Germantown Failure to Diagnose Attorney

When a health care provider fails to diagnose a medical condition, it can delay needed treatment. This can cause the undiagnosed illness or injury to worsen, leading to more severe symptoms and possibly more invasive or extensive medical intervention.

You might qualify for compensation if you or a loved one suffered physical side effects and monetary damages due to a diagnostic error. A Germantown failure to diagnose attorney with Brown & Barron can assist you with a medical malpractice claim or lawsuit. 

Discuss Your Claim with a Failure to Diagnose Lawyer from Our Firm Today  

Reach out to Brown & Barron today. A member of our team is available 24/7 to answer questions and connect you to a Germantown failure to diagnose attorney. We provide free, no-obligation consultations and take cases on contingency, meaning we can represent you with no upfront cost or fees.

Get in touch with a failure to diagnose lawyer serving Germantown, (410) 698-1717 for a free case evaluation.

What Causes Diagnosis Failures?

Diagnostic errors may happen more often than you think. A study by Johns Hopkins Medicine estimates that between 80,000 and 160,000 potentially preventable misdiagnoses-related injuries and deaths occur every year in the United States. In addition to diagnosis failure, diagnostic errors also involve wrong diagnosis, delayed diagnosis, and failure to recognize signs of a worsening condition.

There are many reasons a health care provider may fail to diagnose or make a wrongful diagnosis. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) divides the diagnostic process into seven steps: (1) access/presentation, (2) history taking and collection, (3) physical examination, (4) diagnostic testing, (5) assessment, (6) referral, and (7) follow-up. An error can occur during any of these stages.

Examples of mistakes that may lead to a failure to diagnose include:

• Denied or delayed initial care
• Failure/delay in collecting critical patient history
• Failure to detect an issue during physical examination
• Failure to follow up with a physical examination
• Failure/delay in ordering or performing needed tests
• Ordering the wrong diagnostic tests
• Laboratory sample mix-ups/mislabeling
• Technical or processing errors involving the sample or specimen
• Lab failure/delay in reporting test results to your doctor
• Misinterpretation of test results
• Failure/delay in reporting test results to the patient
• Failure/delay in ordering a referral/follow-up care

If you or your loved one are the victim of a failure to diagnose by a provider at Holy Cross Germantown Hospital, Adventist HealthCare Germantown Emergency Center, or another medical facility in Germantown, our attorneys can help you seek justice. We will work to build a case for medical malpractice and pursue the compensation you deserve. 

Our Law Firm Focuses on Medical Malpractice Cases

Our firm only handles medical malpractice cases and cases involving nursing home abuse and neglect. Therefore, our lawyers and staff are familiar with taking on health care providers and medical facilities that have harmed patients and their families. With more than 137 years of combined legal experience, our team will work tirelessly to build your case and secure the awards you deserve.

We will:

• Collect evidence – We will investigate every stage of your medical treatment and identify what led to a diagnosis failure. With your permission, we will obtain and review your medical records and lab test results, speak with your doctor, and locate and interview eyewitnesses who can provide official statements about your care. We will also consult with medical experts not connected to your failed diagnosis who can testify that your injuries resulted from medical negligence. 
• Identify your damages – We want to ensure you recover all of the damages owed to you. To do this, we will review your medical expenses and other losses and obtain an estimate regarding the future financial impact of your illness. We may work with medical professionals and economists to gain insight into necessary treatments, expected medical costs, and the overall economic impact of your diagnostic error. 
• Handle your insurance claims – Our lawyers may be able to resolve your case through a medical malpractice insurance settlement. We will draft and file your claims paperwork, submit evidence of malpractice, communicate with insurers on your behalf, and negotiate for the highest possible settlement available to you. 
• Take legal action – If necessary, we can file a medical malpractice lawsuit against the negligent doctor or health care facility. The statute of limitations for malpractice lawsuits in Maryland is the earlier of either five years from the date of injury or three years from the time you discover the injury, according to Maryland Courts & Judicial Proceedings Code section 5-109. However, if the malpractice victim is a minor, the clock does not start until the child’s 18th birthday. If your loved one died from a failure to diagnose injury, you have three years to file a wrongful death lawsuit under Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 3-904. 

Contact Brown & Barron online today to schedule a free case review with a with a failure to diagnose lawyer serving Germantown.

Our Attorneys Can Prove Medical Negligence Caused Your Damages

Not all medical errors result from negligence. Sometimes, a physician can order the correct tests, take a thorough patient history, conduct the proper follow-ups, and still fail to diagnose an illness. However, negligence or malpractice occurs when a doctor harms a patient because they failed to act according to the standards of their profession.

To show a healthcare provider acted negligently, our Germantown failure to diagnose lawyers will build a case proving the four elements of medical malpractice:

1. A doctor/patient relationship existed between you and the health care provider
2. The doctor breached the duty of care owed to you as a patient (i.e., acted recklessly or did not uphold accepted medical standards and practices)
3. The doctor’s breach of duty caused you injury 
4. Your injury resulted in monetary losses and pain and suffering 

Pursuing Compensation Through a Failure to Diagnose Lawsuit

Our firm has recovered more than $82 million for clients across Maryland from 2017 to 2021.

If you suffered because of a failure to diagnose or another malpractice injury, our lawyers might be able to help you secure compensation for:

• Past and future medical treatment
• Lost income, benefits, and earnings
• Loss of future earning potential
• Physical pain
• Mental anguish and emotional suffering
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• The wrongful death of a loved one