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Atlanta Surgical Error Lawyer

Surgeries happen daily all around the world, and most occur without incident. But some patients are not given the care and skill they deserve. Some of the most common surgical errors occur when the surgical team operates on the wrong body part; leave instruments, needles, devices, and sponges behind that should not be left; or unwittingly injure an important body part that should have been positively identified, isolated, and protected. Unfortunately, these mistakes occur all too often. If you are a victim of surgical malpractice, contact an Atlanta surgical error lawyer today. At The Moses Firm, we understand the severity of injuries resulting from surgical malpractice. Call us today at 404-721-1050.

Forms of Malpractice that Occur Before Surgery

Surgical malpractice can take place even before the procedure begins. Sometimes, a patient may not be a good candidate for surgery. If the patient is not physically capable of handling the procedure, doctors may be required for safety reasons not to perform the surgery at all.

Surgical Malpractice in Atlanta, Georgia

Sometimes mistakes occur during the surgical procedure. Medical errors might occur because a doctor performs surgery on the wrong body part. Other times, doctors will perform the surgery and leave surgical tools or other medical equipment inside the patient’s body, which are referred to as foreign objects. Those foreign objects can lead to severe complications for the patient. Doctors might also fail to sterilize their equipment properly, which can cause severe infections. It is also possible that a doctor will injury an important body part, leading to severe blood loss, a devastating nerve injury, or cause other serious complications.  One of the most common surgical errors that results in many medical malpractice claims is cutting the common bile duct.

Following surgery, doctors and nurses must monitor the patient to ensure that the patient does not develop an expected complication.  This could be an infection, bleeding in the neck after a thyroidectomy, or some other serious complication.  Failing to notice and promptly respond to postoperative conditions can lead to serious injuries and sometimes death, and this can also lead to a viable medical malpractice claim.

Why Do Surgical Errors Take Place?

One common cause of surgical errors results from the use of unsterile instruments or equipment. Contaminated medical tools can cause sepsis, longer recovery periods, and eventually, the loss of limbs, organ failure, or even death. The reasons that this may take place include institution-wide practices that insufficiently sanitize equipment, medical staff who failed to follow the sanitation policies and procedures, improper storage of medical tools, reusing medical equipment, and in some cases intentional misconduct.

Another common mistake occurs when a surgeon performs the wrong procedure. Sometimes, the surgeon will perform surgery on the wrong side of the body. In other cases, a surgeon may perform a surgery on a patient that was intended to be performed on a different person. This severe error could occur because of the hospital staff’s negligence in maintaining patient records.

Problems with the administration of anesthesia can result in serious injuries as well. Miscalculating the amount of medication to provide to a patient can result in that individual not receiving enough oxygen. Brain damage and even death sometimes occur because of errors with anesthesia.

Surgical errors can also lead to the puncturing of organs or nerve damage. The consequences of either of these can be fatal.

Many people do not realize that it is actually quite common for surgeons to leave an instrument or a sponge inside the patient when they sew them up. This mistake can occur because of improper procedures. For instance, doctors and surgical assistants should keep track of all equipment used during the procedure and ensure that they account for each tool before sewing up the patient. Failure to do so can lead to severe consequences.

Following a surgical procedure, patients who experience sharp pains at the surgical site, pain or burning when urinating, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, and or swelling and redness around the surgical area and wounds should contact a medical provider. Any symptoms you experience that do not align with your doctor’s expectations are cause for concern.

Causes of Surgical Malpractice

Surgical malpractice can result from poor planning and practices at the medical facility, poor communication, inexperienced or incompetent physicians and other medical professionals, medical professionals who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and a failure to follow proper processes throughout the surgical procedure. If any of these failures result in injuries to a patient, that patient should contact an attorney to discuss their doctor’s breach of duty of care and their legal options for recovering compensation as a result of that breach.

Call the Atlanta Medical Malpractice Attorneys at The Moses Firm Today

At The Moses Firm, our attorneys are ready to help you navigate the legal system and work to recover the compensation you and your family need. If you were injured due to surgical malpractice, do not hesitate to contact an Atlanta medical malpractice attorney right away. Call us today at 404-721-1050 to discuss your case with an experienced and dedicated lawyer.

 

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