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Medical malpractice laws are
designed to protect a patient’s
rights to pursue compensation if
they are injured as the result
of negligence. However,
malpractice suits are often
complex and costly to win. If
you believe you have a medical
malpractice claim, it is
important to consult with an
attorney who can help you
determine whether your claim is
worth pursuing.
With more than 50 years of
combined legal experience, Rosen
& Rosen has grown to become one
of the preeminent law firms in
the area of medical malpractice
in South Florida. We have
successfully represented
patients injured due to medical
negligence and will aggressively
fight for you.
Medical malpractice is a major
problem. Approximately 44,000
people die in the United States
each year due, in part, to
medical malpractice and over
98,000 worldwide. In other
words, more people die every
year from doctors who fail to
provide the appropriate level of
care, then from guns, AIDS,
breast cancer or
automobile accidents.
In its 2002 comprehensive
report, “Florida’s Real Medical
Malpractice Problem: Bad Doctors
and Insurance Companies, Not the
Legal System,” the Washington,
D.C.-based consumer watchdog
group Public Citizen found the
following:
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The number of medical
errors reported by Florida
hospitals exceeds the number
of medical malpractice
claims filed each year by 6
to 1. From 1996 through
1999, Florida hospitals
reported 19,885 incidents
but only 3,177 medical
malpractice claims. This
means that for every 6
adverse incidents in the
hospital only 1 malpractice
claim is ever filed.
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Six percent of the
doctors in Florida are
responsible for half the
malpractice. Public
Citizen’s analysis of the
federal government’s
National Practitioner Data
Bank information found that
2,674 of the state’s 44,747
doctors have paid two or
more malpractice awards to
patients. These doctors are
responsible for 51 percent
of all payments.
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Many of Florida’s most
dangerous doctors continue
to practice and the state
watchdog is asleep on the
job. There are 1,555
physicians who have been
disciplined by Florida’s
state medical and
osteopathic boards for
incompetence, misprescribing
drugs, sexual misconduct,
criminal convictions,
ethical lapses and other
offenses.
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Rate increases are up for
many other types of
insurance in Florida.
Doctors like to blame
lawyers and the legal system
for rising malpractice
insurance rates. But these
rate increases are largely
the result of the economics
of the insurance industry.
Healthcare professionals are
only required to give a standard
of care that is ordinary or
normal. When a physician is
determined to be negligent, it
means that he or she has failed
to use the same degree of skill
and learning, under the same or
similar circumstances, that are
used by other members of the
medical profession. Some of the
most common ways that medical
malpractice occurs are: a
failure or error in timely
diagnosis, a failure or a delay
in ordering appropriate
treatment, a failure to order
necessary tests or proper
medication, failure to consult
with specialists and errors in
surgical procedures. Although
there are numerous types of
malpractice claims, the most
common are:
It is your attorney's obligation
to determine as quickly and
efficiently as possible whether
there is a good, actionable
case. Medical malpractice cases
are by their very nature
complex, expensive to pursue,
have a high risk of no recovery,
and often involve a client's
"personal" attachment.
It is important to consult with
an attorney immediately to
protect your rights. If you or a
loved one has been injured as a
result of a health care
provider’s medical negligence,
please
contact Rosen & Rosen, P.A.
We have successfully represented
patients injured due to medical
negligence and will aggressively
fight for you. |