Accident Lawyer Medical Malpractice Accidents 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is a 'never event' in medical malpractice?
- A medical error so severe it should never occur with proper care, such as wrong-site surgery (Correct answer)
- A case where no malpractice occurred
- An event that is never covered by malpractice insurance
- An emergency procedure performed without consent
Correct answer: A medical error so severe it should never occur with proper care, such as wrong-site surgery
Never events are serious, largely preventable medical errors — such as operating on the wrong body part — that indicate a fundamental failure in patient safety.
Question 2: What role does an expert witness play in a medical malpractice trial?
- They testify as a fact witness to what they personally observed
- They provide opinion testimony defining the standard of care and whether it was breached (Correct answer)
- They determine the final damages award
- They conduct an independent investigation for the court
Correct answer: They provide opinion testimony defining the standard of care and whether it was breached
Expert medical witnesses testify about the applicable standard of care and whether the defendant's conduct deviated from it, which is essential to proving or defending a malpractice claim.
Question 3: What is 'loss of chance' doctrine in medical malpractice?
- The plaintiff lost the chance to choose their own surgeon
- A patient can recover damages when malpractice reduced their statistical chance of a better outcome (Correct answer)
- The defendant lost the chance to settle before trial
- A doctrine barring claims when the patient had less than 50% survival odds
Correct answer: A patient can recover damages when malpractice reduced their statistical chance of a better outcome
The loss of chance doctrine allows recovery for the reduction in a patient's probability of survival or recovery caused by a provider's negligence, even when the patient's initial prognosis was poor.
Question 4: What is 'anesthesia malpractice'?
- Any lawsuit involving a surgeon's error during surgery
- Negligence by an anesthesiologist resulting in patient injury, such as improper dosing or monitoring failures (Correct answer)
- A claim against a hospital for overcharging for anesthesia
- An error in administering post-operative pain medication
Correct answer: Negligence by an anesthesiologist resulting in patient injury, such as improper dosing or monitoring failures
Anesthesia malpractice involves errors by the anesthesia team, such as incorrect dosing, failure to monitor vital signs, or intubation errors, that cause patient injury.
Question 5: What is a 'caps on damages' law in medical malpractice?
- A law requiring minimum damage awards in malpractice cases
- A statutory limit on the amount of non-economic damages a plaintiff can recover in a malpractice case (Correct answer)
- A law capping attorney fees in medical cases
- A limit on the number of malpractice claims a doctor can face
Correct answer: A statutory limit on the amount of non-economic damages a plaintiff can recover in a malpractice case
Many US states have enacted caps on non-economic damages (such as pain and suffering) in medical malpractice cases to limit insurer payouts and reduce healthcare costs.
Question 6: What is 'failure to diagnose' in medical malpractice?
- A provider's failure to complete a patient's paperwork
- A claim that a provider failed to identify a condition a competent provider would have diagnosed, causing a delay in treatment (Correct answer)
- A failure to disclose the cost of diagnostic tests
- A missed appointment by the patient that delayed diagnosis
Correct answer: A claim that a provider failed to identify a condition a competent provider would have diagnosed, causing a delay in treatment
Failure to diagnose malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider misses or delays a diagnosis that a reasonably competent provider would have made, resulting in harm to the patient.
Accident Lawyer Medical Malpractice Accidents 2
What is a 'never event' in medical malpractice?