What constitutes medical malpractice?
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What constitutes medical malpractice?
A few days later, after being sown up, my dad’s knuckle started acquiring puss, until it burst. Dad went back to the same doctor and was told the only thing to do was to amputate. Dad was scared and let the doctor know he would get a second opinion. The doctor then came back with the idea of fusing the bone/knuckle and saving the finger. He fused it. Now my dad has trouble gripping items with his hand and cannot bend his finger where the knuckle was fused. Is the doctorliable for not cleaning the wound properly and hence my dad’s hand not working properly? Should we speak to a malpractice or personal injury attorney? In Pope County, AZ.
Asked on November 17, 2010 under Malpractice Law, Arkansas
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
You *should* speak to an attorney with medical mal experience, because you want someone to listen to all the specific facts of this case and help you understand if your father has a case, and, if so, what it might be worth and what it might cost to pursue it.
As a general matter, medical malpractice does not depend on whether or not there was a bad outcome. The key issue is essentially was the doctor or other health care provider negligent, or careless in some fashion. That means, did the doctor follow what is considered the generally acceptable standards of care for a condition like this? For example, if the doctor should have cleaned the would better and/or have prescribed antiobiotics in the first place to avoid infection, or if after the infection occured, had something he should have done short of fusing the joint, then there likely is malpractice. On the other hand, if he did everything that medical standards say he should have but a bad outcome simply occured--which does happen, since medical treatment is not guaranteed--then there would be no malpractice. That's why your dad should speak with an attorney with experience in this area, who can help determine if the treatment likely met standards or not.
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