Michael J. Glassman & Associates, LLC, of Voorhees, NJ handles complex medical malpractice and wrongful death cases. We can help clients determine whether or not malpractice has occurred where someone is badly injured as a result of negligence or misconduct of medical, chiropractic or dental staff and professionals. With established relationships with expert witnesses and in-depth understanding of malpractice issues, we have the experience and knowledge necessary to maximize the settlement or verdict for these serious cases. Most of our clients reside in Camden, Gloucester and Burlington counties of New Jersey.
Medical malpractice is negligence committed by a professional health care provider, such as a doctor, nurse, dentist, technician, hospital or hospital worker - whose performance of duties departs from a standard of practice of those with similar training and experience, resulting in harm to a patient or patients.
The duty of a medical professional usually is not the duty to cure or to guarantee a good outcome from treatment. The duty is to provide good medical care according to accepted standards in the community, or, in the case of a specialist, accepted standards in that medical specialty.
What is Malpractice?
The concept of medical malpractice negligence is very broad and encompasses virtually every kind of mistake that could be made by a medical professional. A common mistake is the failure to properly diagnose a patient's disease or injury resulting in improper or delayed treatment. Hospitals are generally liable for any actions of their employees that are undertaken within the scope of their employment. For example, a hospital is responsible for the actions of a nurse employed by the hospital in the course of providing care in the hospital.
Other actions which may constitute medical malpractice include:
- Failing to inform the patient of available treatments or continuing a treatment that has been shown to be ineffective
- Failing to provide critical information to a patient
- Failure to diagnose or improper diagnosis
- Surgical errors such as a slip of the knife severing a nerve during an operation
- Medical instruments, sponges, needles or other foreign objects improperly left inside a patient after surgery
- Lack of informed consent
- Abandonment (failure to attend to a patient)
- Below standard treatment or incorrectly performed treatment
- Medication errors or improperly prescribing a drug
Damages
Usually there are two types of damages available in a negligence medical malpractice case:
actual damages and
punitive damages .
- " Actual damages " include the cost of additional medical treatment, lost wages, lost future earning capacity, and pain and suffering caused by the injury.
- " Punitive damages" are usually only available if the person who caused the harm acted intentionally, willfully, or recklessly in causing the harm. In some cases, an award of punitive damages may be many times the amount of the actual damages, especially if the actions of the person found responsible for the harm are considered particularly wrongful.
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If you or a loved one believes that negligence was committed by a professional health care provider, call Michael J. Glassman & Associates today at
856-784-9222 or 888-234-4421 (toll-free)
. Our initial consultation is
free of charge . If we agree to take your case, we will work on a "contingent fee" basis, which means the fee you pay is a percentage of the amount of money that we recover for you.
Don't wait to call! You may have a valid claim and be entitled to compensation for your injuries.
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