How Medical Malpractice Works in the State of Florida?
While the majority of personal injury cases occurring in Florida might be car accidents, or slip-and-falls, medical malpractice cases have accounted for some of the highest monetary payouts and damages of all time, across the entire state! And truthfully, this is no surprise, as some medical malpractice claims end up being worth tens of millions of dollars, for the most severe instances. For top Dade City personal injury attorney, Charles Spinner, Esq. such cases are commonplace. As the top personal injury lawyer Dade City has had in practice for many years, he and his team at Spinner Law Firm, have been able to collect millions for their clients, when it comes to medical malpractice. And for the better part of the last decade, medical malpractice rates had been going up steadily throughout the state of Florida. And with medical malpractice legislation being taken on by the statehouse, they began to look far deeper into many of these past cases – deeming more than a handful to be not just erroneous but bordering on fraud in some regards as well. And with such alarming findings, Florida’s legislators have taken steps to make it far more difficult for those who have been victims of medical malpractice, seeking any type of compensatory damages. This has made it much harder for a Dade City personal injury attorney like Charles Spinner to get medical malpractice cases off the ground, let alone win them! And while it is certainly much more difficult to obtain any damages from the negligent party, it is not impossible. The situation does call for a far more detailed investigation and a much more involved burden of proof that establishes the other party’s negligence and its effect on the victim.
Thorough Investigation is Vital
With the many intricacies involved in any manner of medical malpractice case, it is important for your personal injury lawyer to have as many of the facts as possible in order best prove negligence at different points in time. Dade City personal injury attorney Charles Spinner will begin the process by interviewing his own client, the victim, in order to have them provide a vividly detailed timeline of events and occurrences. By doing it in a timeline, it helps the victim to better remember details and aspects of the case that they may have forgotten about or did not come to their minds right away.
Medical Records
Once that is completed, your personal injury lawyer will usually perform a detailed and thorough investigation of your medical records. Highlighting any and all damage, and injuries that took place. Due to the new legislation in the state of Florida, malpractice must be provable through medical records – otherwise it can end up in a war of words, with each side hiring their own medical “expert” who is paid to say basically anything and twist it into medical fact. Despite this, any strong personal injury lawyer needs the help of a medical expert to corroborate the findings of the medical records.
Medical Expert
The next step in the medical malpractice process is to have your medical records closely examined by a medical expert. In some instances, it may also help to have another doctor perform a physical examination of your injuries, as well as having the testimony of any other doctors who noticed the damage that was caused by the negligent party. However, for now we will focus on the medical expert. As the best Dade City personal injury attorney, Charles Spinner has a number of different medical experts, physicians in every field, with excellent track records in medicine, as well as providing testimony for multiple cases. Depending upon your specific case, the expert must have the same medical specialty as the defendant or negligent party on trial. The medical expert must determine two key factors.
1. Did the care of the victim deviate in any way, from the accepted, national, medical standards of care?
2. Did the care of the victim, cause the injuries and/or damage?
In order for a medical malpractice case to move forward, both of these points must be proven. It means that the doctor’s action OR inaction, deviated from the normal method of patient care and it caused the injuries the victim suffered. In the pre-suit period, the defending party has time to answer the claims, by either negotiating a settlement, or attempting to prove that there were deviations to the care, or do nothing. You and your attorney can now sue after the 90 days, it is important to be aware of the statue of limitations in Florida being only 2 years for medical malpractice cases, so it is vital to enter your suit before that time. For more information on the process or to schedule a legal consultation, contact Charles Spinner at Spinner Law Firm today.
