Denver Medical Malpractice Lawyer
NOTE: Our law firm does not handle medical malpractice cases. This article is for informational purposes only. Information found in the article does not constitute formal legal advice and does not create an attorney/client relationship.
If you’ve suffered harm or injury due to medical negligence or malpractice in Denver, you may be entitled to compensation for your damages. ’re struggling with the consequences of a medical mistake, call us for a free case review today.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers are held to a high standard of care. After all, patients’ lives, health, and well-being are literally in their hands. That’s why healthcare providers must complete years of extensive training before they can treat patients.
Doctors must use the level of skill and competence that a reasonable doctor would use in a similar situation. This is known as the medical standard of care. When doctors deviate from the standard of care, they can be held liable when patients are harmed because of it.
Medical malpractice is a type of negligence. It can occur at any stage of the treatment process.
These are some types of medical malpractice cases:
- Emergency room errors
- Surgical errors
- Failure to diagnose cancer and other diseases
- Misdiagnosis
- Anesthesia errors
- Birth injuries
- Medication errors and adverse drug interactions
- Defective medical devices
- Hospital-acquired infections
- Nursing negligence
- Hospital negligence
- OB-GYN negligence
- Pharmaceutical errors
- Radiology errors
Not all mistakes amount to malpractice. As the victim, it’s up to you to prove that you have a valid medical malpractice case. That can be a heavy burden.
What Causes Most Medical Errors in Denver, CO?
Medical mistakes happen for all different reasons. Medical professionals are only human. However, some types of mistakes should never happen. When those mistakes occur, it’s critical to understand why.
Some of the most common causes of medical malpractice include:
- Not ordering the proper diagnostic tests
- Ignoring a patient’s symptoms
- Failure to recognize a patient’s symptoms
- Failure to obtain a full patient history
- Misinterpreting lab results
- Failure to properly monitor the patient before, during, and after surgeries
- Operating on the wrong body part
- Charting errors
- Failure to communicate
- Failure to refer a patient to an appropriate specialist
- Premature discharge
- Failure to obtain informed consent
- Outdated technology
- Defective medical devices or equipment
- Physician bias
Understaffing is often a contributing factor in medical negligence cases. Many doctors are reporting symptoms of burnout since the pandemic. When doctors are overworked and exhausted, mistakes are much more likely to happen.
How Do I Know Whether I Have a Successful Medical Malpractice Lawsuit in Colorado?
To win a medical malpractice case, you’ll have to establish several different things, including:
- You were a patient, so the healthcare provider owed you a legal duty of care
- The scope of that duty, which is the medical standard of care you should have received
- A breach of duty occurred, meaning the doctor deviated from the standard of care
- You suffered some type of harm, or damages, because of the breach of duty
Many medical negligence cases turn on establishing the medical standard of care. As a patient, it can be difficult to know how you should have been treated. That’s understandable, especially because the standard of care varies from case to case. It’s not a hard-line formula, but instead is based on what a reasonable doctor would have done.
The standard of care depends on:
- The type of medical condition or injury involved
- The patient’s overall health and age
- The healthcare professional’s level of training
Under Colorado law, victims are actually required to submit a “certificate of review” stating that they have consulted a medical expert before taking legal action.
What Is My Denver Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Worth?
Your case value depends on many different factors, including:
- The nature of the harm you have suffered
- Whether you have suffered any permanent damage or long-term impairment
- The types of medical care needed to correct the error
- The costs you have incurred, including medical treatment costs, corrective surgeries, follow-up visits, and more.
- How the mistake has impacted your earnings
- Damage to your quality of life and emotional well-being
- The nature of the medical provider’s error
Patients who have suffered more serious harm tend to receive higher compensation awards. Similarly, your settlement or verdict may be higher if the doctor’s mistake was especially shocking.
What Types of Damages Are Available to Victims of Medical Mistakes in Denver?
Under Colorado medical malpractice laws, you’re entitled to seek compensation for economic and non-economic damages, just like any car accident victim. The types of damages available will depend on the losses you have suffered.
Examples of the types of compensation that may be available include:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Corrective surgeries
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning potential
- Rehabilitation
- Reduced life expectancy
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Unnecessary physical pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Anxiety
- Depression
- PTSD
- Diminished quality of life
- Scarring or disfigurement
- Loss of consortium and other damages for wrongful death
Speaking with an experienced attorney is the first step toward recovering fair compensation for your injuries.
Medical Malpractice Often Results in Severe, Long-Term Harm to Patients
Medical mistakes can have serious consequences for patients. The damage caused by malpractice is often irreversible. Even when patients do recover, they may be forced to make major life changes.
Some examples of the types of harm victims of medical malpractice often suffer include:
- Worsened underlying conditions
- A need for unnecessary medical procedures, which can be painful, expensive, and ultimately may cause more damage
- Dependency on pain medications
- Infections
- Loss of mobility
- Bed sores
- Blood clots
- Stroke
- Brain damage
- Organ damage
- Reduced life expectancy
- Wrongful death of a loved one
When your health is threatened, you may feel terrified. Victims of medical negligence often suffer from PTSD, anxiety disorders, and severe depression. Those mental health issues can be just as damaging as the physical harm medical errors cause.
How Long Do I Have To File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit After a Medical Error in Colorado?
The statute of limitations in Colorado medical malpractice cases is two years. The two-year clock generally applies to the earlier of:
- The date the mistake happened, or
- The date you discovered or reasonably should have discovered your injury
However, the law also states that you must file your case within three years of the mistake, regardless of when you discover the harm.
Exceptions do exist. You may file your lawsuit after three years have passed if:
- The defendant intentionally concealed the error
- A foreign body or surgical instrument was left in your body
- You didn’t know about the malpractice or the harm you had suffered, and there was no reasonable way for you to have known about it
The statute of limitations in malpractice cases is complicated. If you suspect you were a victim, contact a Denver medical malpractice attorney today so they can protect you.
