One sad reality of the world is that when it comes to receiving treatment, medical malpractice or negligence is still happening in this day and age. Often people are unsure if and when they have been the victim of negligence or whether or not they have a substantiated claim.
Understanding your rights as a patient and consumer is imperative should you feel the victim of poor medical treatment. A medical negligence lawyer will help bring clarity to your situation and determine what compensation you’re entitled to.
Know your rights and what to look for
Negligence doesn’t merely occur when a provider’s carelessness or mistake is the cause of an injury or damage of any kind to a patient. There are occasions where healthcare providers may alert a client to previous cases of error in their medical history.
Be aware of what your rights are as a medical consumer. As touched on previously on these pages, health consumers are guaranteed:
- Acceptable service that ensures dignity and privacy.
- Satisfactory information and due skill.
- The ability to seek redress if these rights are not met.
If for any reason you feel that your rights were compromised, Australian common law enables you to sue. Damages vary from case to case, but it is vital you understand what you are or are not entitled to and what to look for if you feel you didn’t receive these entitlements.
Why do some cases of negligence go amiss?
Although the major reason behind malpractice claims not being followed through is because patients are unaware of their rights, there are other factors at play. They are more humane in their origin than you may believe.
Simply put, many patients are hesitant to make a claim because they fear other doctors may hear about the cases and refuse to treat them. Other fears are more financially based. For instance, other consumers don’t seek compensation for malpractice because they fear it will cause the cost of their care to rise.
Another monetary-based fear is aligned with the perceived cost of pursuing legal action.
All of these fears can be allayed by simply getting in touch with medical negligence lawyers. As well as offering expert knowledge, the team at Gerard Malouf & Partners offer a No Win No Fee guarantee. So any financially-based fears or hesitancy you may have will be allayed.
