Types of Medical Malpractices

Malpractice is an act or continuing profession which does not meet the standard of professional competence and results in provable damage to the clients. This may occur due to negligence, ignorance or wrong-doing. In medical treatment the damage caused may be visible and thus medical malpractice can be prosecuted.

In medical malpractices four common types can be enlisted: errors in cosmetic surgery, prescription drug mistakes, birth injuries, surgical errors, and diagnostic errors.

Cosmetic surgery

 Today there are millions who undergo plastic surgery to enhance their beauty or to correct the shape or size of an organ. Though this is a very prevalent surgery it did not yet find a place in health care insurance. Thus many a time this has no sympathy to plaintiffs even though there is a certain kind of damage done.

Prescription drug error

Prescription errors occur due to the negligence on the part of the doctor, the nurse or health care staff who administers the drug, pharmacists who fill prescriptions, and not the least, drug companies and manufacturers.

The mistakes may be any one or more than one of the following ones. Prescribing or administering wrong drug, prescribing or administering wrong dosage, foresee harmful drug interaction, manufacturing and distributing defective or unsafe medications, etc., are all illegible prescription that led to wrong drug administration. As all the people related to the drug are responsible for the harm caused by the drug, every one of them can be held for mistake done.

Obstetric malpractices

During a child birth, if care is substandard, and the baby/or mother gets harmed, a legal claim can be adopted. Some of the common types of birth injuries stem from cerebral palsy, brain damage, fractures or even death. The medical procedures may be inadequately planned or right kind of skill not shown in handling the new born or even inability to react to an emergency such as a C section delivery.

Surgical or Diagnosis errors

In surgery cases, the doctor may accidentally cause damage to a nerve, blood vessel, internal organ or any other body part that results in severe injury and medical condition. Though this may not show up immediately, it can be a reason for medical claim, if proved.

Diagnosis can be misleading or in some cases delayed. In either case, the patient can file a medical claim if it is proved that this was the cause of damage done to the health of the patient.