News reports that a jury has awarded a girl $11.5M in a medical malpractice lawsuit. The radiologic malpractice case asserts that the radiologist was negligent in failing to properly diagnose and treat the girl’s symptoms.
In order to properly care for and treat a patient, the first step is making a timely and appropriate diagnosis. According to a recent study, about 15% of all failure to diagnose medical malpractice errors cases involve radiologic mistakes. Further, roughly 80% of a radiology errors are the result of the failure to accurately diagnose clinical data. Of those errors, nearly 80% lead to catastrophic permanent injuries and death. The most common claims include failures to diagnose cancers.
In this instance, the lawsuit asserted that the radiologist failed to properly diagnose a heart condition, and the failure to do so in a timely manner led to cardiac arrest and brain damage. A jury determined that the radiologist was negligent in failing to make this diagnosis.
When a doctor fails to make a proper diagnosis in a timely manner, the window of opportunity for treating a patient and giving her or him the best chance at a full recovery quickly diminishes.
For more information or if you believe that you or someone you love has been injured as the result of a delay in diagnosis or treatment, please contact or dedicated Los Angeles medical malpractice team at Bostwick & Peterson, LLP for an immediate consultation.
