Louisville Surgical Error Attorneys

While any surgery carries with it certain risks, every surgeon is required to operate under the recommended standard of care that others in their profession would provide. When a surgeon, anesthetist, nurse, or other medical staff member fails to provide that standard of care or makes an outright mistake that harms their patient, they need to be held accountable for their actions.

Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway, PSC represents individuals and families who are affected by surgical malpractice throughout Kentucky. Led by a member of the Inner Circle of Advocates, our firm has recovered over $500 million for clients in settlements and trial verdicts.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of surgical malpractice, contact a Louisville surgical error lawyer from Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway, PSC. Our team of surgical error attorneys are committed to fighting for justice for those who have been wrongly injured from surgery malpractice. Our firm offers free initial consultations and handles cases on a contingency fee basis. Call 502-244-7772 to schedule a free initial consultation with a medical malpractice lawyer in Louisville.

Why Hire Our Louisville Surgical Error Lawyer?

It isn’t right or fair that a victim of surgical malpractice is made to deal with the financial and emotional fallout of their injuries on their own. Surgical errors can lead to complications, post-surgical infections, disfigurement, disability, and even death.

A Louisville surgical error attorney at Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway, PSC can support you and your family in the following ways:

• Providing legal guidance so that you are aware of your rights
• Uncovering what went wrong and finding out why the mistake occurred
• Holding the surgeon or hospital who harmed you responsible
• Recovering financial compensation for damages you’ve suffered

Since 1986, our law firm has helped people who have been injured by carelessness or negligence in the operating room. The Louisville injury attorneys at our firm only represent a small number of clients at any given time because it allows us truly focus on our clients and offer personalized legal representation. This approach has helped our firm secure many successful verdicts and settlements.

Types of Surgical Errors

The experienced team of Louisville surgical error attorneys at Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway, PSC has represented many clients who were victims of surgical malpractice in situations such as:

• Unnecessary surgery
• Anesthesia errors such as over sedation or airway obstruction
• Instruments and devices left in patient
• Removal of wrong organ
• Severed arteries
• Overmedication or wrong medicine administered
• Perforated or punctured bowels
• Operation on wrong limb
• Amputation of wrong limb
• Disfigurement or scarring from cosmetic surgery

If you or someone you care about has been injured by a surgical or anesthesia mistake, contact our firm to discuss the advisability of filing a surgical malpractice lawsuit.

Informed Consent in Surgical Malpractice Cases

Before any surgery is performed on a patient, the surgeon must obtain informed consent from their patient using methods that are consistent with the acceptable and prevailing standards of practice among surgeons with similar training and experience. The surgeon must disclose their qualifications, and the possible outcomes of the impending surgery, including any pain, bruising, infection, or any other side effects that may occur.

The surgeon must provide this information in a way that gives any reasonable patient a general understanding of the surgical procedure they plan to perform. The surgeon must also inform the patient of any medically acceptable alternative procedures or treatments and any risks or hazards associated with those treatments or procedures.

The patient has the right to be informed and to give their consent for the surgery based on the information that they receive from the surgeon. Any surgeon who fails to get informed consent from their patient before performing a surgery may be exposed to a claim for negligence. A failure to get informed consent is a failure to conform to a proper professional standard expected of surgeons. When such failure results in injury, the patient may be entitled to financial compensation for the damages they suffer.

Expert Evidence in Surgical Errors Cases

Surgical malpractice cases are typically based on negligence. Generally, establishing negligence of a medical professional like a surgeon requires medical or expert testimony. Most cases will require the input of a surgeon with experience and training in the same area of surgery as the case. A lay person cannot determine whether a patient’s injury was caused by the surgeon’s negligence. There are cases where the patient’s injury is so apparent that a lay person with general knowledge would have no difficulty recognizing it. For example, if a patient underwent a surgical procedure to amputate their left leg, and instead their right leg was amputated, the surgeon’s error is apparent. Except in such limited cases, a medical negligence case requires the participation of medical professionals. 

When you are represented by a Louisville surgical error lawyer at Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway, PSC, you do not have to worry about meeting this requirement to prove your case. In addition to in-house medical staff who assist in case preparation and investigations, we have access to a wide range of medical experts who are skilled in their fields and understand the legal requirements of a medical negligence claim.

How Are Surgery Malpractice Cases Proven?

Surgical error cases are under the same burden of proof as other medical malpractice lawsuits. The following are elements that must be clearly established in order to file a claim for surgical malpractice and prove liability:

• The surgeon or anesthetist owed the patient a duty of care – this applies to surgeries that are planned as well as emergency operations.
• The surgeon failed to operate under the standard level of care expected of other medical professionals in the same situation.
• The patient suffered emotional or physical harm.
• The harm suffered by the patient was a direct result of the surgeon’s negligence or error.

In order to prove your surgical malpractice case, you need to work with a skilled Louisville surgery error attorney at Dolt, Thompson, Shepherd & Conway. Our experienced team can investigate all aspects of your case, collect evidence, and work with expert witnesses that support your claim for damages.

In order to succeed in a surgical malpractice case, the victim must prove all the elements of negligence. Failure to prove any one element would result in an unsuccessful claim. Every surgery has some degree of inherent risk. Even procedures characterized as minor surgeries can sometimes result in unwanted outcomes. With all medical procedures, there is the risk that something will go wrong, no matter how good your doctor is. That underlying truth is what makes surgical malpractice cases complex.

When a patient suffers injury from a surgical procedure, the surgeon’s care of the patient is closely examined through the patient’s medical records and hospital charts, to determine if the surgeon deviated from the expected standard of care. The next hurdle is to prove that the harm suffered by the patient was a direct result of the surgeon’s error.

What If I Had a Pre-existing Condition in a Surgical Error Case?

Every person reacts differently to medical procedures. Some people are more sensitive than others and may suffer much greater harm than others under the same circumstances. It is normal for defendants to try to limit their liability to the injured victim by either blaming them for their injury, or pointing to pre-existing conditions which may have made them more susceptible to injury. Having a pre-existing condition does not deny your entitlement to compensation. The law is on your side, whether you had a pre-existing condition or not.

Kentucky courts have accepted what is known as the eggshell plaintiff rule. Under this rule, a wrongdoer must take their victim as they are. If they have a patient who is more sensitive than other patients, and may suffer greater harm because of their sensitivity, then so be it. The wrongdoer is not entitled to either credit or setoff against the amount of the victim’s damages because of pre-existing physical conditions which make the victim more susceptible to injury, or to greater injury, than would have been the case with better health. 

Our team of surgical malpractice lawyers in Louisville understand what is at issue is the surgeon’s negligence, not the victim’s pre-existing condition.

Contact Our Skilled Louisville Attorneys For Help With Your Surgical Error Claim

With resources and extensive experience, our surgery malpractice lawyers in Louisville are known for taking on the most challenging medical malpractice cases. We devote a significant amount of time and resources to preparing the strongest medical practice cases for our clients. We are known across the United States for taking on the most challenging cases. Attorneys come to us from across the U.S. with their most challenging cases. Our Louisville medical malpractice lawyers work diligently to give our client the best opportunity at complete recoveries.

With over five decades of experience, our Louisville surgical error lawyers have the skills and financial resources to develop a compelling case for your medical malpractice claim. We know the law, and we understand the many ways that defendants try to avoid responsibility for their actions. We prepare your case in consultation with specialists in the field who can assess the extent of your injuries. We also work with economic experts who can put a value on your non-economic damages because we understand that surgical errors can result in intangible damages like emotional and psychological injury.

Contact us today to find out how our attorneys can provide assistance with your surgical error claim. Call 502-244-7772 to schedule a free initial consultation.