Misdiagnosis

New Jersey Misdiagnosis Lawyers

Aggressive representation for NJ victims of medical malpractice

Effective medical care begins with timely and appropriate diagnosis. When you go to your doctor about a medical problem or unexplained symptom, you have every right to expect that you will receive the accepted level of diagnostic tests and procedures to determine the disease and appropriate treatment. If your doctor failed to properly diagnose your serious condition, or refer you to a specialist, it may be a clear case of medical negligence.

The New Jersey injury lawyers of Eichen Crutchlow Zaslow, LLP, are recognized among New Jersey’s leading medical malpractice trial lawyers. The firm has an excellent record of successfully recovering more than $750 million so far in settlements and jury verdicts on behalf of people who have suffered serious injury or lost a loved one. The causes ranged from  delayed diagnosis,  ineffective treatment, or because of a misdiagnosis of a medical condition.

What is misdiagnosis?

Misdiagnosis is a medical error involving a diagnostic error, or a delayed diagnosis. A doctor might have diagnosed the wrong condition and prescribed a course of treatment for that condition while the true, underlying condition continues to progress, unchecked and untreated. However, a diagnostic error alone is not always enough to merit legal action. Misdiagnosis happens a lot more than you would think given the extensive training and practice that doctors undergo before they can treat patients. Using data from the National Practitioner Data Bank, A leading medical malpractice service provider New Jersey paid out $267,913,250 in 2017 for medical malpractice claims, which is about $29.75 per capita. According to the report, diagnostic errors accounted for 34% of medical malpractice cases, and about 30% of cases involved a fatality.

As in any other type of medical malpractice case, you must be able to prove that a doctor-patient relationship existed, that the medical professional was negligent in not properly diagnosing you and in failing to provide proper treatment, and that the doctor’s negligence was the direct cause of your injury.

Common types of diagnostic errors

The following are examples of some of the more common types of diagnostic errors:

  • Failure to diagnose a disease
  • Wrong diagnosis
  • Delayed diagnosis
  • Failure to recognize complications
  • Failure to diagnose a related disease
  • Failure to diagnose an unrelated disease
  • Failure to diagnose the underlying disease
  • Failure to diagnose the correct subtype of the disease

What are the consequences of misdiagnosis?

Despite all the advances in modern medicine, doctors remain fallible human beings. Those years of training and practice do not insulate them from making mistakes that will have a negative impact on their patients. Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis can lead to several complications including:

  • Adverse effects from being prescribed medication to treat the wrong medical condition
  • Worsening of the underlying, undiagnosed condition
  • Spending time, money, and energy addressing the wrong ailment
  • Unnecessary surgical procedures
  • Continued pain, discomfort, other troubling symptoms

Examples of the types of cases our NJ misdiagnosis lawyers handle

The medical error of misdiagnosis robs people of time. With degenerative diseases, early diagnosis is vitally important for a successful outcome. The following are some examples of different types of misdiagnosis cases our NJ medical malpractice attorneys handle:

Were you misdiagnosed in an emergency room?

Hospital emergency room staff members are trained to diagnose emergency conditions and take appropriate and timely measures to treat patients often in the most critical conditions. The emergency nature of the medical treatment in an emergency room or clinic does not excuse the doctors from responsibility for making accurate diagnoses for timely treatment. Failure to properly diagnose and properly treat conditions such as heart attack, stroke, and other conditions that pose an imminent risk of death or serious damages may constitute departure from the appropriate medical standards and may be claims for medical malpractice.

Work with an experienced New Jersey medical malpractice attorney

If you have discovered that you have been injured because of misdiagnosis, you may wish to consult with a NJ medical malpractice attorney from Eichen Crutchlow Zaslow because you may have grounds for legal action. We can pursue the doctor whose negligence caused you pain and suffering and anguish, and possibly caused you to lose time in treating a disease that responds best to early treatment. We work with medical subject matter experts who can review your medical records and testify about what any other reasonable physician in the same area of specialty might have done given the same circumstances. We will investigate your case and file a claim against the doctor to recover compensation for your medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and any other losses related to your injury. Most people don’t want to sue the doctor that they have trusted to care for them. But when your doctor’s negligence diminishes your quality of life and health and possible longevity, filing a medical malpractice is the only way you can obtain the justice you and your loved ones deserve.

Handling complex claims of misdiagnosis by NJ medical personnel

From offices in Edison, Red Bank, and Toms River, our NJ medical malpractice lawyers advise and represent clients in medical malpractice and personal injury litigation matters throughout New Jersey. Contact our NJ medical mistake lawyers to schedule a consultation about your medical negligence claim. You are welcome to call Eichen Crutchlow Zaslow, LLP at 732-777-0100 or contact us online to arrange a free consultation with an experienced New Jersey medical mistakes lawyer at an office nearest to you.