Staten Island Emergency Rooms Errors Lawyer

Emergency Room Negligence Claims Support

The scene in an emergency room can be chaotic. Emergency departments have a reputation for being intense settings which are sometimes crowded and understaffed. Their mission is to provide timely critical care to all patients, and when a patient visits an emergency room it’s likely that he or she needs to urgently address an unexpected injury or illness. Patients who find themselves in emergency rooms arrive trusting that the doctors, nurses, and others on staff will safely provide appropriate treatment.

But medical errors happen everywhere medicine is practiced, including emergency departments, and for the same reasons. About 20% of all medical malpractice claims originate in emergency rooms, and the leading reason for a claim, just as in non-emergency settings, is failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis (between ⅓ and ½ of all emergency room-based malpractice cases). In emergency rooms, a larger share of diagnosis errors happen because of poor communication: patient medical histories are incomplete or missing, tests aren’t ordered or test results aren’t returned quickly enough, vital information is not successfully passed on through shift changes. Any of these oversights can lead to trouble.

The staff who work in emergency departments are well trained health care providers, devoted to healing others, but they are still capable of making mistakes. When mistakes happen in this environment, the consequences can be serious. If an emergency room medical error has harmed you or someone you love, a Staten Island attorney can review your case and recommend a course of action.

When emergency room staff fail to make accurate diagnoses, fail to safely prescribe medication, or fail to treat injuries and illnesses promptly, they are neglecting their obligation to provide safe and effective care to their patients. Most hospitals follow the emergency care standards established by the American College of Emergency Physicians. In New York State they also need to meet minimum standards determined by law. When either set of standards isn’t met, it becomes more likely that an error will be made. Some errors are unavoidable, but if the action (or inaction) of emergency room staff results in a patient injury and negligence can be proved, emergency room staff can be held legally responsible. Many actions can end in an injury to a patient:

–   Delayed treatment or failure to treat

–   Misdiagnoses or failure to diagnose

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

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

–   Failure to monitor a patient

–   Failure to consult with a doctor or appropriate specialist

–   Laboratory errors

–   Medication errors

–   Paperwork errors

–   Giving inadequate discharge instructions

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

–   Contaminated blood transfusions

–   Unsanitary conditions during treatment

Fighting for Emergency Room Error Compensation on Staten Island

A medical error in the emergency room can leave you injured and in pain and under challenging new financial stress. If the damage is the result of negligence, you need to find a lawyer who will fight for the compensation you’re entitled to. Kuharski, Levitz, & Giovinazzo are ready to take your call and willing to hear your case.

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