Undergoing surgery is stressful enough without considering the possibility of one of your surgeons, physicians or nurses making a mistake that injures you or hurts your chances of recovery. Unfortunately, negligence is all-too common in New Mexico operating rooms.
At the Fine Law Firm, our Las Cruces medical malpractice attorneys represent patients and their families in medical malpractice cases after harmful surgical errors. To speak with one of our experienced malpractice lawyers in Las Cruces, call (505) 889-FINE to request a free initial consultation.
What Makes Us the Right Choice for This Case in Las Cruces
- We have decades of experience handling complex medical malpractice cases. Combined, our attorneys have been representing clients for over 100 years.
- Our team has successfully secured millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for past clients, including $2.2 million for prenatal malpractice and $1.2 million for a pharmaceutical claim.
- Our goal is to take away the stress of your situation as the victim of a surgical error. You will receive frequent case updates from your attorney and can contact us around the clock.
- The Fine Law Firm is known for providing exceptional client experiences. We care about our clients and are passionate about reaching their goals.
- You won’t pay your surgical error lawyer anything unless we win your case in Las Cruces. This is known as working on a contingency fee basis.
How an Attorney Can Help You After a Surgical Error
If you get hurt due to a surgical error that never should have happened, this may be grounds for a medical malpractice case. This practice area is nuanced and complex, with many complicated legal and medical elements. For this reason, it is recommended that you are represented by a surgical error attorney in Las Cruces for the duration of the claims process.
An attorney will know how to navigate the various complexities of your case, including handling New Mexico’s medical malpractice laws and hiring relevant medical experts to testify. A lawyer can gather evidence to help prove your surgical error claim, identify all responsible parties, meet local deadlines to file on time, accurately calculate your total damages and negotiate a fair payout on your behalf.
Although most surgical error and other medical malpractice cases in New Mexico reach settlements, hiring the right attorney in Las Cruces will also give you the ability to take on a defendant in court, if necessary. A lawyer will take care of every legal element of your malpractice claim while you focus on your personal recovery.
What Is a Surgical Error?
In medical malpractice law, a surgical error refers to a mistake or breach of the standard of care made by a medical practitioner during a surgical procedure that results in harm to the patient. It is a type of medical negligence that can happen before, during or after a surgery.
Examples of Surgical Mistakes
A wide range of surgical errors can occur when a health care provider takes unacceptable risks or acts negligently. While every surgery poses some level of risk, the odds of a poor patient outcome greatly increase when the situation involves malpractice.
Examples of surgical errors connected to medical malpractice include:
- Wrong-site surgery
- Wrong-patient surgery
- Wrong-procedure surgery
- Lack of informed consent
- Unnecessary operation
- Foreign objects or materials left behind
- Improper administration of anesthesia
- Failure to react properly to surgical complications
- Avoidable nerve, organ or blood vessel injuries
- Poor follow-up patient care
- Premature discharge
These serious mistakes can point to issues within the facility, such as unfit surgeons, defective medical devices, poor communication among the medical team, patient file mix-ups, insufficient training or planning, and health care provider burnout.
Effects of Surgical Errors
Surgical errors can be extremely harmful to the patient involved. An unsuccessful surgery means the patient did not receive the medical care he or she needed to treat the original condition. In addition, depending on the nature of the mistake, the patient may have suffered additional physical injuries or bodily harm.
Surgical errors can cause:
- Physical trauma
- Organ damage
- Infections
- Permanent nerve damage
- Chronic pain
- Prolonged recovery
- The need for additional surgeries or treatments
- Permanent scarring or disfigurement
- Long-term disability
- Emotional distress
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Anxiety or depression
- Loss of enjoyment of life
The toll that a surgical error can take on a patient can be physical, emotional and financial in nature. In New Mexico, the civil justice system provides an opportunity for a victim of this form of medical malpractice to hold someone accountable and seek financial compensation to be made whole again.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Surgical Error in Las Cruces?
Before you can receive compensation, you must determine the identity of the liable party or parties. Liability means that a defendant is being held legally responsible for the harm in question. The liable party will have to pay for the plaintiff’s losses or damages.
Liability could go to several different parties in a surgical error case:
- The individual surgeon
- Anesthesiologist
- The surgical team
- The surgical center
- A hospital or medical facility
- Medical device manufacturer
It is also possible to bring a claim against more than one party for shared contributions to the surgical error. You may have the right to sue an individual surgeon as well as a hospital, for example. Our attorneys at The Fine Law Firm can thoroughly investigate your surgical error case to identify all liable parties and potential sources of compensation.
New Mexico Medical Malpractice Laws
To have a valid medical malpractice claim in New Mexico, you must obey the state’s related laws and statutes. This means you must initiate your lawsuit within no more than three years from the date that the malpractice occurred; however, some exceptions can shorten or extend this deadline.
In New Mexico, a medical malpractice claim must go through a Medical Review Commission before the courts will allow a lawsuit to be filed against a health care provider. This is an initial case review before a panel of legal and medical professionals. An experienced lawyer can fulfill all the requirements of your claim, making your legal experience as effective and efficient as possible.
Contact The Fine Law Firm for a Free Consultation About Your Surgical Error Case in Las Cruces
Surgical errors are a serious form of medical malpractice. If you or someone you love has been impacted by a surgical error, contact the Albuquerque team of attorneys at the Fine Law Firm for a free case review without delay. We will educate you on your rights under New Mexico law and pursue justice for you with a tailored legal strategy. Call (505) 889-3463 today.