Medical Misdiagnosis in Irvine

Unlike in many other types of injury cases, for a medical misdiagnosis claim to be successful the plaintiff needs to sustain the burden of proof, meaning they must prove the case through proper evidence. This proper evidence typically must include a credible expert witness who must testify to show that the healthcare provider acted below the standard of care thereby causing the further medical injuries or damages to the plaintiff. However, the requirement of a medical expert witness often makes these cases difficult and much more complicated than other types of injury cases. As a result, it is imperative to have an Irvine medical malpractice lawyer with experience working on misdiagnosis cases specifically. An experienced attorney will be able to look at the facts and evidence involved and put together the strongest claim possible for those who have been injured. To learn more or discuss your case call and schedule a consultation today.

Components of Misdiagnosis

A particular misdiagnosis in a medical malpractice case means that the doctor did not properly review and analyze the symptoms, and did not make the proper diagnosis regarding a particular patient. With that said, in order to file a claim for misdiagnosis the misdiagnosis has to have occurred in the context of a breach of the standard of care. This means that the physician failed to possess and exercise the reasonable degree of skill that another physician ordinarily would have exercised under similar circumstances.

In addition, the legal application of this analysis means that the alleged misdiagnosis has to be related to and have caused the further medical injuries and damages in order for such a medical malpractice case to be successful. A misdiagnosis that did not cause the related injuries or damages is not sufficient to proceed with a medical malpractice case.

Building a Case

A misdiagnosis occurs when the healthcare practitioner does not properly analyze the symptoms of the patient. In turn, the practitioner then does not reach a proper diagnosis, and the patient ultimately experiences further injury.

In order to determine if a particular misdiagnosis provides a basis upon which a medical malpractice case can proceed, an experienced attorney will need to review the facts of the case and medical records, and obtain an appropriate expert medical opinion confirming there was a breach in the standard of care.

For a misdiagnosis case to be successful in the context of proceeding with a medical malpractice case, there has to be a breach in the standard of care, as well as the requirement that the particular misdiagnosis or conduct was the cause of further injury or harm.

It is important for the prospective medical malpractice client to understand that these cases can be exceedingly difficult. In this regard, it is important to contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney who has handled a similar type of case previously due to the nature and complexity of these matters.