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The case is about my mom. A month ago she came to the emergency department with acute pain (my mother is treated for sciatica and has a hernia), we called an ambulance, she was examined by a neurologist at the emergency department, she had an X-ray and it was found that there were no places for sciatica, because they must have space for people after a stroke. Mum was not able to drive in a passenger car, so we returned home by medical transport. He was advised to lie down and take prescribed medications. After a week, she contacted a neurologist by phone, wanting to arrange a private visit at home (medications were running out), the doctor was appalled that they did not admit her to the hospital with acute pain. They made an appointment at home in a few days, but my mother's condition improved so much (the pain was gone) that she went to visit the house the day before. As soon as the doctor saw her, she noticed her foot dropped and ordered her to go to the hospital immediately (an operation turned out to be necessary). At my mother's side, she also called a neurologist from the HED (with a question, how could she not see her?). My mother went to the ED again, an MRI and surgery were performed. The neurosurgeon stated that she had arrived too late and the condition we took for improving he alth (because it did not hurt) meant that the nerve was already badly damaged. Currently, my mother is in the rehabilitation ward, she uses crutches and the doctors are not sure that her leg will return to her former condition. Are there any justified claims against HED doctors who did not admit my mother to the hospital for the first time? Is this a medical error?
Medical errors in hospital practice, and thus within the Hospital Emergency Department, can and do happen. Some of them bring about the consequences of losing the patient's life or he alth, and others pass unnoticed, because if noticed by another doctor, they are repaired.
A claim for compensation and compensation, because this is what we are talking about here for lost he alth, must be medically documented to clearly confirm its legitimacy. In this case, it is definitely worth seeking legal assistance or contacting the Patient's Rights Ombudsman for further guidance.
The term "medical malpractice" refers not only to a therapeutic error (in treatment, including an operating error), but also to an errordiagnostic (in diagnosis). If a surgical procedure is preceded by specialist examinations, a diagnostic error may refer to the stage of these examinations, and its consequence may be an incorrect diagnosis of the disease, which leads to an incorrect decision about the surgery or its scope. A physician may be held criminally liable for an offense against the patient's life or he alth in connection with medical treatment only in the event of a culpable medical error. Determining a medical malpractice depends on the answer to the question whether the doctor's conduct in a specific situation and taking into account all the circumstances existing at the time of the procedure, and especially the data that he had or could have at his disposal at that time, complied with the requirements of current medical knowledge and science and generally accepted medical practice.
Legal basis: The Civil Code Act (Journal of Laws of 2014, item 121, as amended) The Penal Code Act (Journal of Laws of 1997, No. 88, item 553, as amended)
Remember that our expert's answer is informative and will not replace a visit to the doctor.
Przemysław GogojewiczIndependent legal expert specializing in medical matters.
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