Patients seek medical care in order to obtain a correct diagnosis and receive proper treatment.
Generally, medicine gets it right. However, a busy hospital or medical practice, or poorly-trained or distracted health care provider, may set the stage for an avoidable error that has permanent and life-altering consequences. By hiring a Syracuse medical malpractice attorney, you can obtain information about whether medical negligence was the reason for an injury, impairment, disability, or wrongful death.
In order for a medical malpractice lawsuit to have merit, a health care provider must deviate from the standard of care. This means that the provider must fail to do what a reasonable doctor or nurse would have done under similar circumstances. In addition, that deviation must cause harm. Our team of Syracuse medical malpractice lawyers know how to differentiate between a “bad outcome” and a “deviation.” It is important to know the difference because a “bad outcome” does not, in-and-of-itself, give rise to liability for professional negligence.
Over the course of nearly three decades, our legal team has prosecuted thousands of medical malpractice cases arising out of a constellation of deviations from applicable standards of care, including:
- surgical errors;
- emergency room errors;
- birth injuries;
- failures to diagnose;
- misdiagnosis;
- delayed diagnosis;
- anesthesia errors;
- prescription medication errors; and
- never events (e.g., wrong-patient surgery, wrong-side surgery, retained objects, etc.).
While medical malpractice cases are complex, we know how to secure evidence necessary to obtain favorable results for our clients. We understand the challenges that these cases present, are familiar with available defenses, and are prepared to overcome them with sound litigation and trial strategy aided by our vast network of expert resources.
Medical Malpractice Damages
If you decide to file a medical negligence lawsuit, part of your conversation with a Syracuse medical malpractice lawyer will include a discussion about what New York law permits a patient or his/her family to recover as a “damage.” Common losses or “damages” include:
- pain and suffering;
- medical bills;
- lost wages;
- lost earning capacity;
- lost employment benefits;
- rehabilitation expenses;
- vocational retraining;
- loss of support and guidance; and
- funeral expenses, if applicable.
What is Medical Malpractice Law?
A medical malpractice lawsuit is not about imposing a penalty on a doctor or nurse. Rather, the objective of a medical malpractice lawsuit is to persuade or compel an insurance company to make whole a patient or family that has experienced an injury or loss due to a preventable medical mistake. For example, the family of patient with stroke symptoms that were overlooked in an emergency room should not lose their home if the emergency medicine physician failed to treat the condition before it caused harm that prevents the patient from working. Likewise, a child born with a neurological injury from birth should not struggle through life without adaptive equipment if the birth injury was because the managing obstetrician failed to identify early signs of hypoxia before it caused brain damage. In these situations – as in an automobile accident – the injured should be able to recover their losses from the insurance policies for the individual(s) who made the mistake. Medical malpractice law enables patients to seek redress through the judicial system. Medical malpractice lawyers protect and enforce these constitutional rights.
Why Hire An Experienced Medical Malpractice Lawyer
If you file a medical malpractice lawsuit against a Syracuse area hospital, physician, or other healthcare provider, you should expect a well-funded and vigorous defense. Most physicians practicing within the State of New York are insured by one of a handful of powerful insurance companies that will retain a skilled defense attorney to attempt to dismiss your case or otherwise discredit your claims by hiring a team of experts to review your medical records and private investigators to investigate you and your family.
There are several benefits to hiring an experienced Syracuse medical malpractice lawyers. These include:
- commanding grasp of New York medical malpractice law;
- understanding of malpractice-related injuries;
- access to some of the best experts in the country;
- working relationships with the local defense bar and courts;
- knowledge about settlements and jury verdicts for similarly situated individuals; and
- a history of exceptional results.
Finally, you may wish to speak with a Syracuse malpractice lawyer because there is no legal fee unless there is a settlement or jury verdict. To put it another way, there is no charge to speak with us about your injury or illness, what (if anything) a hospital, doctor or nurse did wrong, and whether a mistake made by a healthcare provider is connected to your diagnosis. Even though we choose to represent less than 10% of patients who inquire about our services, we meet with hundreds of patients and families every year to talk about concerns with medical care.
Bottar Leone, PLLC, has for nearly three decades limited its practice to prosecuting complex personal injury cases for injured or disabled patients, workers, consumers and motorists. The Firm’s dedication to securing recoveries for those who have experienced a loss has earned it recognition by a number of prestigious peer review organizations, including The Best Lawyers In America®, SuperLawyers®, and U.S. News & World Report®. If we believe that your concerns have merit, we standard ready to put our statewide resources and reputation behind you and your family.
Contact a Syracuse Medical Malpractice Attorney Today To Learn About Deadlines
Patients and their families should know that New York has strict time limits for the commencement of a lawsuit for medical malpractice or wrongful death. Some deadlines are as short as 30 days. Once the applicable deadline passes, your rights may be extinguished.
To enlist the services of a regionally-known and nationally-recognized law firm handling Syracuse medical malpractice cases, contact Bottar Leone, PLLC by telephone at 800-336-5297, or by email at info@bottarleone.com.
Bottar Leone, PLLC. Since 1983.
Related Information:
Choose a Syracuse Personal Injury Lawyer for Your Case
Get the Compensation You Deserve with a Syracuse Brain Injury Lawyer
Learn About Your Medical Malpractice Attorney
