Going to the hospital or being treated by medical professionals is a vulnerable experience to begin with—you’re sick and want to get better. Unfortunately, that’s not always what happens even though that’s what you expect. You might think that a nurse will always do the right thing and give you the proper treatment, but they can make mistakes too.
When that happens, you might be wondering what will happen next. Can you file a medical malpractice claim against them? Are they liable, or is it the overseeing doctor or the hospital? Let’s take a look at what you can do when a nurse commits medical malpractice.
Who Is at Fault for a Nurse’s Medical Negligence?
After suffering medical malpractice at the hands of your nurse, you might be wondering who is liable for what happened to you. There are many aspects that go into who is at fault for the medical negligence that happened. There are a couple entities who could be at fault—the nurse, their employer, the hospital, or the doctor who is overseeing the nurse.
At the end of the day, the nurse is the person who made the mistake that led to your injury and subsequent damages. That means that they are the one who is mostly responsible for what happened. Whether they administered the wrong drug, didn’t listen to you when you complained of symptoms, or were too rough and caused you damage, they are the one who was negligent and caused your injuries. However, their supervisors could also be accountable if other factors come into play.
If a travel nurse made the mistake, then you could take action against the agency that employs them because they likely are the ones who insure the nurse. This is similar for a hospital. If the hospital employs the nurse and insures them, they’re likely who you will be taking legal action against for the nurse’s mistake. If something is happening in the hospital that keeps the nurse from providing you with proper care, that could also make the hospital liable for what happened.
Sometimes, the doctor who oversees the nurse could be at fault as well. For example, if the doctor prescribes the wrong medication or tells the nurse to do something that they know will cause you harm, then the doctor could be the one who is partially responsible for what happened.
It can be hard to pin down all of the entities at fault when a nurse commits medical malpractice. That’s why you could use the help of McMath Woods P.A. We’re here to help you with your legal claim so that you don’t have to worry about the details of who’s at fault. We’ll handle figuring out which parties are at fault so that you can focus on healing.
Types of Medical Malpractice Committed by Nurses
In order to know if your nurse committed medical malpractice in your care, you should know the different ways that they can be negligent and hurt patients. Here are some of the mistakes that nurses make that could warrant a med mal claim:
- Improperly administering medication
- Giving the patient the wrong medication
- Not monitoring the patient properly
- Taking too long to respond to a patient’s call in their room
- Improperly taking vital signs, or not taking them frequently enough or at the wrong time
- Taking incorrect patient notes
- Making mistakes in the patient’s medical record
- Bringing the patient the wrong food
- Ignoring signs of bed sores
- Not following proper protocol after a surgery
- Not doing anything for the patient when they clearly need their help
- Purposefully neglecting or harming a patient
There are plenty of other actions that a nurse can take or not take to harm a patient, intentional or not. Their job is to ensure you leave the hospital better than when you came in, so when you suffer an injury because of their mistake, you can take legal action to hold them accountable.
It’s important to note that medical malpractice is not simply being dissatisfied with your nurse’s treatment. You must suffer injuries and damages as a result of your nurse’s negligence in order for it to be considered an act of medical malpractice.
McMath Woods P.A. Is Here To Represent You
When you’ve experienced medical malpractice from a nurse’s mistake, you could use the help of a lawyer from McMath Woods P.A. We have experience dealing with medical malpractice of all kinds. We understand that while your nurse was responsible for the error, other entities could be at fault as well.
We will make sure all parties have to answer for what they’ve done wrong so that you can get the full and fair compensation that you deserve. Reach out to our office today so we can get started on your claim.
