The immediate aftermath of a medical malpractice related injury is chaotic, stressful and devastating to the victim. Victims are often trying to juggle physical and emotional recovery with the stressors of recovering lost wages and paying medical bills. Furthermore, victims are all too often bombarded with misinformation and pressured to sign waivers they do not understand before they leave the hospital. Hospitals and medical practitioners are well versed in the art of avoiding lawsuits and are notorious for taking advantage of a patient’s lack of knowledge. If you have been the victim of medical malpractice, there are three things you need to know to protect yourself. Review our list and then contact Schochor, Staton, Goldberg, and Cardea, P.A. to speak with an experienced medical malpractice attorney about your rights in either our Washington D.C. or Baltimore, Maryland office
Top three things you need to know
- First Steps. First things first. You need to know how to get started in filing a claim. Victims of medical malpractice are often overwhelmed, emotionally and physically devastated and bombarded with an avalanche of misinformation designed to keep them from pursuing a case against the physician, hospital or technician involved in the injury. The first step is speaking with an experienced attorney to explain your circumstance and discuss why you believe you may be a victim of medical malpractice. It is important that you have all of the details of the care in question so that you can fully inform your attorney. Contacting a lawyer right away is best so the information is fresh in your mind. The second step is determining the statute of limitations involved in your particular case type in order to determine how long you have to file the claim. Although there are some exceptions, in general the statute of limitations in Maryland is 3 years from when you suspect negligence or 5 years from the actual act, whichever time frame is shorter. In the District of Columbia, the statute of limitations is 3 years from when you discover medical negligence.
- What You Need to Prove. The second category of information victims of medical malpractice need to know revolves around what needs to be proven in order for a claim to be successful. Medical malpractice claims are held to specific criteria. Ensuring your case meets this set of criteria will save you the time and money involved in filing a non-viable claim. In order for a medical malpractice claim to be successful, your medical malpractice attorney must be able to prove that you have suffered a measurable injury or illness as a direct result of negligence on the part of medical professional or facility. Can you prove negligence? Could this have been prevented? These are the questions you will be asked to prove.
- What You Will Need To Provide an Attorney. The next category of information victims need to know is what you will be asked to provide a medical malpractice lawyer. Victims of medical malpractice must be able to provide an attorney with information about the treatment in question, the medical history of the victim, whether the injury is permanent, any estimated costs of treatment services and whether there has been any lost time from employment. If you have any questions, contact an attorney at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg, and Cardea, P.A. today.
Compassionate attorneys serving medical malpractice victims in Washington D.C. and Maryland
If you have suffered a preventable injury as the direct result of medical negligence, you are entitled to fair compensation. Securing this compensation requires an experienced medical malpractice attorney who is willing and able to fight on your behalf. If you have been the victim of medical malpractice, call Schochor, Staton, Goldberg, and Cardea, P.A. today at 410-234-1000 to review your case and get started on your claim. We serve clients in Washington D.C., Baltimore, and across Maryland.