Do you believe that you may have been a victim of medical malpractice in Baltimore? This blog will give you a brief overview of medical malpractice so you can determine if the treatment you receive could constitute medical malpractice.
Medical Malpractice
All health care providers must meet a recognized standard of care in their treatment of patients. When a health care provider, be it a doctor, physician, surgeon, hospital, etc, does not meet this standard of care, and their failure to do so causes serious injury to the patient, this could constitute medical malpractice.
The Standard of Care
The standard of care is defined as the care that would be provided by another professional health care provider given the condition of the patient. For example, if a health care provider would have recommended surgery to a patient suffering from a broken arm, this would be considered the standard care. A breach in the standard of care constitutes a major component of a medical malpractice claim. Failure to meet the standard of care is called medical negligence.
The Injury
The other major component a of medical malpractice claim is the injury. The patient must have suffered an injury as a result of the health care provider’s failure to meet the standard of care. If, for example, the patient suffered an injury that was not the result of medical negligence, then he or she would not have a medical malpractice claim. Or, if the physician committed medical negligence but the patient did not suffer an injury, he or she would not have a claim. The injury must be a direct result of medical negligence.