Why causation matters in a medical malpractice case. Over the last couple of weeks, we have been able to speak with individuals who have suffered bad results while in the care of doctors and hospitals. Because of these results, some people have thought that a medical malpractice case is automatic. Although I have talked about causation and medical malpractice cases in the past, this is a topic that is worthy of continuous explanation. This is because if causation cannot be proven in your case you will not succeed.
At the conclusion of this article, you will be able to see why a bad result will not always mean that medical malpractice has occurred. A serious injury can be just one part of the puzzle.
NEGLIGENCE IN MARYLAND…
Medical malpractice falls under a category of negligence in Maryland. Under Maryland law, negligence is broken down into four basic elements. Those elements are duty, breach of duty, causation, and damages. One of the main ways negligence law ties the actions of the wrongdoer to the victim is through causation.
If any of these elements are missing in your case, you will lose. For many people the focus on the bad results consists of the damages portion of the analysis. This is because the harm that is done to you will be covered under the damages portion of the law.
WHY CAUSATION MATTERS IN A MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CASE
When reviewing a client’s claim for medical malpractice, one of the areas of review will be whether the actions of the doctor, nurse, or hospital, are the cause of the client’s injuries. What this means in basic terms is that the person you are suing must be the one who causes your harm. In a medical malpractice context sometimes you can have a bad result that occurs and that bad result was not do to anything the medical professionals did or did not do for you.
For example, let us say that a person is having knee surgery. During the knee surgery their heart rate begins to drop, and they ultimately die during the surgery. A medical examiners autopsy and independent autopsy both conclude that the reason the heart stopped was because of a developmental issue in the brain. In other words, nothing that the doctors performing the surgery did contributed to the death.
If a medical malpractice case is brought against the doctors doing the surgery, a strong defense will be made on causation. Even though there is a bad result (the death), causation in this set of circumstances seems hard to prove. Hopefully now you can see why causation matters in a medical malpractice case.
If you have more questions about these issues, pick up the phone and call us. You can reach me at 301-850-4832.
Marcus B. Boston, Esq.
2 Wisconsin Circle, Suite 700
Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815
1-833-4 BABY HELP
