Going over how to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Texas. Texas medical laws lean towards the medical side by design. There are plenty of ways to have your experience heard, but only a few ways to actually file a malpractice lawsuit.
The only really good way to explain how to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Texas is to provide examples with solutions.
Medical Malpractice Example #1 : Poor or negligent health care resulting in death.
- Unfortunately justice for this example can only be received by friend, family or loved one of the killed patient. Medical malpractice that results in death are always extremely sad. To know that the life of a loved one could have been saved IF they received proper medical care _ is extremely difficult situation.
- For this particular example, the family or friend of the victim will be best accommodated by contacting a medical malpractice attorney. A wrongfully death attorney can also help with this situation also.
- Unfortunately, a wrongful death cases the most desired types of cases for medical malpractice and wrongful death attorney’s. These attorney’s work very hard to represent the interest of the family and friends of a wrongful death victim.
- It is important to remember that no amount of money or punishment will bring the victim back to life. Think about the life of the deceased person. Did this person have people that relied on them for support? Who was left behind, and who will suffer the loss of this person’s life?
- It is possible for an agency such as the Attorney General’s office with a district attorney could ask for justice on behalf of the victim These types of “medical malpractice” are usually bumped up into the “criminal” category and not eligible for the same type of malpractice lawsuit.
Medical Malpractice Example #2 : Poor health care resulting pain and suffering lawsuit options.
Medical malpractice resulting in pain and suffering is actually very common. Doctors and hospitals make mistakes that hurt patients all time.
These are some of great examples:
- Patient falls out shower because nurse isn’t assisting properly.
- Doctor accidentally pulls IV needle out of patients arm.
- Doctor hits patient with door when walking through hospital door.
This category can fit in a large variety of medical malpractice lawsuits. For a medical malpractice to fit in this general category it must be:
- Unintentional / Accidental
- Able to recover from / without permanent injury or disfigure patient
Medical malpractice or personal injury attorneys generally do not offer legal services for these types of medical malpractice. In Texas there is a money cap of $250,000 for pain and suffering. So when an attorney sees a pain and suffering case, their earnings are also limited.
It’s very understandable as to why a medical malpractice attorney would turn down pain and suffering cases. They have to be paid for their services, so they want to go with better paying cases. They are NOT required by law to provided free or low paying legal services.
These are good options for pain and suffering Malpractice lawsuits in Texas
FIRST OPTION: Every situation is different and should be heard by a medical malpractice attorney. Even if an attorney doesn’t accept your pain and suffering case _ you should at least do the free consultation. There could be details about your case that interest a malpractice attorney. The free consultation will always be your best 1st move.
2nd move or PLAN B: So if you called some malpractice attorneys and get turned down. Next move will be to contact the business that provided you with medical services. Report the incident to the facility try to make an “incident report” or “complaint” with a manager.
Sometimes this step will start a defensive response by the medical facility. They might try to offer a settlement, or payoff to try to keep the issue quiet. Sometimes the facility will try to cover up the F**** Up _ this is actually very common.
3rd move PLAN C: If you get no results from attorney or facility contact _ you still have a pain and suffering lawsuits. If you still want to file a pain and suffering lawsuit for malpractice _ you will have to do it differently.
You will need to contact more attorneys and let them know that you want to pay out of pocket for the malpractice lawsuits. Malpractice attorneys are not required to work for low wages or for free, but most will file any lawsuit you want to file as long as you pay for their services up front.
Medical Malpractice Example #3 : Negligent health care resulting pain and suffering
This example of medical malpractice is very similar to example #2. What changes the situation behind this medical malpractice lawsuit is the “NEGLIGENCE”. This 1 word means that the minimum standard of care by a provider has not been met. It means that a provider or facility is directly at fault of your pain and suffering.
Negligence also means that punitive damages are possible and the Texas $250,000 pain and suffering liability cap may be irrelevant.
Good Examples of Negligence Medical Malpractice:
- Patient is given a medication they have a known allergy to.
- Patients medications are mixed up or given to wrong patient.
- Hospital allows unlicensed doctor provide medical services.
- Patient is misdiagnosed and treatment is delayed.
- Patient is declined medical treatment.
- Test results are ignored by doctor.
The criteria to label a medical services as negligent is _ did the services meet minimum standards of care? An easy way to figure this out is by asking this simple question _ If another care provider was put in the same situation, would the medical care have been different?
Filing The Negligent Medical Malpractice Lawsuit In Texas
First move to get this lawsuit start is with the free consultations from the medical malpractice attorneys. During these consultations, be sure to mention how the medical care provider was negligent with their medical care.
You may need to contact multiple attorneys to get results. Proving neglect by a medical care provider isn’t always the easiest think to do, so its not going to be a case attorneys really want. If a law firm has plenty of cases, they will pass on difficult malpractice cases. Just keep calling.
There is another really good next step for negligent medical care in Texas.
If your having trouble finding a medical malpractice attorney, you can file a complaint with the Texas Medical Board. The complaint will be for the provider failing to meet the minimum care standards.
If the Texas Medical Board takes action against the provider for not providing proper medical care _ an attorney will be more open to accepting the malpractice lawsuit case. If the Texas Medical Board takes disciplinary actions again the provider _ the attorney wont need to prove neglect in the lawsuit.