What is Medical Malpractice?
Medical Malpractice is, “bad, wrong, or injudicious treatment of a patient, professionally and in respect to the particular disease or injury, resulting. in injury, unnecessary suffering, or death to the patient, and proceeding from ignorance, carelessness, want of proper professional skill, disregard of established rules or principles, neglect, or a malicious or criminal intent .” (Black’s Law Dictionary 1111. 4th Ed. Rev. 1968). Like general malpractice, it refers to negligence in a professional setting. However, it is limited to healthcare providers, such as a doctor or hospital.
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from the applicable standard of care, intentionally or unintentionally, and harms a patient. Cases such as Napier v. Greenzweig show that medical malpractice can be as blatant as ignoring understood rules, or it can be a mistake like a severe surgical error or a misdiagnosis. Medical malpractice is considered to be a serious issue, and healthcare providers found liable for malpractice often pay extensive damages. Occasionally, a doctor may lose their license to practice medicine if malpractice is severe enough or repeated.
Fully understanding cases of medical malpractice often involves some level of medical knowledge. Because of this, it is difficult to prove medical malpractice in court, and expert witnesses are typically needed to testify about a healthcare provider’s negligence.
More information about Medical Malpractice
Family Awarded $19.2 Million in Medical Malpractice Case
A three-and-a-half-year-old girl is blind and has cerebral palsy after she was given 100 times the dose of nutrients 15 days after she was born in 2007, claimed the lawsuit filed in Lee County by her parents. The family has been awarded $19.2 million in the medical malpractice case that could be the first of its kind for Lee County, reports station 2RSWFlorida.
The little girl was born prematurely at HealthPark Medical Center. The lawsuit was brought against Lee Memorial Health Systems because the overdose led to cardiac arrest and severe complications. She will be in diapers and will have to be carried and fed the rest of her life.
Liability caps could limit the award to $200,000, but the hospital has never paid a claims bill through the court and the family is hoping this will be the first.
Our attorneys at Munley, […]
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Cartwright Receives Boy Scout’s Silver Beaver Award
Silver Beaver award presented to volunteer of exemplary service to youth
The lawyers of Munley, Munley & Cartwright take pride in serving the community both as skilled legal advocates and as dedicated community volunteers.
In recognition of distinguished volunteer service, attorney Matthew Cartwright, a partner in Munley, Munley & Cartwright, has received the prestigious Silver Beaver Award. The award is the highest honor given by the National Council of Boy Scouts to a volunteer for exceptional and noteworthy service to youth.
The Northeastern Pennsylvania Council of the Boy Scouts of America presented the award to Cartwright and two other volunteers at its council recognition dinner in November.
Matt has served for a number of years on the Executive Board of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He currently volunteers on the Council Advisory Board.
As a personal injury lawyer and partner at Munley, […]
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New Hampshire Woman Sues Hospital & Doctors for $5 Million
A woman formerly from New Hampshire is suing two doctors and St. Joseph’s Hospital in Nashua for $5 million alleging they failed to diagnose and treat her bacterial meningitis which left her permanently disabled, reports The Telegraph.
On January 10, 2008, the woman went to the emergency room after suffering for three days with vomiting, headache and fever. She was treated for an ear infection and sent home. With worsening symptoms, she returned to the hospital two days later. The second time she also had hearing loss, altered mental state, and difficulties walking. Her lawsuit states even though a CT scan and other tests suggested something serious was wrong, the doctor diagnosed her with stress and a sinus infection and sent her home.
She returned to the hospital two more times before she was given a spinal tap which showed she was suffering from two life-threatening conditions. […]
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Pennsylvania’s Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys Ranked Among America’s Best Law Firms
Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys, a prominent Pennsylvania personal injury law firm with more than 40 years of experience, has won a coveted place on a list of the nation’s best law firms, published in September jointly by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers magazine. “To make this highly competitive list is an honor and a reward for years of intensive and quality work by our lawyers on behalf of our clients,” said Robert W. Munley, the founding partner of the firm.
The rankings are presented in tiers both nationally and by metropolitan area or by state, and they showcase 8,782 different law firms ranked in one or more of 81 major practice areas. Peer surveys combined with more than 3.1 million evaluations of individual lawyers in the most recent Best Lawyers survey of leading lawyers are used to develop the rankings.
“U.S. […]
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$2.6M Medical Malpractice Verdict In Bethlehem
Doctor at fault for cancer misdiagnosis
Cancer is one of the most common causes of death in the United States, and failure to properly diagnose this disease can be devastating – even fatal – to the patient. When this happens, it may result in a medical malpractice charge against the healthcare givers.
A ruling by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ended a two-and-a-half year journey through the state courts for a $2.6 million medical malpractice verdict against St. Luke’s Hospital & Health Network and one of its gynecologists.
The case was filed in Lehigh County; the plaintiff alleged that her doctor breached the standard of care when he did not advise her to have a biopsy on what turned out to be a cancerous lump in one of her breasts.
Our attorneys have decades of experience handling complex medical malpractice cases. […]
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