Failure to Diagnose a Stroke
Stroke is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, and some of these are preventable with proper medical attention. When a doctor fails to accurately diagnose a stroke and a patient suffers harm, the patient may have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit against the doctor. If you or a loved one suffered any injury from failure to diagnose a stroke, contact the law office of Sullivan, Papain, Block, McManus, Coffinas, & Cannavo, P.C., today to schedule a free consultation with a New York City medical malpractice attorney.
Why Hire Us?
- Sullivan, Papain, Block, McManus, Coffinas, & Cannavo, P.C., has helped clients in the last 10 years secure more than $2 billion in damages.
- Our firm offers a full range of personal injury law services covering all types of personal injury and medical malpractice claims.
- We are committed to improving the lives of residents of New York City, have represented 9/11 first responders and currently work as general counsel to the Uniformed Firefighters Association of New York.
- We have extensive experience with medical malpractice claims and can help a client maximize his or her compensation after a failed stroke diagnosis.
- Our firm offers contingency fee billing, meaning we only collect legal fees from our clients when we win their cases, and our fee is a portion of the net case award, so anyone can secure legal representation, regardless of ability to pay.
Why Is an Attorney Necessary?
Any medical malpractice claim can be extremely complex and proving standard of care violations is not always straightforward. An attorney can provide a much higher degree of legal representation than the average client could manage alone and will also likely lead to much more compensation for the client than he or she could have hoped to collect without an attorney.
A medical malpractice lawyer will help with insurance-related issues, help track a client’s personal finances and other issues during a lawsuit, build a strong case that supports a client’s claim, and contact expert witnesses who provide testimony in a case involving a failed stroke diagnosis.
The Differential Diagnosis Process
Many medical conditions, including strokes, have symptoms that may appear to indicate other medical conditions. For this reason, a doctor must use a differential diagnosis process to determine a patient’s condition based on a process of elimination. If a doctor fails to follow a proper diagnostic procedure or otherwise fails to competently diagnose a patient with a stroke, the doctor is liable for any resulting damages.
For example, if a patient complains of numbness and/or weakness in one side of the body, headache, dizziness, and difficulty walking, these are all common symptoms of a stroke, and the attending physician must account for this in the diagnostic process and rule out a stroke as a possible diagnosis. A plaintiff’s attorney will contact an expert witness with a medical background who can testify as to whether the doctor’s diagnostic process was acceptable for the given situation.
Securing Compensation for a Failed Stroke Diagnosis
Failing to properly diagnose a stroke can lead to a patient incurring additional medical expenses, lost income from time spent out of work in recovery, pain and suffering, and other types of compensation depending on specific circumstances. For example, a doctor who was grossly negligent may be liable for punitive damages in addition to economic and non-economic damages to the patient.
Reach Out to SPBMCC, P.C. for Experienced Legal Help
If you or someone you know recently suffered any harm from a failed stroke diagnosis, a medical malpractice attorney can help hold the responsible doctor accountable for the error and help you secure compensation for the resulting damages. Contact Sullivan, Papain, Block, McManus, Coffinas, & Cannavo, P.C., today to schedule a free case evaluation with one of our medical malpractice attorneys in New York, and we will let you know how our firm can help.