Your health is perhaps one of the most valuable assets you own. If you become sick or sustain an injury, you depend on health care providers to provide the proper course of action to make you feel better. However, there may be a time where you receive less than adequate care—and it is you who has to bear the highest cost in more ways than one.

A medical malpractice lawyer in Raleigh, NC, is a legal professional who holds medical providers accountable for the harms and losses that occur when they deviate from the expected standards as set within their profession. If a doctor makes a mistake out of negligence or a gross error, patients have a right to seek compensation for the damages they have suffered. A malpractice lawyer allows patients to exercise their rights.

What Counts as Malpractice?

Medical malpractice is professional negligence by a health care professional who deviated from the normal standard of care that is expected of them. In most instances, a substandard treatment that leads to harm, injury, or death of a patient is a form of malpractice.

Medical malpractice can occur at any stage of treatment, such as medical errors in diagnosis, medication, health management, and aftercare. The error can originate from what the doctor chose not to do, also known as an act of omission. Examples of medical malpractice include, but are not limited to:

Operation on the Wrong Body Part

Birth Injury (To the Mother or Infant)

Emergency Room Errors

Failure to Observe a Patient's Medical History

Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis

When you have been given improper treatment or advice from a medical doctor, it is crucial to understand your rights and exercise them. Contact a medical malpractice lawyer to begin discussing your options.