Surgical Mistakes in Doctors Offices and Hospitals Posted on December 10, 2012 by velocity9999 Surgical mistakes in doctors offices and hospitals is a frightening situation nobody wants to experience. Most people fear surgery, but add to that fear the thought that a mistake made during the operation can lead to a severe injury or even death is a terrifying prospect. Approximately 225,000 people in the United States die each year from medical malpractice, which makes it the third leading cause of death behind heart attacks and cancer. This alarming number does not even factor in the thousands of additional people who are injured from medical malpractice. Many cases of medical malpractice are never reported or documented either. When people think about serious injuries or death from surgery, they tend to think that only serious operations lead to these catastrophies. People likely envision a scene from a tv show or a movie showing a car accident or gunshot victim or someone with a heart attack being transported to the hospital and a group of surgeons performing the life saving operation. However, even simple elective procedures such as plastic surgery or weight loss surgery can also lead to serious injuries or death to patients. Most people believe these elective surgeries, which have become so common are completely safe procedures; however, every surgery carries with it a risk of serious injury. Another misconception among the general public is only new or inexperienced surgeons or doctors make surgical mistakes. People often believe that a well-known high priced surgeon, or even one who deals mainly with famous or wealthy clients do not make surgical mistakes. However, even the most skilled and respected surgeons make mistakes that lead to severe injuries or even death to their patients. One area where many surgical mistakes occur is with surgical centers and doctors offices. If a medical emergency occurs, these facilities usually do not have access to a trained staff of medical experts, such as critical care nurses and emergency surgeons, nor do they have access to the same medical equipment and resources that a hospital may have. If a serious emergency occurs, the patient may be kept waiting many minutes for an ambulance to arrive and transport them to a hospital. During these agonizing minutes, a serious medical condition can quickly escalate to a critical life threatening emergency with permanent brain injuries to the patient. Surgical errors from medical malpractice frequently happens in hospitals as well. Medical mistakes can happen from overworked medical staff, when there is a shortage of medical staff, improperly trained staff or when the medical staff fails to properly communicate with each other. In a serious emergency, a patient in a hospital may be kept waiting if the surgeon is in the middle of another operation or not in the facility. If you or someone you care about has been injured or died from medical malpractice including suffering serious injuries from a surgical mistake, contact the Law Offices of Dr. Bruce G. Fagel & Associates at (800) 541-9376 for a free legal consultation. Dr. Bruce Fagel is an experienced medical malpractice lawyer and a licensed medical doctor. In fact, Dr. Fagel practiced emergency room medicine for over 10 years before becoming an attorney, so he understands exactly how hospitals and medical facilities should operate, and where medical negligence took place that may have caused the injuries.
