The Basics of Medical Malpractice for Oklahomans
Oklahoma doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals and facilities have a duty to provide the utmost standard in care for their patients. This is unfortunately not always the case. Approximately 225,000 people die nationwide as the result of medical malpractice. But what is medical malpractice?
Medical malpractice is generally defined as professional negligence or wrongdoing by act or omission by a healthcare provider that causes injury or death to the patient. The various types of Oklahoma medical malpractice include, but are not limited to: misdiagnosis, failure to diagnose, delayed diagnosis, surgical error, anesthetic error, medication error, incorrect treatment, continuing ineffective treatment, failure to attend to a patient, substandard treatment, and lack of informed consent. If a doctor is employed by a hospital, the hospital will likely be held liable for that doctor’s malpractice.
The victim of medical malpractice in Oklahoma, or a victim’s family, must bring a medical malpractice action within two years from the date of malpractice injury or death. There are exceptions to this rule, however. A medical malpractice claimant must also provide expert testimony to prove medical malpractice, unless of course it is blatantly obvious. In addition, there are laws governing the awarding of damages. Oklahoma medical malpractice law can be very complicated and can easily confuse those attempting to understand it.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice in Oklahoma, the experienced Oklahoma City medical malpractice lawyers at Maples Law Firm, LLP, will apply their critical understanding of Oklahoma medical malpractice law to determine the validity of your claim. We are committed to providing quality legal advice and action, and will never charge a fee if we do not recover fair compensation. For a free consultation, please call (405) 705-5050. Our attorneys look forward to answering any questions you may have.