Miami Delayed Diagnosis of Infection Attorney
Helping Victims of Delayed Diagnosis of Infections Throughout Florida
Any delay in diagnosing and treating an infection can have serious health consequences. Too often, patients who suffer with pain and unexplained symptoms, such as fever and nausea, develop serious limb or life-threatening conditions because doctors or other healthcare professionals did not diagnose their infections early enough to treat them effectively.
If you or a family member has been injured because of a delayed infection diagnosis, you could be the victim of Florida medical malpractice. As such, you may be entitled to substantial compensation for your medical expenses, lost income, pain, suffering, and other damages recoverable under Florida law. A Miami medical malpractice attorney from Boyers Law Group can help you hold the responsible party accountable for negligence and obtain the substantial compensation you deserve.
Please call us at 800.545.9100 or submit the “Tell Us What Happened” form on our website to get expert legal advice from an experienced Florida medical malpractice attorney.
Why Do Delays in Diagnosing Infections Occur?
Diagnosing an infection requires good communication between doctors and their patients, accurate documentation, appropriate diagnostic testing, a prompt review of test results and swift action by healthcare providers. After examining patients and discussing their symptoms with them, doctors typically have possible causes in mind and order appropriate lab work and radiological tests to help them narrow down, identify and treat the cause of their patient’s problem.
If doctors, nurse practitioners and other healthcare providers do not examine patients thoroughly or pay close attention to their complaints and symptoms, they may not order appropriate diagnostic tests as soon as they should. Similarly, if doctors or nurses do not document their patients’ abnormal signs and symptoms thoroughly, then appropriate diagnostic tests and procedures will not be ordered, and doctors will not have the information they need to make a timely, accurate diagnosis.
Additionally, if doctors do not follow up on test results, they may very well not know a patient has tested positive for infection and may cause the patient to suffer needlessly. Finally, if they fail to refer a patient to a specialist when one is needed to properly treat a serious infection, they can cause their patient to suffer permanent or life-threatening harm.
What Happens When an Infection Is Not Diagnosed and Treated?
Viruses, bacteria and other germs that cause infections are everywhere, including in the air we breathe, the water we drink, our homes, hospitals and other healthcare facilities. An infection occurs when these germs enter the body, invade tissues, multiply and cause a reaction. The reaction can result in various symptoms, including:
- Fever
- Chills and sweats
- Cough
- Sore throat
- Shortness of breath
- Nasal congestion
- Stiff neck.
- Burning or pain when urinating
- Increased urination
- Redness, soreness or swelling in an area of the body
- Diarrhea
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pain
Sepsis
If the symptoms of infection are ignored or mistakenly attributed to another medical condition, you can develop sepsis, a life-threatening medical condition that occurs when an infection causes a chain reaction throughout your body. If sepsis isn’t treated immediately, it can lead to organ failure and death. The CDC reports that each year, at least 1.7 million people in the U.S. develop sepsis, and at least 350,000 of them die in the hospital or after being discharged to hospice.
Osteomyelitis
Healthy bones resist infection, but they can become infected when
- bones are injured
- wounds allow bacteria to enter bone or nearby tissue
- there are foreign bodies near bone sites (e.g., artificial knees or hips)
- surgery is needed to repair broken bones
- blood vessels are damaged or blocked
- intravenous lines or catheters are being used
- the immune system is suppressed
- nonsterile needles are used to inject drugs
People with osteomyelitis may experience symptoms such as fever, swelling and redness, pain and fatigue. Sometimes there are no symptoms. If left untreated, however, osteomyelitis can result in bone death, a serious condition which requires the removal of the affected bone before antibiotics can be used to treat the infection effectively. It can also lead to septic arthritis when the infection spreads to joints.
Necrotizing Fasciitis
Necrotizing fasciitis, or flesh-eating infection, is a rare infection that can occur when bacteria enter the body through a break in the skin. Initial symptoms include fever, pain and a spreading red, swollen area. Later symptoms include blisters, change in the color of the skin, pus in the infected area, dizziness, fatigue and nausea. The infection spreads very quickly and can cause death, so an accurate diagnosis and prompt treatment are crucial.
Florida Medical Malpractice Lawsuits for Delayed Diagnosis of Infections
If a doctor or other healthcare professional did not diagnose your infection or a family member’s infection in a timely manner, and you have suffered because of that delay, you may be able to bring a medical malpractice claim for damages against the negligent doctor or other healthcare professional. A medical malpractice claim can hold the negligent healthcare provider accountable and help you obtain the financial compensation you deserve for the damages you have suffered.
In Florida, medical malpractice is defined as the failure of a healthcare provider to act in accordance with the accepted professional standard of care owed to you or your loved one. In other words, when a doctor, nurse or other healthcare provider is negligent and fails to act as a reasonably prudent medical provider of the same specialty would act and causes a patient to suffer serious injury or wrongful death, the doctor or other healthcare provider may be held responsible for inflicting harm on their patients.
What Kind of Compensation Is Available from a Delayed Diagnosis of Infection Medical Malpractice Lawsuit?
If you have been harmed because of a delayed diagnosis of infection, you could be a victim of medical malpractice entitled to substantial compensation for the damages you have suffered and may continue to suffer in the future. These damages can be both economic and non-economic and may include:
- Medical expenses. The expenses you incurred or will incur because of the delayed diagnosis, including hospital bills, medical procedures, diagnostic tests, travel expenses for trips to doctors’ offices and other healthcare facilities, medications, and medical equipment.
- Rehabilitation and healthcare care expenses. If you require in-patient or out-patient rehabilitation or care because of the delayed diagnosis, you may be able to recover compensation for the care you received and will receive in the future.
- Lost income and diminished earning capacity. If you are unable to work or work in the same capacity you used to because of the delayed diagnosis, you may be able to recover the lost income as well as income you would most likely have earned in the future.
- Physical and emotional pain and suffering. You may be able to recover compensation for your pain and suffering due to the condition that developed because of the delay in diagnosing your infection.
- Other damages recoverable under Florida law. Other damages, including loss of consortium, may be recoverable, depending on the specific details of your case.
The experienced Florida medical malpractice attorneys at Boyers Law Group work tirelessly to amass the evidence necessary for demonstrating our clients’ need for substantial compensation. We negotiate aggressively and fight fiercely to help you obtain the full, fair amount you deserve.
Miami Medical Malpractice Attorneys Committed to Fighting for Victims of Delayed Diagnosis of Infection
We believe that negligent doctors and other healthcare providers should be held accountable for the damages they inflict on patients and their families. We have litigated numerous delayed diagnosis medical malpractice cases and have obtained millions of dollars in compensation for our injured clients and their families.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by a delayed diagnosis of infection, you need a skilled trial attorney with successful experience in litigating and settling medical malpractice cases. At Boyers Law, we are committed to putting our years of successful experience, knowledge, skill and resources to work for you. We will fight vigorously to hold the healthcare provider(s) accountable for negligence and obtain the substantial compensation you deserve.
We feel a deep sense of responsibility to each client because we know that if you come to us for help, you have suffered a terrible loss and deserve answers and all the compensation the law will allow. Please call us at 800.545.9100 or submit the “Tell Us What Happened” form on our website to get expert advice from an experienced Florida medical malpractice attorney.