Brooklyn Emergency Rooms Errors Lawyer

Legal Assistance for ER Negligence Claims

When a person turns to an emergency room for help, they often do so because they need quick and reliable treatment for an illness or injury. Emergency room patients depend on the doctors, nurses, and other providers there to deliver safe speedy care. In the majority of cases, patients get the treatment they expect and leave the emergency room on the road to recovery. In some cases, however, patients leave an emergency room worse off than when they arrived.

Emergency rooms are usually staffed by highly trained medical practitioners who are dedicated to their profession. But they are not perfect, and medical errors happen in emergency rooms for the same reasons they happen in hospitals, clinics, and doctors’ offices. In fact, approximately 20% of all medical malpractice claims originate in emergency rooms. If you or someone close has been the unfortunate victim of an emergency room medical error, turn to a Brooklyn attorney for help.

Emergency departments can be intense places; crowded and chaotic and sometimes understaffed. But emergency department staff are still expected to provide quality care to their patients, which includes making accurate diagnoses, treating illnesses and injuries promptly, and safely prescribing medication. Hospitals generally adhere to the standards of emergency care published by the American College of Emergency Physicians, and in New York State they must meet minimum standards determined by law.

Just as with non-emergency medical malpractice claims, 1/3 or more of the claims that begin in emergency rooms stem from misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose. In emergency room situations, more of these diagnosis issues trace to communication problems: tests aren’t done or their results aren’t available fast enough, medical histories are incomplete or missing, or information is not successfully passed on through shift changes. Despite the intensity that the environment sometimes generates, emergency room staff can still be held liable if their actions were negligent and resulted in harm to a patient. A few common errors that can lead to patient injury include:

– Failure to admit a patient in critical need of care, or to recognize a medical emergency

– Misdiagnoses or failure to diagnose

– Delayed treatment or failure to treat

– Failure to monitor a patient

– Failure to order or perform appropriate diagnostic tests, or failure to review test results in a timely manner

– Failure to consult with a doctor or appropriate specialist

– Laboratory errors

– Medication errors

– Paperwork errors

– Premature discharge of a patient from the ER or lack of follow-up after discharge

– Giving inadequate discharge instructions

– Unsanitary conditions during treatment

– Contaminated blood transfusions

Emergency Room Errors Can Cause Lasting Problems

If you’ve been injured because of negligence in an emergency room, your whole life can change. You may be entitled to compensation for your injuries as well as lost wages and other expenses. Meet with Kuharski, Levitz, & Giovinazzo today to discuss your case.

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