Medical Malpractice FAQs

Here are common questions people often have about medical malpractice when they visit us at Deratany & Kosner. If you have any questions, contact us at 312-815-6231. We offer a free case consultation.

What is medical malpractice?

Health care professionals, from doctors to surgeons to nurses, have an obligation to uphold a standard of care to all patients. If medical professionals or providers are negligent – if their treatment was substandard and caused harm, they may be liable for injuries or loss of life. Medical malpractice is a legal term referring to the professional negligence of a health care provider to uphold the standard of care accepted across the medical community, resulting in injuries or the wrongful death of a patient.

Medical malpractice includes:

• Failure to diagnose and treat properly
• Cancer misdiagnosis
• Surgical errors
• Emergency room errors
• Medication errors
• Failure to timely diagnose and treat infections
• Misinterpretation of tests
• Delayed diagnosis of cancer
• Failure to order a biopsy
• Failure to order necessary lab or medical tests
• Failure to properly analyze lab results
• Failure to refer to a specialist
• Failure to monitor changes in a patient’s progression of a misdiagnosed disease
• Use of improperly sterilized equipment
• Operating on the wrong body part or patient
• Negligent amputation
• Anesthesia errors
• Unsanitary conditions that lead to infection
• Leaving surgical tools inside a patient’s body cavity
• Failure to treat blood clot or pulmonary embolism
• Failure to treat a medical condition
• Failure to diagnose a disease or condition
• Emergency surgery errors
• Reading a medical chart or lab test incorrectly
• Discharging a patient too soon
• Being prescribed or given the wrong medication
• A reaction to a dangerous drug combination
• Receiving a dangerous dosage of a powerful drug
• Failing to receive needed medication while in a hospital
• Surgical site infections
• Negligence during pregnancy
• Negligence during childbirth
• Cerebral Palsy
• Erb’s palsy
• Shoulder dystocia
• Birth hypoxia and brain damage
• C-section injuries

How do I know I or a loved one is a victim of medical malpractice?

You are being treated by a doctor, but you are not getting any better. Is that medical malpractice? How would you know if it was? It is highly unlikely that your doctor will admit to making a mistake that led to your condition getting worse. Many things can go wrong when treating an illness, and medical malpractice can be difficult to prove. The medical malpractice attorneys at Deratany & Kosner know what to look for to prove a doctor or other medical professional was negligent. Signs of medical malpractice include:

• You are not getting better.
• You were diagnosed based solely on a lab test.
• Your diagnosis does not seem to explain all of your symptoms.
• It took a long time for you to be diagnosed.
• You feel ignored by your doctor(s) and other medical professionals treating you.

What are common causes of birth injuries?

• Common causes of birth injuries include the following:
• Failure to detect or treat infections in a mother during pregnancy
• Failure to monitor a child’s heart rate before and during birth
• Failure to detect umbilical cord prolapse
• Delay in performing a C-section
• Performing an unnecessary C-section
• Mistakes made with equipment, such as forceps, during delivery
• Injuries leading to cerebral palsy or Erb’s palsy

How can an attorney help?

Proving a medical malpractice case is expensive and difficult, requiring extensive medical and legal knowledge as well as vast resources. If you pursue a claim without a lawyer, you may face significant roadblocks on your path to justice. The medical professionals, hospitals and insurance companies typically will have teams of attorneys working to protect their interests. You may find yourself outmatched. We urge you to call Deratany & Kosner. We have the resources and experience necessary to determine the long-term cost of your injuries, including medical bills and lost wages due to missing work. We can review medical records and hospital data, investigate doctors and other health care officials who you suspect acted negligently, and build a solid, successful legal strategy against hospitals and insurance companies that often deny wrongdoing. Visit our results and verdicts page to learn what we have done for other clients.

Who can be held liable for medical malpractice?

There is no simple answer when assessing liability in a medical malpractice case. Each case is unique. In some cases, the hospital itself may be to blame. In other instances, a doctor, pharmacist, surgeon, technician, or nurse may be liable. A medical malpractice claim also may be filed against a dentist, an ophthalmologist, an optometrist, or some other specialist. If the company that manufactured a particular instrument or surgical tool used to operate on you or a loved one made a production error, you will not have a medical malpractice claim, but you may be able to pursue a product liability lawsuit. Product liability also extends to dangerous drugs that cause harm or death to a patient.

How long can I wait before filing a lawsuit?

In accordance with the Illinois Statute of Limitations, injury victims seeking to file a medical malpractice claim have two years from the date of their injuries to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. However, the Statute of Limitations can vary from case to case, depending on the circumstances. Contact an attorney immediately after your injuries are known. This way, your legal team can go to work for you right away, before evidence disappear and memories fade. Your attorney can preserve evidence and medical records necessary to hold negligent parties accountable.

How much will it cost me to hire a medical malpractice lawyer?

Deratany & Kosner offers a free case evaluation to each prospective client who contacts our firm. We understand you have enough to worry about after being injured. We understand you have questions. How much it costs to hire a malpractice attorney should not be one of them. When handling medical negligence cases, we work on a contingency fee basis. That means you do not owe us a fee unless we recover compensation on your behalf.