Survivors and heirs of those who have passed away as a result of medical negligence may file medical malpractice lawsuits for wrongful deaths. Medical malpractice occurs when a patient dies as a result of carelessness and negligence that is the main cause of the patient’s death. Tragic deaths caused by medical malpractice are especially devastating since people are sent to hospitals with expectation of receiving treatment. However, medical negligence causes the deaths of hundreds of individuals in California each year. Medical malpractice attorneys are aware that the victims’ loved ones may experience hardship following a tragic death. Every medical carelessness wrongful death claim is brought after a thorough examination of the applicable medical records, autopsy results, and hospital and physician behavior.
Who Can File a Lawsuit for Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death?
While it is usually very simple to identify the possible plaintiffs in a lawsuit, this is not always the case in wrongful death situations. A lawful heir of the deceased who wishes to bring a wrongful death claim must be the plaintiff. A person’s spouse and any living children would be considered heirs if they were married and had children.
If the dead is a kid, the heir is the parent, followed by any siblings. The rightful heirs in many wrongful death instances can be challenging. However, under California law, every heir must be mentioned in any future wrongful death action.
What Are Negligent Medical Malpractice Scenarios?
The fact that medical negligence is the top cause of wrongful death in California surprises many people. Patients may die in a variety of scenarios due to inadequate financing, poor treatment, and the amount of danger, including:
- Diagnoses that are incorrect or fail to recognize serious illnesses
- Incorrect use of medication
- Operative mishaps
- Problems with anesthesia
- Infections
- Neglect in the emergency room
Disastrous results frequently follow when medical practitioners fail to treat their patients with competence.
Lawsuits for Wrongful Death
Medical negligence is a violation of the duty of care that the doctor owes to their patient. Negligence occurs when a doctor does not use the same level of care that an average physician would exercise under similar circumstances, or they fail to do something they should have done while treating their patient. When medical negligence causes wrongful death, two possible legal claims may be made: wrongful death and a claim by the survivor.
In order to file a lawsuit for medical malpractice wrongful death you must prove four things:
- The victim’s care fell within the defendant’s responsibility.
- A duty existed between the defendant and victim.
- The victim relied on the expertise or skill of the defendant.
- The injury/death was due to negligence.
Wrongful Death Claim
In essence, a wrongful death lawsuit alleges that a medical practitioner was careless or that a medical error happened, and that this carelessness was the immediate cause of the death. In certain cases, the family members claim for the harm caused to them as a result of the death rather than for the agony and suffering the dead endured, such as:
- Loss of household assistance, money, or resources
- Lower quality of life, which may include the loss of close relationships and emotional support
- Medical and funeral costs
Survival Action Claim for Medical Malpractice
A survivor action results from the suffering the deceased experienced as a result of the negligence. A survivor lawsuit is essentially set in place to prevent medical practitioners and facilities from avoiding culpability for pain and suffering just because the patient died.
Our California Medical Malpractice Lawyers for Wrongful Death
For the family and loved ones of the dead, the time immediately after a wrongful death may be very distressing. Give it to our California medical malpractice attorneys to make it as easy and straightforward as possible. We handle many practices aside from wrongful death. Give our office a call to discuss a medical malpractice wrongful death case. You may reach us at 310.943.1171.