Pittsburgh Heart Attack Misdiagnosis Lawyer
Doctors take an oath to do no harm to their patients. While some mistakes are understandable given the circumstances, mistakes borne from carelessness, recklessness, or negligence can have disastrous effects on victims, and the doctors responsible for such errors need to be accountable for their actions.
Heart attack (cardiac infarction) is one of the most common life-threatening illnesses seen in America, with over 1.5 million heart attacks occurring every year. Heart attacks and other coronary health issues require careful attention and treatment. If you or a loved one recently experienced a misdiagnosed heart attack, you may be able to obtain compensation for your damages.
Understanding Misdiagnoses
A misdiagnosis is when a doctor incorrectly evaluates a patient’s medical status; these situations typically lead to improper treatments. While this may sound difficult to assess accurately, your attorney will help you build a case that shows the doctor should have been able to properly diagnose the condition. Expert witnesses are a common resource for doing so. Your attorney will call on expert witnesses to prove that another reasonable doctor with the same skill and specialty would not have made the same mistake.
Sometimes, a misdiagnosis can come from a botched or incorrectly read test result. In those cases, the technician responsible for the test can be accountable for the misdiagnosis, because he or she provided the doctor with incorrect information. In other cases, a busy emergency room can cause a triage responder to assess a heart attack incorrectly. Similarly, a faulty piece of equipment can lead to a misdiagnosis, and the hospital may be accountable for the damages.
Winning Your Misdiagnosis Case
If a misdiagnosis led to a heart attack, or if the correct diagnosis could have prevented the heart attack, you can sue the responsible party or parties for the resulting damages. A misdiagnosis can lead to future complications, remedial treatments, or even death. If you decide to file a lawsuit for a misdiagnosis that caused a heart attack, the compensation you can collect could include:
- Pain and suffering. Heart attacks are painful experiences, and the complications from a misdiagnosis can cause other forms of distress as well. Expert witnesses will convey your suffering to the court, so the judge can determine an appropriate figure for compensation.
- Medical expenses. If your heart attack was diagnosed incorrectly, or if a misdiagnosis caused your heart attack, you may have incurred additional medical expenses to treat the problem. Additionally, you may require extensive treatment after the fact, and those expenses can quickly snowball into exorbitant figures.
- Lost income. If a misdiagnosis caused you to miss work, you can potentially collect compensation for the income you would have reasonably been expected to earn.
Every case is different, and your attorney should be able to accurately determine what types of compensation are options and how best to represent your case. That is why it is so important to talk with a reputable legal team.
A History of Client Success
The Pittsburgh injury attorneys at Ronald J. Bua & Associates are committed to securing positive outcomes for every client. We maintain a small caseload to provide every one of our clients with top-notch legal representation through every step of every case. Misdiagnosed heart attacks and heart attacks caused by incorrect diagnoses require thoughtful legal knowledge for clients to secure the compensation they need to get their lives back on track.
Contact Ronald J. Bua & Associates to set up a consultation so we can answer any of your questions about Pennsylvania’s medical malpractice laws. We’ll review the details of your case and let you know your options. We also handle almost all of our cases on a contingency-fee basis, meaning you don’t pay any legal fees unless we win.