Doctors and nurses are constantly under pressure in emergency rooms and have to make split-second decisions while providing immediate medical care. This fast-faced decision-making can pave the way for common emergency room errors that cause patients harm. If an emergency room error was made due to negligence, you can file a medical malpractice lawsuit and get compensation for your injuries.
If you or a family member suffered an injury as a result of negligence or medical malpractice, contact Lloyd Miller Law at (773) 838-8100. Medical malpractice cases are not always easy to prove, so it’s important to have a lawyer fight for your case and guide you through the process.
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What Are the Most Common Emergency Room Errors in Illinois?
Common emergency room errors include:
Misdiagnosis
Misdiagnosis in an emergency room (ER) setting is a critical issue in medical malpractice cases.
A misdiagnosis occurs when a medical professional incorrectly identifies a patient’s condition. In the ER, this can happen due to several factors: inadequate patient history, failure to recognize symptoms, insufficient testing, or misinterpretation of test results. For example, a heart attack might be mistaken for indigestion, or a stroke might be misdiagnosed as a migraine. These errors can lead to delayed treatment, worsening of the condition, or even death.
In medical malpractice cases, proving misdiagnosis involves demonstrating that the ER physician deviated from the standard of care expected in similar circumstances. This typically requires expert testimony to establish what a competent physician would have done differently. The plaintiff must also show that the misdiagnosis directly caused harm.
Misdiagnosis in the ER is particularly concerning because the stakes are often life-threatening. Properly addressing these errors involves systemic improvements in emergency care protocols, better training for ER staff, and heightened awareness of the critical nature of accurate and timely diagnoses.
Delayed Treatment
Delayed treatment in a nursing room setting can have serious repercussions for patients. This type of error occurs when necessary medical interventions are not administered promptly, often due to inadequate staffing, miscommunication, or oversight.
For instance, a patient showing signs of a severe infection might not receive antibiotics in time, leading to complications like sepsis. Delays can also occur in administering pain relief, performing diagnostic tests, or responding to changes in a patient’s condition.
The impact of delayed treatment can be severe, resulting in prolonged recovery times, worsening of the illness, or even death. In medical malpractice cases, proving that delayed treatment constitutes negligence involves demonstrating that the delay deviated from the standard of care and directly harmed the patient. Ensuring timely treatment requires robust protocols, adequate staffing, and effective communication within the nursing team.
Medication Errors
While medication errors can occur due to a misdiagnosis, that’s not always the case. Even in the case of a correct diagnosis, nurses may accidentally switch your medication with someone else’s or take the wrong medication and give it to you.
At other times, nurses may give the wrong dosage of the medication. Taking a dosage that is too high could result in serious side effects. Getting a dosage that is too low, on the other hand, could result in a lack of treatment. The medication may be ineffective at lower dosages, and you may not get better as a result.
Additionally, there are situations where the timing of medication administration is critical, as receiving medication too late or too early can adversely affect its efficacy. For instance, antibiotics need to be administered at specific intervals to maintain optimal blood levels to combat infections effectively. Failure to adhere to these timing protocols can lead to inadequate treatment and health complications. Thus, meticulous attention to medication management in the ER is essential for patient safety and effective treatment outcomes.
Improper Discharge
Improper discharge from an emergency room (ER) is a critical error that can have serious consequences for patients. This occurs when a patient is released without appropriate assessment, follow-up instructions, or necessary treatment. Factors contributing to improper discharge include overcrowded ERs, hasty evaluations, and inadequate communication among medical staff.
For example, a patient presenting with chest pain might be discharged without thorough investigation, only to suffer a heart attack later. Similarly, inadequate instructions regarding medication, wound care, or signs of complications can lead to worsening conditions or readmission.
In medical malpractice cases, proving improper discharge involves showing that the healthcare provider failed to meet the standard of care, resulting in patient harm. Ensuring proper discharge protocols, comprehensive patient education, and clear follow-up plans are crucial to preventing such errors and safeguarding patient health.
Surgical Errors
Surgical errors in an emergency room (ER) setting represent a critical category of medical malpractice that can have life-impacting consequences for patients. These errors occur when surgical procedures performed in emergency situations deviate from the standard of care due to inadequate preparation, miscommunication, or procedural mistakes.
Emergency surgeries are often conducted under high-pressure conditions where time is of the essence. This urgency can lead to mistakes such as wrong-site surgery, where an operation is performed on the wrong part of the body, or retained surgical instruments, where items like sponges or tools are accidentally left inside the patient.
Signs of a retained foreign body after surgery aren’t always immediately apparent. Foreign objects that are stuck inside your body may not cause pain, even if they are sharp. However, over the long run, they could increase your risk of infection. Removing these objects would require you to go through an invasive surgical procedure yet again, involving a large deal of pain and suffering. Another common issue is anesthesia errors, which can cause harm or even death.
The complexity of emergency surgeries, compounded by the chaotic nature of ERs, increases the risk of such errors. Miscommunication among the surgical team, incomplete patient histories, and inadequate preoperative assessments can all contribute to mistakes. For instance, a patient in critical condition may not undergo thorough preoperative evaluations, leading to complications during or after surgery.
Impact of Medical Mistakes on Patients
The impact of medical errors on patients can be severe. Patients who require immediate medical care, yet have their treatment delayed, might deal with deteriorating symptoms that can never be rectified, resulting in severe loss of quality of life.
If you are given the wrong medication, your illness and overall health may deteriorate. You may also deal with side effects from the wrong medication or dosage. In the case of a foreign body left in after surgery, you may deal with unexplained symptoms for a while and risk severe infections as a result.
In addition to the health impacts of medical mistakes on patients, victims often incur additional medical costs and other losses. Victims of emergency room errors can face increased medical bills for corrective treatments, hospital stays, and follow-up care. They may also experience lost wages due to extended recovery periods and inability to work. Additionally, long-term care or rehabilitation costs can add to the financial burden. For some, these errors lead to permanent disabilities, resulting in ongoing expenses and diminished earning capacity, compounding the economic impact on their lives.
Medical malpractice lawyers can help patients recover compensation for common emergency room errors.
When Should You Call a Medical Malpractice Lawyer?
You need a lawyer for medical malpractice when a healthcare provider’s negligence has caused you harm. This includes situations where there was a misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis, surgical errors, medication errors, or improper treatment. Signs that you need legal assistance include severe injury, worsening of your condition, or incurring substantial additional medical expenses and lost wages as a result.
A medical malpractice lawyer in Chicago will help collect evidence and pursue your case. A medical malpractice lawyer can help you navigate the legal process, gather necessary medical records, and secure expert testimony to build a strong case. He or she can evaluate whether the healthcare provider deviated from the standard of care and if this deviation directly caused your injury.
If the hospital or insurance company denies liability or offers an inadequate settlement, a lawyer can negotiate on your behalf or take the case to trial. Additionally, there are strict statutes of limitations for filing medical malpractice claims, so consulting with a lawyer promptly ensures that you meet all legal deadlines and maximize your chances of receiving fair compensation.
You do not need a doctor’s confession to pursue a medical malpractice case. Even if the doctor refuses to acknowledge the possibility he or she made a mistake, you can still file for compensation. Depending on what the doctor did say, though, it may be used to support your claim and reach a high-value settlement with the insurance company.
If you or a family member suffered due to medical malpractice, contact Lloyd Miller Law for help with filing your medical malpractice suit today. The sooner you start the process, the sooner you can receive compensation.
