American Doctors Make the Wrong Call More than 12 Million Times Per Year
Diagnostic Errors Can Be Life-Threatening
American doctors make the correct diagnostic call approximately 95% of the time, according to a study. However, this means that more than 12 million Americans annually are the victims of diagnostic error. This number is simply too high. According to the Wall Street Journal, there are efforts to reform the New York diagnostic protocol, but at this time the regulations and new laws have not fully been implemented. Unfortunately, for years diagnostic error has played second fiddle to medication and treatment errors. Nevertheless, a doctor’s error in diagnosis is just as (if not more) dangerous than other types of medical malpractice. Anyone who has been the victim of diagnostic error by a New York medical professional should speak with an attorney immediately to understand the options for recovering compensation.
Diagnostic Errors Can be Life-Threatening
When you consult the services of a medical professional for their opinion on your health, you entrust that individual to make the correct call on what may be ailing you. When he or she makes a mistake there can be devastating results. Clearly you visited the doctor because something was wrong, and now the situation has been exacerbated by doctor error, leading to further significant injury and suffering. Worse yet, a treatable disease may now be rendered incurable, and in the worst-case scenario, death could result. Medical professionals are expected to follow a specific protocol when diagnosing and treating chronic conditions, and when they fail to do so they reduce the chances of recovery or even cause death.
United States Health Care Can Take Steps to Reduce the Problem
Improved doctor communication skills would be the first step in preventing the misdiagnosis problem. Many doctors are wildly intelligent individuals that unfortunately lack basic social and communication skills. By mandating basic communication training it is likely that doctors would pick up on signs and learn to ask the proper questions. Further, increased diagnostic training should be required to reduce the likelihood of doctors using outdated techniques, thereby increasing the chances that the proper diagnosis is made. Nevertheless, until the doctors take the steps to improve their skills, errors and injuries will continue.
Contact a New York Doctor Error Lawyer Today
People seeking legal action for compensation for injuries resulting from doctor errors have a limited amount of time to file an action. Accordingly, immediate consultation with an attorney is to your benefit. Further, doctors, hospitals, and their insurance carriers have teams of lawyers trained at defending medical malpractice cases, and will often make the injuries seem like they were your fault. This is simply unacceptable. You need a New York doctor error attorney who will fight for your rights. Contact Peters, Berger, Koshel & Goldberg, P.C. today at 718-596-7800 or 1-800-836-7801 to begin working on your case.