​Indianapolis Medical Malpractice Lawyer

What are the Common Causes of Medical Malpractice?

Once we know what type of medical malpractice hurt you, we can start to dive into the details of why it happened. Knowing the cause of your injuries is the start of knowing who is liable for them.

Medical malpractice can be caused by many different forms of negligence, such as:

• Attempting to complete a medical procedure without the right training.
• Failing to order the right diagnostic tests.
• Making mistakes during the diagnostic testing process.
• Misinterpreting the results of a diagnostic test.
• Failing to read a patient’s medical history before prescribing treatment or medication.
• Mixing up one patient for another.
• Miscommunicating with other medical professionals during a medical procedure or surgery.
• Not giving the patient enough information to understand the medical procedure.

Who Can You Sue for Medical Malpractice?

The defendant in a medical malpractice case will be unique based on the circumstances of each case. Let us investigate your situation to see who did what wrong, and how it could have been prevented with a reasonable amount of care and caution. While we investigate your case to see who you can sue or hold liable, you should focus on resting.

Defendants in a medical malpractice case are typically one of two parties:

• Individual medical practitioners: If the medical malpractice was caused by the mistakes of a single medical professional – typically, a doctor or surgeon – then that specific person might be the sole defendant in the case. If the medical professional is an independent contractor and not an employee of the hospital or clinic that treated you, then you might only have the option to file against the medical professional.
• Healthcare groups or clinics: In some cases, an entire healthcare group, medical clinic, or hospital is named as the defendant in a medical malpractice lawsuit, such as when the error occurred due to poor management or unsafe and unhygienic conditions at the treatment center. Also, liability laws can sometimes allow employers to be held liable for the mistakes of their employees, which can apply to medical professionals who are considered employees.

How to Prove Liability in a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

You have the option to hold these negligent medical professionals liable through a medical malpractice claim. However, naming a party as a defendant and proving that they should be liable for our losses and harm are two different things entirely. Your case needs to be able to convincingly prove that your injuries would not have happened had it not been for the preventable negligent acts committed by the medical provider. Also, a medical mistake must typically include four specific elements for it to be considered malpractice worthy of a lawsuit.

Four elements that should be present in a medical malpractice case are:

1. A doctor-patient relationship existed between the patient and the negligent healthcare provider.
2. The medical provider deviated from accepted standards of medical care or acted in a way that a reasonable medical provider would not have done in the same situation.
3. The deviation from the accepted standards of medical care is what caused the patient’s injury.
4. The patient’s injury resulted in damage or losses, including economic and non-economic damage.

If your case has these four elements, we can start to look for useful pieces of evidence to prepare your case and back up our arguments. Medical records are usually the most helpful, but other documents and testimonies can be just as important. 

What Damages Can You Recover for Medical Malpractice in Indiana?

The types of damages that might be pursuable in your medical malpractice case are:

• Economic damages: Damages related to financial losses that can be tracked through receipts, bills, and expense reports are types of economic damages. Medical treatment costs and lost wages are the two most common forms of economic damage.
• Non-economic damages: Damages related to intangible losses are types of non-economic damages. Pain and suffering are recognizable forms of non-economic damages, but there may be many others that apply to your case, like shortened life expectancy or lessened enjoyment of life.
• Punitive damages: Punitive damages are meant to punish the negligent party instead of compensating the plaintiff. Courts only consider punitive damages when the medical negligence was particularly egregious or unforgivable, so punitive damages might not be available in your case.

Keep in mind that Indiana law tends to protect medical providers in ways that injured patients may find frustrating. Specifically, compensatory damages recoverable through a medical malpractice claim may be subjected to a cap or upper limit. Although legal updates have raised this cap several times in recent years, it might still be less than what you arguably deserve. Our attorneys always fight for the most compensation possible for our clients.

What is the Indiana Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice?

According to Indiana Code section 34-18-7-1, you have two years from the date you were injured or the date you discovered your injury to file a medical malpractice claim. If you did not discover your injury right away, you will have to prove that you did not and that it would be unreasonable to say that you should have discovered it sooner. For example, if a doctor failed to diagnose a patient’s cancer, but that cancer did not start showing outward symptoms until many years later, the statute of limitations could begin on the date the symptoms began to show, rather than the date of the misdiagnosis.

Furthermore, medical malpractice survivors under the age of 6 years have until their 8^th birthday to file a claim, which provides them with a slightly longer statute of limitations to take legal action. The idea is that children might struggle to report their symptoms to their parents, guardians, or medical providers, so it can be more difficult to notice the signs of medical malpractice.

Steps in a Medical Malpractice Case