Legal protections for victims of surgical errors

Surgical errors occur in operating rooms every day and can cause physical, financial and emotional devastation for victims. The impacts of medical malpractice can be wide-ranging and can impact victims and their families for some time to come. If you have placed your trust in a medical provider and suffered a surgical error, it is important to understand legal resources that may help you.

What you should know about surgical errors

Greater than 4,000 preventable surgical errors occur every year at grave cost to victims. These preventable surgical errors are referred to as never events because according to researchers, they should not occur and are preventable. When a never event occurs, victims may have a claim for medical malpractice which can allow them to recover compensation for their damages.

The researchers found that on a weekly basis, surgeons left foreign objects, such as sponges or towels, in a patient’s body 39 times; performed the wrong procedure on a patient 20 times; and operated on the wrong site of the patient’s body 20 times. Surgical errors can lead to worsened medical conditions, other types of injuries and even death.

If you have suffered a surgical error, you may have gone to a medical care provider seeking help and ended up in worse health. This may lead to additional medical care costs and time away from work recovering which can all take an emotional toll on the victim. For that reason, victims of medical malpractice and surgical errors should be familiar with personal injury legal protections and how they can help hold negligent medical care providers accountable. A medical malpractice claim can help the injured and their family recover compensation for medical expenses and other damages they have suffered due to a surgical error.