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ARKANSAS TRIAL LAWYERS
Personal Attention, Proven Results Since 1953

Bentonville Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Medical professionals are supposed to take care of you at your worst. When you leave their office, the hospital, or their care, you should be better off than when you arrived. Unfortunately, sometimes medical errors happen from a healthcare worker’s negligence, and they lead to you suffering from more injuries than before.

If your doctor, nurse, surgeon, or another healthcare worker made a mistake that caused you injuries and damages, then you could use the help of a Bentonville medical malpractice lawyer. At McMath Woods P.A., we’re prepared to fight for you rights and get you the compensation you deserve for everything you’ve suffered at the hand of a negligent medical professional.

Examples of Medical Errors

When a healthcare professional is medically negligent, they can make errors in the care of their patient. There are many different factors that lead to negligence in the healthcare field—understaffing, overworking, improper training, improper credentials, distractions, rushing, lack of care, and many other reasons.

When a worker in the medical field is negligent, it’s not like a worker at most other companies where their mistakes are affecting a product. With healthcare workers, their job is to care for other people, which means when they’re negligent and make a mistake, they could be putting someone else’s life at risk through their actions.

You might have experienced a medical error and you’re not sure what to do next. Here are some common medical errors that happen in the healthcare industry that could have happened to you:

  • Misdiagnosis
  • Missed diagnosis
  • Medication errors
  • Defective medical devices
  • Surgical tools left inside the body
  • Infections
  • Allergic reactions
  • Wrong surgery site

If you don’t see what happened to you listed above, don’t worry—you still might have experienced medical malpractice. To make sure that what you suffered from was an actual instance of medical negligence and wasn’t just care you were unsatisfied with, you’ll need to prove negligence. In order for the act to be an act of negligence, there must be four elements present:

  • A doctor-patient relationship existed between you and the medical professional providing you care.
  • They breached that relationship by failing to meet the standard of care.
  • That breach directly resulted in you suffering from an injury.
  • That injury resulted in you incurring damages.

Once you prove that your doctor, nurse, or other medical professional responsible for your care was negligent, you’ll need to look at what injuries you were caused and the damages they resulted in.

Damages Caused by Medical Malpractice

When a medical mistake happens, it likely will lead to you suffering from injuries. That’s why it’s so important to note that being unhappy with your medical care is not the same as suffering from medical malpractice. When you’re unhappy with your care, you didn’t incur any injuries or suffer from damages in any way.

However, when a doctor is negligent and makes a mistake in your care, then it could be considered medical malpractice if you suffered from injuries and other damages. If you experienced one or more of the medical errors listed above, then it’s likely that you incurred injuries from the mistakes. With documentation of those injuries, your med mal lawyer can help you recover financial compensation for your damages.

When calculating damages, there are certain aspects that your lawyer will look at in order to determine exactly how much you’re owed. The two different types of damages that you’re eligible for are economic and noneconomic.

Economic damages are the real costs that you suffered as a result of your injuries. Documentation and bills will be essential to help your lawyer calculate these damages. These costs include medical bills, treatment costs, and lost wages. Your attorney will also include future medical bills and future lost wages if you will need more medical attention and more time to heal before returning to work.

Noneconomic damages are more abstract costs that you incur from your medical professional’s mistake. These damages could be more emotional and mental rather than physical. Any pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, or loss of consortium could be included in these damages.

Your Bentonville medical malpractice attorney will diligently examine all of your costs and damages to accurately determine how much you’re owed in compensation. They won’t let you settle for less than you deserve.

Statute of Limitations in Arkansas

Another important aspect of your med mal claim is filing within the statute of limitations in the state of Arkansas. According to state code, a person has two years after the cause of action happens to file a claim against their negligent medical professional. When a foreign object is left in the patient’s body, then the patient has one year from the date that the object is found.

When the act of medical malpractice happened to a child who was under 9 years old, they have the longer of either two years or until their 11th birthday to take legal action. The statute of limitations can seem complex which is why hiring a Bentonville medical malpractice lawyer is beneficial. We’ll be able to answer your questions and determine whether or not you’re trying to file within the two years.

McMath Woods P.A. Will Represent You

Experiencing medical malpractice can take a huge toll on your physical health as well as emotional and mental health. You shouldn’t have to endure the pain and damages on your own—the negligent healthcare worker should be held accountable for their actions. With the help of a Bentonville medical malpractice lawyer, you can do just that.

Our attorneys at McMath Woods P.A. will fight to get you the compensation you deserve for what you’ve been through. Reach out to our office today so that we can get started working on your claim as soon as possible.

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Disclaimer: Some non-personal injury related cases do require a consultation fee.
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