If you have suffered injury due to an infection or other problem from a hospital stay, the hospital may be liable for your expenses. This type of case is relatively common when a malpractice case against a specific doctor may not be appropriate, or in conjunction with a malpractice case when a hospital also has liability for your injury.
Unfortunately, hospital lawsuits are becoming more common. As resources are stretched to the limit and more and more people seek healthcare, hospitals are increasingly unable to provide the quality of care they should. Victims who have suffered injuries in hospitals may have grounds for a lawsuit and may be entitled to payment of damages.
How Can Hospitals Be Liable for Injuries?
Hospitals can be liable for injuries if the staff has not used proper care to prevent patients from being harmed. This is known as the “standard of care” and applies to all hospital staff, including nurses, doctors, administrators, directors, cleaning staff, cooks and anyone else who works in the hospital. Examples of breach of standard of care includes:
- Failure to give needed medication or giving the wrong medication. Medication errors can be deadly, and hospitals have a strict duty to ensure that patients receive their medication. This includes maintenance medication as well as drugs to treat acute conditions.
- Failure to maintain a clean environment. If a patient contracts an illness or infection while in the hospital, the institution may be liable if it can be shown that proper procedures were not used to maintain good hygiene.
- Failure to inform patients of important information. If a patient is not given enough information to make a good decision about healthcare, the hospital may be liable. Patients have a right to know information about their own medical conditions as well as possible alternatives for treatment.
- Failure to screen employees. If a hospital fails to properly screen employees, and if those employees or agents then harm a patient, the hospital could be liable.
- Failure to provide proper employee training. If an employee is not trained properly and causes harm to a patient, the hospital may be liable for failing to provide proper training.
The experienced attorneys at Bernstein & Maryanoff in Miami have helped many victims recover damages in hospital injury cases. Contact us today for help in exercising your rights and recovering compensation for injuries sustained during your stay in a hospital.