescribe dangerous drugs or pharmacists fail to provide patients with the right dosage or medications, lives can be at stake.
Who Can Be Held Liable in a Medical Malpractice Claim?
The liable party in a medical malpractice claim can vary depending on what occurred and who was involved.
- Doctors: When doctors fail to administer proper treatment or diagnose a condition, they can be held accountable for their errors in judgment.
- Nurses: Nurses are responsible for monitoring patients in their care and conveying important information from doctors andother professionals. They can be held accountable for lapses in duty.
- Surgeons: When surgeons operate on the wrong body part or cause some form of injury during a surgical procedure, it’s important that they beheld liable for what happened.
- Anesthesiologists: Poor administration of anesthesia and a failure to monitor a patient’s vitals can put a patient’s life in danger even during routine procedures.
- Hospitals: The administrative and support staff at a hospital or medical facility can be held accountable for any errors in paperwork, communication, or recordkeeping that contributed to a patient’s injury or illness.
- Pharmacists: Pharmacy owners and pharmacists can be held accountable if medications are stored improperly, patients are given the wrong drug or dosage, or other errors that put lives at risk.
When you come to Bye, Goff & Rohde for a free consultation, we can discuss what happened to you and who can be held liable. Multiple parties could be held accountable for your injuries or illness.
Wisconsin’s Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice Claims
Per Wisconsin Statute § 893.54, you typically have three years from the date of the incident to file a medical malpractice claim. Once the three-year statute of limitations expires, you will no longer be able to take legal action even if you have a legitimate claim.
The Discovery Rule for Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
There are some exceptions to the three-year deadline. The discovery rule applies to injuries only discovered after the initial incident. For example, if you had surgery four years ago and a recent X-ray reveals a surgical tool in your body, you will have one year from the date of discovery to file a claim.
No matter what’s happened, it’s best to speak with the Wisconsin medical malpractice lawyers at Bye, Goff & Rohde as soon as possible.
Compensation in a Medical Malpractice Claim
The compensation you seek in a medical malpractice claim can help cover financial losses and subjective impacts on your overall quality of life. This may include:
- Cost of Medical Care: This refers to the past and current cost of treating the medical problem or illness caused by a healthcare professional’s actions.
- Future Health and Wellness Needs: Our lawyer can help estimate any ongoing medical care needs in the future related to your injury or illness.
- Lost Income Due to Injury: This refers to any loss of wages because of time off from work or extended leave while you recover.
- Reduced Earning Capacity: This refers to an inability to work or a loss of overall earning potential because of the illness or injury you sustained.
- Permanent Disability or Disfigurement: Compensation may be available to address lasting disability or disfigurement related to an act of medical malpractice.
- Pain and Suffering: Injured patients can be compensated for lingering chronic pain, emotional distress, mental anguish, and other long-term effects on overall well-being.
- Loss of a Loved One: If you lose a loved one because of a medical professional’s mistakes, we can help seek compensation to cover funeral expenses, loss of your loved one’s income (if applicable), and the pain associated with the loss of a loved one’s companionship.
The Wisconsin medical malpractice attorneys at Bye, Goff & Rohde can carefully review the lasting impact of your injuries or illness. We’ll help you understand the true value of your claim as we negotiate a settlement. If we cannot reach a fair settlement, we will not hesitate to go to trial to seek damages.
Why Choose Bye, Goff & Rhode for Your Medical Malpractice Claim
The people of Wisconsin know that they can trust Bye, Goff & Rohde. We have a decades-long reputation for advocacy and strong counsel. We can take on doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies when their actions cause you or your loved ones harm.
Serving Wisconsinites Since 1974
Bye, Goff & Rohde has represented patients all over Wisconsin for over 50 years. We’ve been around for decades because we focus on our clients, their families, their lives, and their stories.
More Than 180 Years of Combined Legal Experience
When you hire our law firm, you’re not just hiring an attorney—you’re hiring an army. Our lawyers have more than 180 years of combined experience, and we will use that collective knowledge to build a strong case.
A Reputation for Great Legal Results
Our law firm has fought to secure maximum compensation for our clients. We encourage you to view our past verdicts and settlements to get a sense of what we can do for you after a healthcare professional has caused you harm.
Clients Don’t Pay Unless We Win
Recovering from a serious medical injury may involve expensive treatments and long-term care. To help patients in need, we accept cases on a contingency fee basis. That means clients don’t pay us anything unless and until we can secure a settlement or win damages in court.
Contact Our Wisconsin Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Don’t delay. The sooner you get in touch with our team, the sooner we can start building a case and seeking compensation. No matter what health problems or personal challenges you’re facing, the team at Bye, Goff & Rohde wants to make sure you can live with dignity, comfort, and peace of mind. For a free case review from our medical malpractice attorneys, contact our Wisconsin law offices today.