Is This Considered Medical Malpractice?

Question

Back in 2002 my husband got hit in the eye and had to go to the emergency room to get sewn up. What the doctor did not do is refer him to a eye specialist to make sure the eye was ok. That same year my husband went to the doctor because he was seeing flashes, but the doctor just blew him off and said it was old age. 4 years later my husband started seeing distorted images he then went back to the doctor and she then refered him to a retina specialist becasue he had a detached retina. That doctor said everyhting was going to be ok but in reality it has been a nightmare. After that first surgury he had received another detached retina in a diferent place because of the surgury. He then was diagnosed with glaucoma and cataracts. The pressure from Glaucoma caused a petrution in the white part of the eye which consistently irritates him. He is always in pain and can not work and a lot of life activitys has come to a stop. All the while the doctors seem to not know what to do. Excuses Excuse

Answer 1

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor or a lawyer. Any opinions I express should NOT be relied on for legal purposes.

While the emergency room should have suggested consulting a specialist, I don't believe they are guilty of malpractice. The doctor that was consulted about the flashes was negligent in my opinion, but I don't know if this is legally malpractice. It is not clear to me that the Glaucoma, or Cataracts existed at the time of the original incident. They may not be related to the retina surgery either. If you have a case for malpractice, it is most likely against the doctor that performed the first retina surgery IF he is actually responsible for the second detached retina. Sometimes a bad result is NOT the fault of the doctors. There are somethings they simply can't fix.

Answer 2

I can understand your frustration with incompetent and uncaring doctors. The Hippocratic oath does not mean much in an age when many doctors are only interested in getting patients in and out fast to maximize their profitability.

Your situation sounds like it should be a malpractice action, but most mess-ups by doctors never result in compensation to the victim. I think it is because of how hard it is to find a lawyer to take a case. If the patient is too old or too poor, for example, there is not enough "earning capacity," which has been lost and the lawyers don't think there is enough money in it for them.

That is why I think there should be a better system than malpractice suits for dealing with doctor mess-ups. Victims should be compensated somehow, and without having to go through a lot more trauma. And doctors should be held accountable for major errors. Unfortunately, medical boards and peer review boards are controlled by doctors, so the general public does not have a say.

Answer 3

personnaly I think that you and our husband if not initially satisfied with a doctors treatment plan, you should have reseached and become better educated on the subject, second, i feel that based on your history your husband did not seek proper care as urgent care physicians are not always the best indicated to diagnose a non-urgent conditions and are not usually the ones who will follow up. I feel that we the consumers dictate how they are eventually treated and to be quite honest with all that you said it seems as your husband might have been satisfied with the doctors comments and/or treatment at the time.
I do agree that all that you said became worse over time, and the doctors involved did not cared for him as diligently as they should have.
But you must take some of the responsability.
example; if I go to a restaurant and the give me mediocre service, the food is not all that good...but I continue coming and consuming their "not up to par" service, it's kinda my fault when i eventually get food poisoned from their poorly proccesed food. Yes they are in the wrong, but you must take some responsability for not seeking better care.

Answer 4

You need to be talking to a lawyer who specializes in medical cases. I doubt anyone here can give an authoritative answer.

Answer 5

in order to sue for malpractice, you have to get a doctor to testify that a previous doctor screwed up and the screw up caused the glaucoma.

Answer 6

I am so sorry about what happened to your father. Unfortunately,there are a lot of incompetents out there practicing medicine.See a lawyer, you may have a case.

Answer 7

Sue the quack. He is giving good doctors a bad rap.