We go through surgery because we have a medical problem to address, or to generally feel and look better. However, there are rare yet dangerous cases when a surgery ends up worsening the condition.
Inside the operating room, the possibilities of disaster are just limitless. While we do know our doctors and nurses to be well-trained and armed, one negligent act could spell the difference between a success and a disaster. Considering that you are unconscious during the surgery, any mishaps won’t be known until you are already awake. If you ever are victimized by negligence, the Dallas medical malpractice lawyers of Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP are experts in dealing with these kinds of cases and have been wining them for clients whose lives were placed in danger by the very people tasked to protect it.
Common Mistakes That Happen During Surgery
Here are some of the common mistakes that happen during surgery, and result in a medical malpractice lawsuit:
Infections
Post-surgery, infections are a silent danger. 1 in 20 patients in a hospital are likely to develop an infection during their stay, and such infections have claimed almost 100,000 lives annually. The most common cause of infections is poor hygiene on the part of the medical professionals.
Retained foreign objects
According to studies, there are about 4,000 patients around the country who end up having a medical instrument left inside their bodies after the surgery. The instruments can be a scalpel, a clamp, and scissors – which are highly dangerous and can cause internal bleeding. In the majority of the cases though, the retained item is a surgical sponge.
Medication errors
Negative reactions with drugs account for nearly 100,000 hospitalizations in the country for those aged over 65. It could come from a wrong prescription, wrong doses of the right medicine, or lack the knowledge of the patient’s medical background and prescribe a brand that he or she has adverse reactions with.
Falls
There are also instances when patients are not properly secured in the operating table, resulting in falls and injuries even when he or she is already asleep. Remember that hospital staff moves your body around as the surgery is being done, and unconsciously, you may also shift. Hence, strapping you to the operating table is important to ensure safety.
Surgery on the wrong site, or on the wrong patient
Indeed, this really happens. At times, doctors mix up one patient to another, and end up performing the wrong procedure on the wrong patient. Surgeons have days of continuous operations and are only have little time to review a case before starting. Even if they have the right person, they still could end up doing the wrong procedure to him or her.
When medical malpractices occur, we sometimes end up suffering much more than what we came to the hospital for. We place our trust on our doctors and believe that they know what they are doing all the time. But they are human too, and sometimes prone to moments of negligence. But know that this is not an excuse, especially if lives are affected. Contact Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP if you have a complaint and are considering filing a personal injury claim in Dallas.
