An emergency room is supposed to serve as a bedrock of the community, providing potentially life-saving medical treatment. Yet according to experts, an estimated 5-10% of all emergency room visits result in medical errors. With Americans making more than 100 million ER visits each year, that amounts to roughly 5-10 million emergency room mistakes.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of an emergency room error, you may be entitled to compensation. Bobby Jones is a highly experienced Greenville, SC medical malpractice lawyer. Our firm has over a decade of experiencing representing plaintiffs in medical malpractice cases.
Common Emergency Room Errors
Emergency rooms do not operate on a first-come-first-serve basis. Rather, ERs rely on a triage system. With a triage system, a patient’s condition is prioritized based on the severity of the injury. This means that a patient that is assigned a high level of priority will be treated before a patient that is assigned a lower level of priority.
While the triage system is generally an effective method for managing treatment in a hectic and resource limited environment such as an emergency room, misdiagnosis at the triage stage is also the number one cause of ER medical malpractice cases. Other common ER medical errors include:
- Medication errors. A provider prescribes or administers the wrong medication and/or the wrong dosage causing the patient to suffer an injury.
- Lack of medical history. ER staff is required to obtain the patient’s medical history. This includes important information such as the patient’s weight, age, current medications, and preexisting medical conditions. Failing to obtain this history can result in serious medical malpractice injuries or even death.
- Improper care. Similar to medical malpractice in any setting, a provider may fail to provide the patient with a reasonable standard of care. For example, failing to properly close and clean a wound resulting in a serious infection.
- Early discharge. This occurs when a patient is released before it is medically safe to do so.
- Not monitoring the patient. An ER can be a busy place. Staff that is stretched thin may fail to properly monitor a patient with a serious medical condition resulting in disastrous outcomes.
- Lack of informed consent. Patients are not necessarily coherent when they enter the ER. A provider may fail to exercise a reasonable standard of care by obtaining the patient’s informed consent prior to performing a procedure or administering medication.
Talk to an Experienced Greenville, SC Medical Malpractice Lawyer
If you or someone that you know has suffered an injury due to an emergency room’s staff rendering inferior or improper medical treatment, it is important that you consult with an experienced Greenville, SC medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your rights and options. Bobby Jones Law has many years of experience representing plaintiffs in medical malpractice claims against providers and hospitals. We have the experience and resources that you need to recover the compensation that you deserve.
Bobby Jones Law proudly serves clients located throughout the state of South Carolina. Our offices are conveniently located in Greenville. contact us today for a FREE consultation.
