Orlando Emergency Room Negligence Attorney

Emergency rooms, by their nature, can be stressful workplaces. At all times of day and night, people are being brought to the facility by family members, friends or ambulances for medical treatment of often severe medical issues – strokes, heart attacks, infections, surgical emergencies, and the like. Given the nature of these places, it’s no wonder that treatment sometimes falls within the definition of negligence. If you suffered from emergency room negligence, contact an experienced Orlando emergency room negligence attorney or a Fort Lauderdale emergency room negligence attorney at Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm, P.A. to help you bring a claim against the responsible party.

How Do You Prove Negligence by an Emergency Room in Florida?

So what do you need to show to prove negligence or medical malpractice by a healthcare practitioner in Florida? Specifically, you must show that:

• The provider did not meet the standard of care required by comparable healthcare practitioners;
• The failure to meet the standard of care resulted in your or your loved one’s injuries; and
• The injuries are compensable, meaning you are entitled to damages.

Whom Do I Sue – the Hospital or the Healthcare Provider?

This will be a question of fact that your Orlando emergency room negligence attorney or Fort Lauderdale emergency room negligence attorney at Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm, P.A. can help you figure out. In many cases, the hospital will be the responsible party if the nurses, technicians, and other medical professionals are employees of the hospital.  But often, the doctor who treated you at the facility may be an independent contractor, not an employee, and therefore he or she may be the responsible party. Our medical malpractice legal team knows the questions to ask in order to understand who is responsible for your injury.

How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit?

Time is of the essence in medical malpractice cases, so if you think you may have a case, don’t delay in contacting an Orlando emergency room negligence attorney or Fort Lauderdale emergency room negligence attorney at Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm, P.A.  In Florida, an injured party may only have two years to bring a case. This statute of limitations may be extended; however, under Florida’s “Discovery Rule,” the statute of limitations can be suspended until an injury has been or should have been discovered. For example, let’s assume that an emergency room doctor, after performing an emergency surgery, leaves a gauze or a broken needle or screw inside a body cavity, and you don’t discover it for 2 years. The statute of limitations may begin at the point of discovery, not when the malpractice occurred. And while it sounds shocking that a doctor might leave objects inside a patient, it can happen.

Also, note that Florida’s statute of repose law prohibits an individual from filing a lawsuit against a healthcare professional more than four years from the date of the incident unless it can be proven that the medical professional engaged in fraud or misrepresentation to conceal the malpractice.

Please understand the trigger date for the start of the statute of limitations is fact dependent, and each case must be carefully and promptly screened to evaluate these time limitations.

Work with a Skilled Orlando Emergency Room Negligence Attorney Today

If you or a loved one was subjected to possible negligence while in the emergency room, please do not hesitate to contact an Orlando emergency room negligence attorney or Fort Lauderdale emergency negligence attorney at our office right away. Time is of the essence — get the compensation to which you may be entitled.