Medical

Medical malpractice is an act or omission by a health care provider which deviates from accepted standards of practice in the medical community and which causes injury to the patient. more...

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Simply put, medical malpractice is professional negligence (by a healthcare provider) that causes an injury.

At the outset it is important to remember that virtually every country in the world operates its own unique legal system, and within some countries (e.g. the USA, the United Kingdom), there is more than one system operating within the same national borders. While much of this article mentions US law, it is important to remember that US law is not applicable world-wide, including when it comes to medical malpractice.

Medical malpractices may hide medical murders. When Japanese nurse Daisuke Mori was arrested, it was suspected because there were many medical malpractices in Japan.

At common law, the issue of Professional liability insurance is a subset of the law of negligence.

The medical malpractice claim

The parties

The plaintiff is or was the patient, or a legally designated party acting on behalf of the patient, or -- in the case of a wrongful-death suit -- the executor or administrator of a deceased patient's estate.

The defendant is the health care provider. Although a 'health care provider' usually refers to a physician, the term includes any medical care provider, including dentists, nurses, and therapists. As illustrated in Columbia Medical Center of Las Colinas v Bush (122 S.W. 3d 835, Texas, 2003), \"following orders\" may not protect nurses and other non-physicians from liability when committing negligent acts. Relying on vicarious liability or direct corporate negligence, claims may also be brought against hospitals, clinics, managed care organizations or medical corporations for the mistakes of their employees.

Elements of the case

A plaintiff must establish all four elements of the tort of negligence for a successful medical malpractice claim.

A duty was owed - a legal duty exists whenever a hospital or health care provider undertakes care or treatment of a patient.; A duty was breached -- the provider failed to conform to the relevant standard of care. The standard of care is proved by expert testimony or by obvious errors (the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor or 'the thing speaks for itself').; The breach caused an injury -- The breach of duty was a proximate cause of the injury.; Damages -- Without damages (losses which may be pecuniary or emotional), there is no basis for a claim, regardless of whether the medical provider was negligent.;

Read more at Wikipedia.org