Jane Lamberti Sams Medical Malpractice Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Medical malpractice is professional negligence, by act or omission, by a health care provider, in which care deviates from the medical community’s accepted standards of practice, causing injury or death to the patient.  There are several types of medical malpractice in Atlanta.

Misdiagnosis is an inaccurate or incomplete diagnosis or treatment of a disease, injury, syndrome, behavior, infection or other ailment.  A delay or failure to properly diagnose and treat health issues may justify a claim of Atlanta medical malpractice. 

A medical error occurs when a health-care provider chooses an inappropriate method of care or fails to correctly execute an appropriate method of care.  Medical errors – such as operating on the wrong body part, leaving a surgical instrument inside a body, administering anesthesia incorrectly, prescribing the wrong medication, transplanting organs of the wrong blood type, breaking a baby’s bones during delivery – are a leading cause of Atlanta malpractice lawsuits.

Standard of care is a guideline that specifies appropriate treatment based on scientific evidence and collaboration between medical professionals.  Standards of care give patients a reasonable expectation of consistent care performed to basic standards.  For instance, all doctors would agree to perform CPR on a heart attack victim in an emergency.  Failure to do so would reflect sub-standard care that may justify medical malpractice in Atlanta.

Gross negligence refers to medical conduct that is so reckless or mistaken, and so far below what is considered by a “reasonable person” to be an acceptable standard of care, that it will be obvious even to someone who does not have medical training. 

Informed consent means you understand the facts, implications, and consequences of an action.  Doctors must provide you with medical information in easy-to-understand language so you can make informed decisions about your health care.  Failure to obtain your informed consent for non-emergency treatment may justify malpractice in Atlanta.

Confidentiality is an expectation that communications between you and your doctor are private and cannot be shared with anyone who is not authorized to have access to it.  Confidentiality covers all of your medical records and continues even if you stop treatment with a doctor.  Unauthorized disclosure of your information may make your doctor guilty of Atlanta malpractice.

Medical malpractice in Atlanta is more common than you may think.  But you can count on the experienced Atlanta medical malpractice lawyers of The Cochran Firm Atlanta to help you through it.  Contact Cochran, Cherry, Givens, Smith, Sistrunk and Sams P.C. at 866-549-0562 to discuss your circumstances and determine if you are eligible for compensation in a medical malpractice lawsuit in Atlanta.