New Orleans Surgical Error Lawyer
Surgeons are among the smartest and best-trained doctors in the field of medicine; the more complicated the surgery, the more highly-qualified you can expect the surgeon to be. The same goes for surgical nurses as well. Yet, if you are going into the hospital for surgery, you are more likely to be a victim of a medical mistake than if entering the hospital for any other reason. According to one study, 65% of the unintended, adverse or dangerous events that occur in hospitals happen during surgery.
Doctors and hospitals will tell you that any surgery is risky, and there is no way to control the outcome with certainty. This may be so, but it doesn’t excuse negligence, incompetence or inexcusable mistakes, and doctors and hospitals should not be allowed to hide the fact when their errors are responsible for a negative consequence of surgery. At the Palazzo Law Firm, our experienced New Orleans surgical error lawyers know how to investigate a surgical error and build a strong case that clearly demonstrates when surgical mistakes took place. We are here to make sure you get the medical care and compensation you need after a surgical error has caused you harm.
How do surgical errors occur?
Lack of communication among medical staff is a leading cause of surgical errors. There are many medical personnel involved in preparing a patient for surgery, anesthetizing the patient, performing the surgery itself, and conducting appropriate post-operative care. Hospitals need to engage in best practices and have proper procedures in place to confirm before, during and after surgery that the right procedure is being performed on the right patient, and that any special conditions noted on the patient’s chart are being taken into account.
Surgeons are only human, and mistakes during surgery are possible even among otherwise competent and diligent doctors. Surgeons can sometimes be overbooked or overworked, leading them to perform surgical procedures when they are not fully rested and attentive. Distractions in the operating room can also contribute to surgical mistakes that could otherwise be prevented. Doctors and hospitals alike are equally responsible for ensuring doctors are ready to operate in a safe environment.
What are the dangers of surgical errors in New Orleans hospitals?
A surgical error can have disastrous consequences for the patient. A serious condition could not be treated properly or cured, or further harm to the patient could occur unrelated to the original condition. Often a surgical error will require yet another surgery to repair the mistake, and revision surgeries can be especially risky because the patient may be in an already weakened state and not equipped to go through another surgery and post-operative recuperation.
Some of the leading surgical mistakes made in New Orleans hospitals include:
- Surgery is performed on the wrong organ or on the wrong side of the body
- The wrong surgery is performed on the patient
- Surgery is performed on the wrong patient
- Arteries, veins or internal organs are damaged due to stray nicks or cuts during surgery
- Foreign objects such as clamps, sponges, hemostats and other surgical instruments are sewn up inside the patient
- Poor post-operative wound care or negligent maintenance of IV lines causes bacterial infections, including sepsis or staph infections
- Patients are not provided with adequate aftercare instructions post-surgery
Surgical Errors and Negligence can be Hard to Prove
Surgery is inherently risky, and it’s hard to know what went on in the operating room unless you were there. These factors make it easy for doctors and hospitals to attribute a negative outcome to something other than medical malpractice. As an injured patient or the family of an injury victim, you need medical experts and seasoned attorneys on your side who can thoroughly investigate and determine what went wrong, and who can advocate for you when you were harmed by a surgical error. The personal injury lawyers at the Palazzo Law Firm do this every day for people harmed by surgical errors or other medical malpractice in New Orleans. If you’ve been hurt by a medical error in the OR, we want to help.
Help with Surgical Errors in New Orleans
If you or a member of your family has possibly suffered from a surgical mistake in a New Orleans hospital, call the Palazzo Law Firm in Gretna at 504-433-1442 for a free consultation with a seasoned and successful New Orleans surgical error malpractice attorney.
