Can Nurses Be Liable for Medical Malpractice?
There are two extremely challenging aspects to a medical malpractice claim. The first has to do with dealing with the actual harm caused by the negligence. That can prolong your recovery time. The other challenge is more emotional when you have to confront the idea that a medical professional you put your trust in has caused you harm. Most often, this will not be intentional, but that just compounds the problem because you wouldn’t have been harmed if it weren’t for the negligence.
No matter what medical condition you initially sought help for, you will have a team of professionals tending to your care, from the administrative assistants to the nurse practitioner to your doctor. Any specialists you are referred to will have their own support staff.
If you require hospitalization, multiple shifts of nurses, attending physicians, and other healthcare providers will be taking care of you. Any one of those professionals can slip up and cause problems, which can make one person or the entire team, including nurses, liable for medical malpractice.
Investigating the Claim
When something has gone wrong with your medical care, you’ll need to seek out a new doctor. You might be leery about this prospect, but it is essential that you get an independent medical professional to review your case and provide a course of treatment to correct the issue and get you back on the mend. The assessment of that new doctor will be essential to your medical malpractice claim.
Who can you hold responsible? Consider the following personnel:
Attending Doctor
Your care begins with your primary physician. The doctor will order the tests, make the referrals, and direct their staff to administer their treatment recommendations. If that doctor makes a misdiagnosis, overlooks your medical history, or doesn’t take your concerns seriously, it could set off the chain of events that lead to your further harm.
Nurses
You might encounter several nurses with different levels of certification that have all been certified by the Montana Board of Nursing. One nurse in the doctor’s office might take your vitals while another draws blood and administers vaccinations and other medications. If those nurses don’t read the monitors or the doctor’s orders correctly, it can lead to complications.
Office Staff
There is a lot of paperwork and forms that get generated for any visit to a doctor’s office. There is even more paperwork created when there is a procedure ordered. All of that paperwork becomes a part of your medical records. In addition to your medical history, you also have to sign the proper consent forms. Those forms should provide information about what you can expect from the treatment and the risks.
Just because you give consent for treatment doesn’t mean you are giving permission to be mistreated. If the office staff misappropriates your records, it can lead to confusion and missed diagnosis.
Requirements for a Case
If the cause of your harm can be traced back to a negligent nurse, you and your attorney need to establish certain elements in order to prevail in the case. Consider the following requirements for your claim:
The Relationship with the Nurse
This is probably the easiest element of a malpractice claim, but it is also the foundation of the case. You have to establish that you had a professional relationship with the nurse and that they were directly involved with your care. Remember, a doctor’s office can have several nurses working. It has to be established that a specific nurse caused your problems. Of course, if more than one nurse was negligent, you can name them as well, but that needs to have been “hands-on” with your care at some point.
The Nurse’s Negligence
Next, you need to establish that the nurse’s negligence caused the adverse harm. This is where your new doctor will provide crucial information. They should be able to examine your record of care and know who signed off on the treatment and who was responsible for administering that treatment.
The Injury Caused Damages
Finally, you have to detail how the negligent acts of the nurse led to your damages. Those damages can be additional medical expenses and compounded pain and suffering. You and your attorney will be able to work out the specific amount of damages you can ask for.
How to Prevail with a Medical Malpractice Claim
One thing to keep in mind is that many nurses might not carry medical malpractice insurance. That would limit the amount of potential damages you could get from them. You need to keep that in mind as you build your case. It is equally important to understand that a nurse does not act independently. They will always be under the supervision of the doctor. Your attorney might recommend including the doctor as an at-fault party to your claim.
This is why you need to work with attorneys who understand the challenges of medical malpractice cases and know how to investigate them properly. The team at Western Justice Associates has years of experience with medical malpractice cases. We can provide the proper support and guidance to help you navigate the claims process and, if necessary, a lawsuit.
Remember, trusting a nurse or any other medical professional doesn’t make them infallible.