Health care professionals, including doctors, nurses, surgeons, anesthesiologists, therapists, pharmacists and hospital staff, must abide by an appropriate and generally accepted standard of care in treating patients. Although our culture holds medical professionals in high regard, like anyone else, they make mistakes. Sadly, medical errors, commonly referred to as medical malpractice, frequently result in catastrophic, disabling injuries, or death.
According to a 1984 study performed by the Institute of Medicine, it was believed that as many as 98,000 Americans died each year from medical errors. More recent studies published in the Journal of Patient Safety suggest the data used in 1984 is out-dated, thereby resulting in a grossly underestimated number of patient deaths stemming from PAEs. Using more current data and methodology, this more recent study places the number of patient deaths caused by medical errors at a staggering 400,000 or more each year. Kopelman Sitton Law Group helps hold medical professionals accountable and responsible for their negligence.
Mistakes made during birth can result in maternal as well as infant injuries, including cerebral palsy, brachial injuries, developmental problems, brain injuries and death.
Georgia law requires that victims of malpractice obtain a special, written, expert opinion, in the form of an affidavit, before they are legally entitled to even file a lawsuit and serve discovery upon the defendants. In this special written opinion, a qualified-expert health-care provider must identify care and treatment that is below the accepted standards of practice in the community.
As a result, medical malpractice cases are a particularly complex type of personal injury claim. They can be more difficult to prosecute because they turn on technical and sometimes complex issues of medicine and health care.
The required investigation can be a daunting task for a trained lawyer, let alone a victim of medical malpractice or the family of a victim. There is very little in the experience of the average lawyer, let alone a non-lawyer, that could prepare him or her to investigate, file and prosecute a medical malpractice case successfully, so it is vital to retain a lawyer with extensive experience in these areas.
Our firm has significant experience and success in investigating, filing and trying medical malpractice cases. Our resources and experience in the field ensure that each case will be handled professionally and honestly from the beginning, and allow us to provide reliable answers to the many questions medical malpractice victims and their families undoubtedly will have. And of course, we do our best to make sure our clients receive the compensation to which they are entitled.