Annapolis Personal Injury Law Blog

Going to the doctor can be a hassle for a Maryland resident. They usually do not make appointments with their physicians until they feel unwell, and then they must answer a barrage of questions from their nurses, doctors, and other practitioners just to get to the right treatment for their malady. In many cases, a trip to the doctor results in a medication or protocol to improve the patient’s health. However, in some situations, doctors may fail to properly assess and treat their patients’ needs.

This post will introduce readers to the differential diagnosis process for evaluating and treating patients. No medical or legal advice is offered in this article. Readers who believe that their doctors may have erred in the use of, or failure to use, the differential diagnosis process may wish to explore their possible claims with the help of medical malpractice attorneys.

What is a differential diagnosis?

Advance directives and living wills can turn a confusing and stressful situation into one of comfort and solace. An advance directive allows for a person’s preferences for how they would like to spend their last days to be honored. A legally binding document, the Attorney General in Maryland provides optional resources to assist residents who wish to provide directives to those who care for them, including their doctors and loved ones.

However, there are those whose advance directives were not followed by medical personnel. In these cases, family members feel that their loved ones suffered unnecessarily. As a result, these families have taken legal action by suing for medical malpractice.

Reasons to take legal steps

As advances in cancer research and treatment continue, medical professionals are better able to diagnose and effectively treat those who have been diagnosed with the disease. In fact, many cancers that are deadly if left untreated can be eradicated if caught early enough. This means that speed and accuracy matter a great deal when it comes to dealing with cancer. One cancer where this is true is breast cancer.

How breast cancer is diagnosed

There are a lot of ways that doctors can go about diagnosing breast cancer. To start, a breast exam can identify any irregular lumps that require additional testing. Then tests such as an X-ray, a MRI, or even an ultrasound can provide images of deep tissue to better spot abnormalities in the breast. Once those irregularities are identified, a biopsy, where a piece of the suspicious lump is removed and tested, can be taken, thereby giving a patient a clear indication of whether the lump is cancerous or not.

No one expects their medical professional to cause them harm. Yet, the sad reality is that medical malpractice is much more common than most people realize. If your or a loved one know this all too well, then you’re probably thinking about your legal options and the best way to obtain closure and move forward with life. In many of these medical malpractice cases, settlement offers are made by negligent doctors, hospitals, and insurance companies. While one of these settlement offers might purport to provide you with the closure you need, you’ll want to thoroughly vet the offer to see if it’s really in your best interests.

How to analyze your medical malpractice settlement offer

There’s a lot that goes into an analysis of a settlement offer. You’ll want to look at each of them before determining a course of action that is right for you. Here are just some of the things that you’ll want to analyze in light of your settlement offer:

How each of us views the world is largely influenced by our vantage point. This is especially true for organizations and systems. If you are an insider, you’ll likely view things differently than someone on the outside. Because we can get tunnel vision, it is often beneficial for people to experience an opposing perspective.

This was the subject of a recent New York Times article written by a doctor who experienced a patient’s perspective when her teenage daughter needed an appendectomy. The doctor, who also happens to be writing a book about medical errors, noted that when she switched from being a medical provider to the family member of a patient, the once-comfortable hospital environment suddenly began to feel full of hazards.

The author’s position was unique in that she had much more medical knowledge and confidence than most patients and family members do. But, she admitted, she was still uncomfortable “being the squeaky wheel” and asking numerous questions of the physicians and nurses. She could sense the “unspoken annoyance” of the staff as she sought explanations.

Though hospitals are supposed to be places where medical professionals find answers to the ailments Maryland residents have, the reality is that they do not always provide the rest and recovery they are supposed to. Rather than get better in a hospital, a large number of patients end up coming out of the hospital with a worsened condition.

According to one study, the third cause of death in the country is medical errors. A medical professional’s negligence that causes an error can be devastating and cause additional medical expenses. A medical malpractice suit can be one way to hold medical professionals responsible for the negligence. The following are some common medical errors that patients should be aware of when going for medical treatments.

Erroneous paperwork