Are you considering bringing a medical malpractice case against your doctor, or wondering if you have a case at all? Doctors are human and make mistakes just like anyone else. The difference is that when doctors make mistakes, it can negatively affect human lives. While you may think your medical injury is minor, there is always a chance it could become worse later. The best thing to do if you have a question about the validity of your case is to talk to a medical malpractice attorney.

Some medical errors are more common than others, and are usually automatic grounds for a malpractice suit (depending on the individual details of each incident). If you've experienced any of these three most common types of medical errors, you should talk to an attorney right away to get your case moving forward.

1. Injuries During Childbirth

While this can refer to injuries to the mother, it most commonly refers to injuries to the baby before or during the birth. Sometimes, the doctor doesn't provide appropriate prenatal care, such as by neglecting to identify conditions in the mother that could lead to birth defects.

Other times, the injury occurs due to improper practices or mistakes during the birth, such as not responding appropriately to signs of fetal distress or causing physical injury to the baby while delivering it. These errors can cause lifelong problems for the baby.

Sometimes, the injuries are so severe, they require the baby to have lifelong medical care, which can be a huge financial and emotional drain on the parents. In these cases, the baby and the parents all deserve to be compensated financially so those expenses can be met and pain and suffering can be assuaged. A medical malpractice case is warranted, and the amount of the award will depend on the extent of the injury and the level of incompetence of the doctor.

2. Misdiagnosis

According to AllLaw.com, misdiagnosis is one of the most common reasons for medical malpractice cases. It occurs most often in complex conditions where a patient doesn't display the usual textbook symptoms of a disease. The physician may not suspect the actual disease because the patient appears to have something else.

In these cases, the doctor will test for a variety of other things, coming up with nothing unusual, and may not catch the real disease until it is quite advanced and more difficult to treat. Sometimes, the doctor doesn't catch the real disease at all, and the patient gets the true diagnosis from another doctor.

It can be very dangerous, and even fatal, to a patient to be misdiagnosed for a serious disease. Doctors commonly miss things like cancer, heart disease, strokes, heart attacks, autoimmune disorders, and more.

3. Surgery Mistakes

Surgery is a delicate thing, and it is easy for a doctor who is not giving it their full attention to make a mistake. Mistakes sometimes occur even under the most rigorous attention standards. This is why more medical malpractice claims are filed for surgical mistakes than probably any other reason.

Of course, a mistake during surgery does not necessarily mean the patient is injured. For the claim to be a valid and ultimately successful one, some type of injury, either temporary or permanent, must occur due to the mistake. Unfortunately, injuries are all too common when a surgeon makes a mistake on the operating table.

Conclusion

If you have experienced any of these medical errors, you almost certainly have a medical malpractice case. Individual circumstances may vary, though, which is why it is important to talk to an attorney who specializes in malpractice cases.

If you have been injured at all due to any medical error, whether for one of the reasons above or another, call an attorney right away and discuss the strength of your case, so you can get it filed and moving as soon as possible. You deserve compensation for your injury, and your attorney will make sure you get it. Click here for more information on how a medical malpractice attorney can help you get the compensation you need.