A Georgia medical malpractice lawyer can help determine whether a serious injury resulted from negligent medical care or from a medical complication that could not have been reasonably prevented. That is always a difficult question to answer.
A poor medical outcome does not automatically mean malpractice occurred. These cases often require a close review of medical records, the provided treatment, the patient’s underlying medical condition, and the applicable standard of professional care.
Brodie Law Group helps injured patients and families investigate what happened, evaluate the evidence, and understand what options they may have legally. If you believe a medical error caused a serious injury or the death of someone you love, contact us for a free case review at (478) 239-2780.
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional fails to provide care that meets the applicable professional standard and that failure causes an injury.
A bad result by itself is not enough. The evidence must show both that the care fell below the required standard and that the departure from that standard caused harm to the patient.
Because those questions often involve medical judgment, expert review and testimony can be important parts of a Georgia medical malpractice case.
Georgia law requires a person practicing medicine to use a reasonable degree of care and skill. In a medical malpractice case, the injured patient generally must prove:
These questions typically require testimony from a qualified medical expert. The expert can explain the standard of care that applied under the circumstances, identify how the provider departed from that standard, and address whether that departure caused the injury being claimed.
A bad medical result is not enough. Medicine involves risks, and some patients experience complications even when the appropriate standard of care is provided. The main question is whether the provider failed to use the level of care and skill required under similar conditions and whether that failure caused additional harm.
A provider can make a mistake without being legally responsible for every condition the patient later experiences. The evidence must connect the provider’s failure to provide the appropriate standard of care to the harm being claimed.
This issue is especially important when a patient was already seriously ill. In a delayed-diagnosis case, for example, it may be necessary to show that an earlier diagnosis probably would have changed the patient’s treatment or outcome. A possibility that the outcome could have been different may not be enough.
Georgia generally requires a plaintiff alleging professional malpractice to file an expert affidavit with the lawsuit under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1.
The affidavit must come from an expert who is competent to testify and must identify at least one negligent act or omission and the factual basis for the claim.
Georgia law contains additional procedures that may apply in limited circumstances, including when a limitations period is close to expiring. Because the affidavit requirement can affect whether a medical malpractice lawsuit can proceed, potential claims should be evaluated carefully before filing.
The qualifications of an expert who gives standard-of-care testimony are also governed by Georgia law. O.C.G.A. § 24-7-702 includes specific licensing, knowledge, and experience requirements for experts in professional malpractice cases.
Medical negligence can occur in many different healthcare settings and situations. Whether a particular event amounts to malpractice depends on the evidence, but claims may involve:
A condition may go undiagnosed or be diagnosed too late because appropriate symptoms, testing, imaging, or other information were not properly evaluated.
A delayed diagnosis can be especially serious when earlier treatment could have affected the patient’s outcome.
Potential surgical malpractice can involve operating on the wrong area, damaging surrounding structures, leaving an object inside the patient, or other departures from the applicable standard of care.
A surgical complication alone, however, does not prove negligence.
Medication-related claims may involve the wrong medication, incorrect dosage, dangerous drug interactions, failure to account for allergies, or errors in administering medication.
Birth injury cases can involve failures to recognize or respond to fetal distress, problems during labor or delivery, or other negligent medical care that causes harm to the mother or child.
Anesthesia malpractice may involve dosage errors, failure to properly monitor a patient, or other problems related to the administration and management of anesthesia.
Other cases may involve emergency-room care, nursing care, laboratory testing, radiology, patient monitoring, or other forms of medical treatment.
No.
A poor result, complication, or unsuccessful procedure does not automatically mean medical malpractice occurred.
Some complications can happen even when appropriate medical care is provided. The legal question is whether the healthcare provider failed to meet the applicable professional standard and whether that failure caused the patient’s injury.
That distinction is one reason medical malpractice claims often require careful review by both attorneys and qualified medical experts before a lawsuit is filed.
Depending on the facts, responsibility for medical negligence may involve:
A hospital is not automatically responsible for every act of every doctor who practices there.
Liability can depend on who provided the care, the relationship between the provider and the healthcare facility, and the conduct that caused the injury.
In some cases, a hospital or healthcare organization may face direct liability based on its own conduct. In others, questions may arise about whether the facility is responsible for the conduct of an employee or another provider.
Medical malpractice cases often depend on detailed records showing what happened before, during, and after the alleged negligence.
Important evidence may include:
Expert testimony can be especially important when determining the applicable standard of care, whether the provider departed from that standard, and whether that departure caused the patient’s injury.
Georgia imposes specific requirements on experts offering professional standard-of-care testimony.
Georgia places strict deadlines on medical malpractice lawsuits.
Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-71, an action for medical malpractice generally must be brought within two years after the date on which the injury or death arising from the negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred.
Georgia also has a five-year statute of ultimate repose, which generally prevents a medical malpractice action from being filed more than five years after the negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred.
Other provisions of Georgia law can affect these deadlines in other particular circumstances.
Because determining the correct deadline can depend on the facts of the case, it is safer to have a potential claim reviewed early rather than assume additional time is available.
The compensation available depends on the injuries and losses caused by the negligent medical care.
Depending on the case, damages may include:
The purpose of the claim is to address losses caused by the malpractice. The amount and type of compensation available will depend on the individual facts and circumstances.
Because damages issues can depend heavily on the claims being asserted, they should be evaluated based on the specific case rather than a general settlement formula.
Medical negligence can also result in a wrongful death claim.
Georgia’s wrongful death claim may seek the full value of the life of the person who died. That can include both economic and intangible components of the life that was lost.
The person’s estate may also have separate claims arising from the final injury and death. Depending on the circumstances, estate claims can address losses such as medical expenses, funeral expenses, and conscious pain and suffering before death.
The wrongful death claim and estate claim therefore address different losses.
Learn more about these cases on our Georgia Wrongful Death Lawyer page. You can also read our guide explaining the full value of life in a Georgia wrongful death case.
Medical malpractice cases often involve issues that do not arise in an ordinary accident claim.
The injured patient may already have had a serious illness or injury before the negligent act occurred. That can create difficult questions about what caused the patient’s condition and whether the outcome would have been different with appropriate care.
Medical records can also be extensive and highly technical.
In addition, Georgia imposes special requirements on professional malpractice lawsuits, including the expert affidavit requirement discussed above. Qualified expert testimony may be necessary to explain the applicable standard of care, how the provider’s conduct differed from that standard, and whether the difference caused the patient’s injury.
These issues make careful investigation especially important before a medical malpractice claim is filed.
For a broader explanation of injury claims in Georgia, visit our Georgia Personal Injury Lawyer page.
Medical malpractice cases often begin with a simple question: What actually happened?
Answering that question can require much more than reviewing a single hospital bill or discharge summary.
Brodie Law Group can help by:
Not every suspected medical mistake will support a malpractice case. Part of our job is to evaluate the evidence and help you understand whether the facts support moving forward.
Brodie Law Group represents injured patients and families in medical malpractice matters throughout Georgia.
Our office is based in Macon, and we evaluate serious medical-negligence claims involving patients and families from communities across the state.
If you are looking for information specific to Middle Georgia, visit our Macon Medical Malpractice Lawyer page.
A poor medical outcome alone does not establish malpractice. A claim generally requires evidence that a healthcare provider failed to meet the applicable professional standard of care and that the failure caused an injury. Medical records and qualified expert review may be necessary to determine whether the evidence supports a claim.
Expert testimony is commonly required in Georgia medical malpractice cases because questions involving the professional standard of care and medical causation often require specialized medical knowledge. Georgia law also establishes specific qualification requirements for experts who provide standard-of-care testimony.
O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1 generally requires a plaintiff alleging professional malpractice to file an affidavit from a competent expert with the complaint. The affidavit must identify at least one negligent act or omission and provide the factual basis for that claim. The statute also contains procedures that may apply in limited circumstances.
Georgia generally requires a medical malpractice action to be brought within two years after the injury or death arising from the alleged negligent act or omission. Georgia also has a five-year statute of ultimate repose. Other provisions may affect the deadline in a particular case, so it is important to have the facts reviewed as early as possible.
It can be. A missed or delayed diagnosis may support a medical malpractice claim when the evidence shows that the provider failed to meet the applicable professional standard of care and that the delay or failure caused additional harm. Simply receiving an incorrect diagnosis does not automatically establish malpractice.
If you believe negligent medical care caused a serious injury or the death of someone you love, Brodie Law Group can help you understand what options may be available.
We can review the circumstances, obtain relevant medical records, and evaluate whether further investigation or expert review is appropriate.
Call (478) 239-2780 or contact Brodie Law Group online for a free case evaluation.
