People do not expect errors and mistakes to be made when they seek care from medical professionals, but this can happen. While most of the time patients will receive the highest level of care, you will find that medical negligence can happen and this can have devastating repercussions. So, what are a few of the most common types of medical negligence that occur? Keep reading to find out.
Misdiagnosis
Perhaps the most common form of medical negligence is misdiagnosis. This occurs when a doctor does not make an accurate diagnosis, which can lead to the wrong type of treatment and often the health issue getting worse and more serious. This can include failing to recognize a condition or making the wrong diagnosis. Sometimes, this mistake can be fatal particularly when it comes to conditions like cancer where early diagnosis is critical.
Prescription Errors
Following on from this, medication errors are also common and often linked to misdiagnosis. These can include a doctor prescribing the wrong medication for the patient, prescribing the wrong dosage or prescribing a medication that the patient is allergic to. Sometimes, prescription errors can have very serious consequences for the patient.
Birth Injuries
There are many things that can go wrong during childbirth. Sometimes, these issues are unavoidable but sometimes they will be down to the negligence of the team. Birth injuries can include injuries to both the baby and the mother. Sometimes, serious conditions can develop in the baby as a result of medical malpractice, including cerebral palsy and developmental disorders.
Brain Injuries
Brain injuries can also come as a direct result of medical negligence. The most common times that this occurs are during birth when a newborn is starved of oxygen because of a mistake by the medical team or when a mistake is made during surgery that causes brain damage. Brain injuries are life-changing and you will want to seek brain injury compensation if you, your child or a loved one suffers a brain injury that you believe was because of medical negligence.
Surgical Errors
Surgical errors are another common type of medical negligence that can have very serious consequences. This can include operating on the wrong body part, leaving surgical items inside the patient or a mistake during the procedure, such as puncturing an organ.
These are a few of the most common types of medical negligence that occur. People put great faith in medical professionals, but sometimes medical professionals will not live up to their duty of care for one reason or another. This can have very serious, life-changing and sometimes fatal consequences. Medical negligence needs to be taken very seriously and people should look to make claims if they feel that they have been a victim of medical negligence.