Can You Sue a Doctor for Misdiagnosis?
A medical misdiagnosis happens when a doctor gives you incorrect information about your condition. Misdiagnoses often occur when someone seeks medical treatment for illnesses or injuries.
Unfortunately for patients, medical misdiagnosis is more common than you might think. According to a 2023 report from Johns Hopkins Medicine, an estimated 795,000 people receive a medical misdiagnosis each year.
Can you sue a doctor for a misdiagnosis? Yes, but you’ll need to do a few things before filing a lawsuit.
Hodges & Foty is a law firm with over 50 years of combined experience. The founding partners are both Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law. We fight hard for those victimized by a medical misdiagnosis. In this post, you’ll learn how a medical misdiagnosis can happen. You’ll also discover how a qualified and experienced firm can help you sue the party responsible for your misdiagnosis.
How Can a Medical Misdiagnosis Happen?
A medical misdiagnosis can happen in many ways. Some of the most common diagnosis errors occur when one or all of the following happens:
- Missed Diagnosis: This occurs when a doctor completely misses the reason for your illness or injury.
- Incorrect Diagnosis: This happens when a doctor diagnoses a patient with a condition they don’t have.
- Delayed Diagnosis: A delayed diagnosis occurs when a doctor makes the correct diagnosis but not in time to fully treat the affected patient.
- Not Recognizing Related Conditions: Arises when a doctor correctly diagnoses one condition but misses this ailment’s related conditions.
The Process of Suing a Doctor for Medical Misdiagnosis
Suspecting you received a medical misdiagnosis can feel confusing and frustrating. If you’re in this situation, here’s what to do next.
Contact a Medical Misdiagnosis Lawyer
One of the most helpful things to do in your situation is to contact a medical misdiagnosis lawyer. An experienced medical misdiagnosis lawyer can then explain to you whether you have a valid case against your doctor. This evaluation lets you learn whether you have a valid case against your doctor.
If a law firm takes on your case, you gain help from legal professionals throughout your case’s duration. Hodges & Foty is a law firm led by two accomplished medical malpractice attorneys. Contact us today for help with suing a doctor for a misdiagnosis.
Here’s a closer look at each of these legal elements.
1. The Doctor’s Duty of Care
The first factor in suing a doctor or other healthcare provider for a misdiagnosis involves the duty of care. You must prove the person who potentially misdiagnosed your condition owed a duty of care for you.
2. A Breach Occurred
Next, you must also prove that your doctor or other healthcare provider failed to fulfill their duty of care. You will sometimes hear this element referred to as negligence.
3. The Breach Resulted in Harm
The third factor to prove is that a doctor’s or other healthcare provider’s misdiagnosis of your condition caused you harm. This means that the negligent actions resulted in injuries to you.
4. Seeking Damages
If you want compensation from these actions, you have the right to seek damages. You have the right to receive money for your medical bills in the past and future, any lost wages in the, money for the loss of your ability to earn money in the future, money for any disfigurement, and money for your pain, suffering, and mental anguish.
Let the attorneys at the law firm of Hodges & Foty, LLP help you recover the damages you may owed under the law. Hodges & Foty has no retainer or consultation fees. Contact Hodges & Foty to get a free case evaluation.
