South Carolina Medical Malpractice Attorney

Medical professionals in South Carolina save lives every day. But they are only human, and like any human, they sometimes make mistakes. When those mistakes rise to the level of negligence, the patients in their care can suffer avoidable injury and illness, with potentially lifelong consequences.

What happens if you or a loved one experiences an adverse health outcome because a doctor, nurse, or other medical professional failed to meet the standard of care? You can seek to hold them accountable through a medical malpractice claim. Let the professionals with David Blackwell Law support you in this process to get you the compensation and accountability you deserve.

Our firm is dedicated to improving the lives of South Carolinians who’ve been injured by others. We take a down-to-earth and personal approach with our clients, giving them the compassion, support, and information they need to make the best decisions for their cases. At the same time, we bring rigorous legal representation, doing everything we can to add value to their cases. You can count on us to protect your rights and pursue the maximum possible compensation for your injuries, so that you have the resources you need to rebuild your life.

Don’t wait another moment to seek the justice you deserve. Call us today or complete our contact form for a free case evaluation with David Blackwell, a South Carolina medical malpractice attorney, and learn more about what we can do for you.

How a South Carolina Medical Malpractice Lawyer Can Help

Medical malpractice claims in South Carolina involve complicated legal issues and standards of care, so it’s crucial to work with an experienced attorney. David Blackwell Law can gather evidence to support your claim, consult medical experts, review your medical records, and find other proof to support your case. We can also handle all the paperwork in your case and represent you during mediation sessions or in court proceedings. Most importantly, we will do whatever we can to make this process easy on you, allowing you to focus on healing and other important personal matters while we pursue your claim.

How Is Medical Malpractice Legally Defined in South Carolina?

The South Carolina Code of Laws defines medical malpractice as when a doctor or other healthcare provider’s actions do not align with what another “reasonably prudent” provider would have done in the same or similar circumstances. This definition covers a broad range of actions on the part of doctors, nurses, hospitals, and other healthcare providers.

Common Forms of Medical Malpractice

Some common examples of mistakes that may qualify as medical malpractice in South Carolina include:

• Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis – This occurs when a healthcare provider fails to correctly diagnose a condition in a timely manner, potentially leading to incorrect or delayed treatment. An incorrect or delayed diagnosis can exacerbate the patient’s condition or result in missed treatment opportunities.
• Surgical Errors – Doctors sometimes make mistakes during surgery, such as operating on the wrong site, leaving surgical instruments inside the patient’s body, or performing an incorrect procedure. Such errors can have severe and lasting impacts on a patient’s health.
• Medication Errors – This includes prescribing the wrong medication, incorrect dosages, or failing to recognize harmful drug interactions. Such errors can lead to adverse reactions or the worsening of the patient’s condition, with potentially life-threatening consequences.
• Childbirth Injuries – Mistakes during childbirth can harm the mother, baby, or both. Examples include failure to anticipate birth complications, not responding appropriately to signs of fetal distress, or mishandling the baby during delivery, which can cause everything from cerebral palsy to fractures.
• Failure to Treat – In some cases, a medical professional may correctly diagnose a condition but fail to follow through with the appropriate treatment. This negligence can occur when they underestimate the severity of the condition, fail to provide follow-up care, or release a patient prematurely.
• Anesthesia Errors – These are critical mistakes involving anesthesia, such as administering too much or too little or failing to monitor the patient’s vital signs. Anesthesia errors can lead to severe complications, including brain damage and death.

Who Can Commit and Be Held Responsible for Medical Malpractice?

Identifying the liable party in a medical malpractice case is the first step toward finding justice and recovering fair compensation. At the same time, it’s important to remember that medical malpractice can involve various healthcare professionals and entities. Here’s a list of potentially liable parties in a malpractice claim:

• Doctors – Physicians can be liable for malpractice if they fail to provide treatment that conforms to the standard of care given the circumstances, leading to patient harm. This includes errors in diagnosis, treatment, surgery, or general care management.
• Nurses – Nurses are sometimes responsible for malpractice in cases where their negligence or failure to follow protocols results in patient injury. Examples of negligent care among nurses include administering medication incorrectly or failing to monitor patients.
• Hospitals – Hospitals can be liable for malpractice in cases where systemic issues contribute to a patient’s injuries. Some examples of hospital malpractice include understaffing, inadequate training, or a lack of proper equipment.
• Pharmacists – Pharmacists may be liable for malpractice if they dispense the wrong medication, give patients the incorrect dosage, or fail to identify harmful drug interactions.
• Medical Device Manufacturers – These companies can be responsible if a defective or improperly labeled product causes patient harm.
• Laboratory Technicians – Lab technicians can be held liable for errors in test results that lead to a misdiagnosis or improper treatment. Some examples of negligence among lab techs include incorrect readings or misreporting the results of a test.

How Do You Prove Liability in Medical Malpractice Cases?

Proving that a healthcare provider’s negligence directly caused harm to a patient is essential for a successful medical malpractice claim. Doing so requires considerable proof of what happened, how it happened, and what harm it caused. To that end, attorneys will gather and review evidence, such as:

• Medical Records – These show what treatment a patient received and their reactions to it.
• Expert Testimony – Medical experts can provide insights into the standard of care expected in similar cases and explain how the healthcare professional’s actions deviated from these standards.
• Witness Statements – Testimony from medical experts, patients, or hospital staff can offer valuable perspectives on the healthcare professional’s actions.
• Photographs and Videos – These types of visual evidence can document the extent of the patient’s injuries, the conditions of the medical facility, or the procedural errors that someone may have made.
• Lab Results – These can help establish cases of misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose, showing discrepancies between test results and the treatment provided.
• Pharmacy Records – In cases of medication errors, pharmacy records can prove mistakes concerning medication types, dosages, or interactions that led to patient harm.

Recoverable Compensation from a South Carolina Medical Malpractice Claim

While the specific amount a patient could recover varies from case to case, medical malpractice compensation can cover the following:

South Carolina places limits on certain kinds of compensation in medical malpractice claims. While plaintiffs can pursue the total value of their economic losses (such as medical bills, lost wages, and the expense of ongoing care), state law places a cap on compensation for non-economic losses (intangible ones like pain and suffering or emotional distress).

The cap varies slightly depending on the number of defendants, and the law includes a provision that adjusts the cap annually to account for inflation. You can find the most recent information about the cap on non-economic compensation from the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office. However, the cap on non-economic compensation does not apply in cases involving extreme negligence, fraud, or the defendant’s willful, wanton, or reckless actions.

What Are the Requirements for Filing a Medical Malpractice Claim in South Carolina?

Before you can file a medical malpractice lawsuit in South Carolina, you must meet certain conditions under state law.

First, you have to file a Notice of Intent to File Suit that includes an affidavit from a medical expert showing why you have cause for a malpractice claim. Next, you must serve that notice on all parties named as defendants in the notice.

Within 90 days and no more than 120 days after filing notice, you must attend mediation with the defendants and try to work out your claim without a trial. You can bring a lawsuit in civil court only after meeting these conditions. You then have 60 days from the end of mediation to file.

Is There a Deadline for Filing a Medical Malpractice Claim in South Carolina?

Under South Carolina law, you typically have three years from the date of the malpractice to file suit. There are some exceptions, such as if you were under 18 at the time of the malpractice or if you did not immediately discover your injury. A South Carolina medical malpractice lawyer can tell you what the deadline to file a lawsuit is in your case.

Contact a Medical Malpractice Attorney in South Carolina Today

You have no time to waste if you want to recover maximum compensation for your medical malpractice injuries. Call David Blackwell Law today or reach out online for a free consultation with a medical malpractice attorney in South Carolina.