If you or a loved one has been a victim of a medical misdiagnosis, a Stroudsburg medical malpractice lawyer can help you determine whether you are entitled to compensation.
In Stroudsburg, PA, patients trust their healthcare providers to deliver accurate diagnoses that guide their treatment and recovery. However, when a medical professional fails to diagnose a condition correctly, the consequences can be devastating, leading to unnecessar
y suffering, worsened health outcomes, or even life-threatening complications.
With our deep understanding of Pennsylvania medical malpractice laws and a proven track record of success, our Stroudsburg medical malpractice attorneys are committed to fighting for your rights and securing the justice you deserve. Call Munley Law today to schedule a free consultation with our medical injury attorneys.
Contact a Medical Malpractice Lawyer at Munley Law
Call Us At 844-686-5397 How Serious Is a Misdiagnosis in Stroudsburg, PA?
Getting the medical care you need to recover from an illness starts with an accurate diagnosis. Early and accurate diagnosis allows for timely medical intervention, which is often critical in preventing a disease or condition from worsening. Serious conditions like cancer especially rely on early detection, diagnosis, and treatment.
A misdiagnosis can lead to all kinds of adverse outcomes for the patient. An incorrect diagnosis can lead to unnecessary invasive treatments or the wrong medication being administered. Meanwhile, the real condition goes untreated and progresses, worsening the patient’s prognosis. Furthermore, incorrect treatment can result in increased medical bills for treatments that are not only ineffective but also potentially harmful. Patients might incur additional costs for correcting the misdiagnosis or treating new problems that arise.
If you or someone in your family suffered serious consequences because of an incorrect, delayed, or missed diagnosis at a healthcare facility in Monroe County, contact a Stroudsburg attorney at Munley Law today for a free consultation. Under Pennsylvania law, you may be entitled to pursue compensation for your medical bills and other losses related to your mistreatment.
How Many Patients are Misdiagnosed in Pennsylvania?
A study published by the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Journal, which analyzed 315,418 serious patient events reported to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS) in 2024, has uncovered the extent of misdiagnosis issues in the state.
According to the research, errors relating to procedures, treatments, and medical tests are the most frequently reported event types in the Keystone State, accounting for 33.4% of reports from all healthcare facilities combined, including both hospitals and non-hospital facilities. Testing errors in particular increase the risk of misdiagnosis, with 41,814 laboratory test problems and 10,217 referral and consult issues reported in the data.
In another 2024 publication, the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority analyzed paid malpractice claim data from 226,781 claims filed between 1999 and 2018, and found that allegations related to diagnoses accounted for 26.6% of all claims – the second highest proportion of any claim types. A total of 36% of these claims were based on disabilities caused by misdiagnosis, and 38.9% for wrongful deaths, highlighting the devastating consequences that misdiagnoses can have for patients and their families.
“At Munley Law, our mission is simple: to provide all injury victims equal access to justice, even against the most powerful entities. For more than 65 years, we have been the voice for the injured, the forgotten, and those who need someone to stand beside them in their darkest hour.”
Marion Munley
When Does Misdiagnosis Qualify as Malpractice in Stroudsburg?
An incorrect diagnosis is not always the result of malpractice. Some conditions don’t present symptoms until they have
progressed significantly; other rare or complex medical conditions can be difficult even for experts to diagnose. However, there are situations in which doctors’ failure to follow the standard of care leads to a false or missed diagnosis that could have been prevented.
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from the accepted standard of care. The standard of care refers to the level of competence and skill that a similarly qualified medical professional would provide under similar circumstances. If a doctor’s actions, or lack thereof, fall below this standard and result in a misdiagnosis, it may be considered malpractice.
For your medical malpractice lawyer to prove a successful medical malpractice misdiagnosis claim, they will need to prove the following:
- The existence of a doctor-patient relationship. This establishes the duty of care the doctor owes to the patient.
- A breach of the standard of care. This often requires expert testimony from other medical professionals.
- Causation. Your Stroudsburg personal injury attorneys must demonstrate that the doctor’s actions caused you to suffer harm.
- Damages. You will need to show that you suffered physical, psychological, financial, and other losses as a result of the harm caused by the misdiagnosis.
How Does a Medical Malpractice Lawyer Determine Who Is Liable for a Medical Misdiagnosis in Stroudsburg?
Depending on the specifics of the case, several parties may be liable for a medical misdiagnosis in Stroudsburg.
The Treating Physician: The doctor who failed to diagnose the condition correctly is often the primary party liable in a misdiagnosis case. This could be due to failing to order the necessary tests, misinterpreting test results, not taking the patient’s symptoms seriously, or not referring the patient to a specialist when needed.
Specialists: If a patient is referred to a specialist and that specialist fails to diagnose the condition correctly, the specialist could be held liable. Specialists are expected to have a higher level of expertise in their field, and failing to recognize or correctly diagnose a condition within their specialty can constitute negligence.
Hospitals: Sometimes, the hospital or medical facility where the misdiagnosis occurred can be held liable. This might be the case if the facility failed to maintain proper equipment, employed underqualified staff, or had policies that contributed to the misdiagnosis.
Labs and Technicians: If a misdiagnosis results from incorrect lab work, such as errors in blood tests, imaging, or other diagnostic tests, the laboratory or diagnostic center could be liable. This might include issues like faulty equipment, human error in interpreting results, or failure to communicate results accurately to the treating physician.
A Munley Law medical attorney in Stroudsburg will identify any responsible parties in your case and pursue all avenues to justice. With several of our lawyers board-certified in Civil Trial Law and Civil Trial Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, and our partners named some of Pennsylvania’s Top 100 Trial Lawyers by the National Trial Lawyers Association, we have proven skill and acumen in handling medical misdiagnosis cases and winning favorable verdicts for our clients in local courts.
Types of Misdiagnosis in Stroudsburg
Each type of misdiagnosis presents unique challenges and risks, and any of them can have serious consequences. Nationwide, more than 795,000 Americans lose their lives or become permanently disabled each year due to the misdiagnosis of dangerous diseases. If you or a loved one has experienced any misdiagnosis in Stroudsburg, seeking legal advice is important.
Delayed Diagnosis
A delayed diagnosis occurs when a healthcare provider eventually identifies the correct condition but only after a significant and harmful delay. This delay can allow the condition to worsen or progress to a more advanced stage, ultimately affecting the patient’s outcome. According to the Patient Safety Journal’s analysis of 226,781 paid malpractice claims, delayed diagnosis is one of the leading types of malpractice allegations, constituting 24% of all the claims included in its study.
Missed Diagnosis
A missed diagnosis occurs when a healthcare provider fails to diagnose an existing medical condition. Missed diagnoses can happen if a doctor fails to order the appropriate tests, misinterprets the results, or dismisses the patient’s symptoms. Failure to diagnose claims account for up to 55.7% of medical misdiagnosis claims in Pennsylvania, and failures to order appropriate tests are cited in 2.8% of these claims as well.
False Diagnosis
A false diagnosis, also known as a misdiagnosis, occurs when a healthcare provider diagnoses the patient with the wrong condition. As a result, the patient may receive unnecessary or incorrect treatment while the actual condition remains untreated. Misdiagnosis and wrong diagnosis have been cited in over 5.1% of claims statewide, and account for up to 70% of diagnosis-related malpractice cases resulting in disability or death.
How Our Stroudsburg Medical Negligence Lawyers Can Help You
A lawyer can assess the details of your case to determine whether the misdiagnosis qualifies as medical malpractice. This involves evaluating the medical records, consulting with experts, and determining whether the standard of care was breached.
For your medical malpractice claim to be successful, you must prove that your doctor breached the standard of care. To prove this, your attorneys will obtain expert testimony from medical professionals who can confirm that the doctor’s actions were negligent. Lawyers can interview healthcare providers, witnesses, and other 
relevant parties to obtain statements and testimony that bolster your case. Hiring medical experts can be expensive; we assume all the financial costs of pursuing your case at Munley Law, and we only get paid if we win.
Your lawyer will help you seek compensation for economic damages, including medical bills, lost wages, and future medical expenses related to the misdiagnosis. In addition to economic losses, a lawyer will fight for non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.
Our skilled medical misdiagnosis lawyers are recognized by leading legal directories and organizations, including Martindale-Hubbell, Super Lawyers, and the American Association for Justice, offering proven expertise underscored by our multi-million dollar settlements won for our clients to date.
Named one of the Best Law Firms in America, Munley Law has two award-winning medical malpractice specialists on staff to provide you with expert support for your misdiagnosis case. Marion Munley has been ranked as Best Lawyers’ Lawyer of the Year for Medical Malpractice Law, and Caroline Munley is listed as one of the Top 25 Medical Malpractice Trial Lawyers in Pennsylvania, acclaimed for her work in cases just like your own.
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Call Our Experienced Stroudsburg Misdiagnosis Attorneys Today
We offer free consultations so you can get the answers you need at no cost and no risk.
Schedule your free consultation today and begin the process toward justice.
Marion Munley
Marion Munley has been practicing personal injury law for nearly 40 years. She is triple board-certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy for Truck Accident Law, Civil Trial Law, and Civil Practice Advocacy. She currently serves as Vice President of the American Association for Justice, an organization dedicated to safeguarding victims’ rights. Marion has won many multimillion-dollar recoveries for her clients, including one of the largest trucking accident settlements in history. She has been named a Top 10 Super Lawyer in Pennsylvania since 2023, a Best Lawyer in America, and was recently inducted to the Lawdragon Hall of Fame.
