I represent clients who have sustained injuries in a vast array of circumstances: medical negligent, nursing home neglect, automobile accidents, injuries at job sites, or so many other circumstances. In all, these individuals require evaluation and treatment by medical professionals. We have learned to trust what these medical professionals do “must” be right just because they have the label of a “medical professional.” Of course they will be doing the assessments and procedures on patients. We want to believe that these professionals know best and what they do for an injured person will assist in their well-being. But the reality is that this does not always happen.
To help prevent medical mistakes, patients need to be informed. Patients and family members of the patients who themselves may not know how or what to ask should ask questions, but more importantly should get answers. With web portals, so much information is available. We research web sites for the “best deals” or what’s the latest best thing to buy. Why should it be any different for the medical provider we seek to help us with our very lives? With the world we live in today, you should research a doctor’s credentials. Check to see if the medical provider has been sued, and for what reason. Check surveys of the medical provider and how do other patients rate their experience. Is the medical provider giving you options for procedures? Get a second opinion.
I recently was on a radio broadcast as an expert in the field of nursing neglect and abuse. At the end, I was posed the question: So which nursing home would you chose? I pondered for a moment and just as above, my response was very simple: I wouldn’t recommend any nursing home. Why? Do YOUR research. What may be good for me and my loved one may not be good for you. With that simple advice, I concluded by saying, do the research. Go to the facility. Go there during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Go during off hours. Check to see if all of the residents are sitting alone in wheelchairs. Are the nurses interacting with the residents or are they just sitting at the nursing station?
Medical neglect will happen. It is now said to be the third leading cause of death in America. Will this kind of research beforehand prevent it from happening? Of course not. But if a physician, hospital or nursing home has been subject to investigation or repeated medical malpractice claims, if you or a loved one have a choice as to where to get treatment, then stop, look, and listen to what research and others say about the medical provider before you or your loved one become the next statistic.
