Hospital Malpractice
Hospital Malpractice In South Africa
There is a basic standard of care that is considered reasonable in the medical field. It is expected that competent professionals in the medical field will provide at least that minimum level of care and treatment. When a member of a hospital fails to live up to this expectation, the hospital may be accused of hospital malpractice.
Hospital malpractice occurs when the staff of a hospital engages in improper or negligent medical care or treatment of a patient and the patient suffers harm as a result. Hospital staff includes the hospital’s doctors, nurses, pharmacists, technicians and other staff as well. There are many causes for hospital malpractice suits.
Hospital malpractice can be based on:
- A mistaken diagnosis
- Failure of the hospital staff to treat a patient
- Failure to monitor or stabilise a patient’s condition
- Failure to refer patients to appropriate specialists
- Failure to order the necessary diagnostic tests
- Incorrect administration of medication (wrong medication or wrong dosage)
- Improper use of anaesthesia
- Improper use of medical equipment
- Unnecessary or unconsented-to surgeries
Whether a doctor is a hospital employee depends on the nature of his relationship with the hospital. Though some doctors are hospital employees, most doctors are not. Non-employee doctors are independent contractors, which mean that the hospital cannot be held responsible for hospital malpractice, even if the malpractice happened at the hospital.
Some of the most serious and frightening cases of hospital malpractice involve surgeries that have gone wrong. For example, a case of hospital malpractice may occur when a surgeon injures a patient by making a mistake during surgery. Sometimes these mistakes lead to the death of the patient. Additionally, a surgeon may be accused of malpractice after leaving a surgical tool inside his patient when he closes his incisions.
If you, or a loved one, feel that you have been a victim of hospital malpractice, feel free to contact Adele van der Walt Incorporated for expert professional legal advice on the matter.
For more information on this subject, please give us a call at 012 460 3668 (SA) or e-mail us at clare@avdw.co.za
