Malpractice Claims Based on a Doctor's Errors or Delays in Diagnosis
Would a patient's death from cancer have been avoided if the diagnosis had been made sooner? Would an earlier diagnosis have made a difference in terms of the patient's chance for a better outcome, or in terms of the surgery, chemotherapy or amputation the patient needed to endure? Has there been a loss of chance of survival?
Under Connecticut medical malpractice law, damages are available for the death or serious injury of a patient attributable to negligent mistakes in diagnosis — whether a misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis or complete failure to diagnose. Additionally, the loss of a chance for survival, for a better outcome or a less severe treatment due to a diagnosis error is recognized as a legally compensable injury.
In most situations, collaboration between our lawyers and qualified medical experts is necessary to analyze and evaluate the diagnostic decisions and omissions on the part of one or more doctors at any of the key stages of the patient's case. These practitioners can include primary care physicians, oncologist's, emergency room doctors, radiologists, gynecologists, pathologists, surgeons and other specialists — often several in the same litigation.
In some cases, our analysis will also cover the performance of other health care professionals, as in cases where a doctor and a nurse or nurse's aide will blame one another for diagnostic errors based on inadequate monitoring, miscommunication or incomplete review of medical records.
At Tooher Wocl & Leydon, LLC, our extensive experience with failure to diagnose claims and our record of success in resolving them have helped make us a frequent choice for referrals from attorneys familiar with the success we have achieved in previous cases.
Accurate Diagnosis Can Make the Critical Difference for Effective Cancer Treatment
In cancer cases especially, patient outcomes are highly dependent on a doctor's ability to make a timely and accurate diagnosis of a dangerous medical condition. Effective treatment options are typically reduced or eliminated when delays in diagnosis are found for any of the following malignancies:
- Breast cancer
- Cervical cancer
- Ovarian and endometrial cancers
- Colorectal cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Childhood cancers
- Brain cancer
- Lung cancer and mesothelioma
- Skin cancer, especially melanoma
- Other cancers
The accuracy and timeliness of diagnosis also plays a major role in determining medical malpractice liability for deaths or severe injuries resulting from brain aneurysms or stroke, heart attacks, pulmonary embolisms and other serious medical conditions.
Bridgeport Delayed Diagnosis Lawyers - Stamford Misdiagnosis Attorneys
Tooher Wocl & Leydon, LLC, is an AV Preeminent* law firm under the Martindale-Hubbell peer review rating process. To learn how our experienced medical malpractice lawyers can help you determine whether diagnosis errors played a significant causal role in a catastrophic medical outcome in your family, contact us in Stamford or Bridgeport for a free consultation.
We represent clients statewide and handle all of our medical malpractice cases on a contingency basis. There are no legal fees to pay unless we win.
*AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards, and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell ratings fall into two categories - legal ability and general ethical standards.
