Can You Sue a Doctor for the Wrong Diagnosis?

Yes, you can sue a doctor if a doctor misdiagnoses an illness or injury. In legal terms, this is called medical malpractice. A medical misdiagnosis of your injury or sickness means the doctor made a medical mistake, like leaving a sponge inside you during surgery (surgical error) or misreading your test results. Medical malpractice falls under the umbrella of personal injury law, thereby giving you a basis to sue if a doctor misdiagnoses you.

This FindLaw article explores medical misdiagnoses and how to file a medical malpractice lawsuit if you received the wrong diagnosis.

Understanding Medical Misdiagnosis Cases

Misdiagnosis cases are not limited to medical mistakes. Physicians who fail to give you a diagnosis or run certain tests, like an X-ray, may give you a wrong or incorrect diagnosis.

A wrong diagnosis might lead to one of the following outcomes:

• Make your medical condition worse

• Delay a correct diagnosis

• Result in more harm to you or death, which is referred to as wrongful death

These all violate the medical standard of care that you should expect when working with a medical professional. It can be considered medical negligence if the doctor fails to exercise reasonable care.

In all cases, your misdiagnosis must cause an injury or death for you to be able to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

What Are Some Common Misdiagnoses?

One in 20 patients is misdiagnosed during medical treatment. Doctors usually have a 95% success rate in providing a correct diagnosis. However, a misdiagnosis could mean an illness was left untreated for too long.

Here are some commonly misdiagnosed illnesses:

• Asthma misdiagnosed as recurring bronchitis

• Heart attack misdiagnosed as indigestion or a panic attack

• Lyme disease misdiagnosed as the flu, depression, or mononucleosis

• Parkinson's misdiagnosed as Alzheimer's, a stroke, or stress

• Lupus misdiagnosed as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, or rheumatoid arthritis

• Appendicitis misdiagnosed as stomach pain

What Should I Do if I Am Worse After Seeing a Doctor?

If there is an emergency, go to an emergency room or urgent care right away. Getting better is your first priority. Your attorney will advise you on how to proceed with the case. They should explain to you that you have a duty to:

• Follow your doctor's orders unless they are making you worse or if you see no improvement

• Seek additional care or a second opinion

This is called mitigating damages. In medical malpractice cases, the patient's behavior is evaluated as much as the doctor's. They will want to make sure you're not committing fraud by making your illness or injury worse on purpose. If you need different care, then you need to get it right away.

What Should I Do if I Think I Have Been Misdiagnosed?

Medical malpractice cases that involve a misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis are fairly common.

If you are not getting better after treatment, you should return to your physician or see a new doctor for a second opinion. Based on what you learn, you may decide to file a medical malpractice suit.

Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

Victims of medical malpractice should be aware of the statute of limitations. A statute of limitations is the amount of time you have to bring a claim. For medical malpractice claims, the time frame is generally two to six years to file a claim. However, it varies based on the state where you live.

Scheduling a Consultation With Malpractice Attorney

Your first step in filing a medical malpractice suit is scheduling a consultation with a medical malpractice lawyer. Many offer a free case evaluation, including an examination of your medical records and ensuring you are within the time limit of the statute of limitations.

Proving Medical Misdiagnosis

In order to prove medical malpractice and win your medical malpractice case, you must demonstrate that the doctor was negligent in your medical case. You must show the existence of the four elements of negligence to bring your suit. The elements are as follows:

• Duty: Did the doctor have a duty to care for you? Typically, when there is a doctor-patient relationship, the doctor has a duty to act as a reasonably competent doctor.

• Breach: Did the doctor breach the duty? Just because a doctor misdiagnosed an illness doesn't necessarily mean they were acting negligently. To show a breach of duty, you'd have to be able to prove that a reasonably competent doctor would have been able to diagnose the illness properly.

• Causation: Did the doctor's misdiagnosis actually cause you harm? Your doctor may have misdiagnosed a loved one with cancer instead of the flu, but the next day, someone ran them over and killed them. The doctor's misdiagnosis was not the cause of death.

• Damages: Did the misdiagnoses result in any measurable losses, which are referred to as damages? The doctor may have misdiagnosed you with migraines instead of the flu. However, the doctor prescribed you Tylenol, which helped cure your flu as well. This means you didn't suffer any damages because of the misdiagnosis.

Medical Records

Your attorney may have a medical expert review your medical records and medical history to identify diagnostic errors or other medical errors to support your case. Your medical records will help support your claim and provide the existence of a doctor-patient relationship and subsequent medical care. Your attorney may call the medical expert as an expert witness at your trial to support your claims. You or your attorney can request your medical records from your healthcare providers.

Get Legal Help

If you or a loved one has suffered an injury as a result of medical malpractice, you should speak to a medical malpractice attorney. They are experts in this niche area of personal injury law and can give you sound legal advice. They can also help you start a legal action to recover damages. Speak to a medical malpractice attorney near you today.