Any health issue relating to the eye can be extremely bothersome because our vision is an essential tool to navigate day-to-day life. When you visit an ophthalmologist, you expect competent care that will make your condition better, not worse. If you or a loved one has suffered an eye injury due to an ophthalmologist’s error, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. With years of experience in settling and litigating ophthalmology cases, our Rochester ophthalmology malpractice lawyers understand how to navigate these complex claims.
Ophthalmology is the specialty of medicine pertaining to the anatomy, functions, pathology, and treatment of the eye. In other words, ophthalmologists are eye doctors who specialize in eye diseases. Errors by an ophthalmologist can have severe effects on a patient’s eye health. In the most serious cases, these mistakes could lead to irreparable loss of vision. Examples of ophthalmology mistakes that can lead to a malpractice claim include surgery errors, medication errors, failure to monitor the patient after surgery, Lasik errors, misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose an eye condition, and any careless conduct that causes an eye infection. These errors could lead to a variety of injuries, such as double vision, eye infection, corneal haze, blurry vision, blindness, eye flap-related injuries, and more.
If you have suffered an eye injury due to an ophthalmologist’s error, you can likely recover compensation through a medical malpractice claim. Establishing malpractice requires a careful review of your medical records and the supporting opinion of an expert that a deviation from the standard of care has occurred. The standard of care refers to the level of care that a reasonably prudent ophthalmologist would use under the same or similar circumstances. In addition, it is not enough to show that the ophthalmologist failed to use the appropriate standard of care. Instead, it will also be necessary to establish that this failure was a direct cause of the plaintiff’s injury.
In some cases, medical malpractice in lost vision cases occurs not because the ophthalmologist made a mistake but because the primary care doctor failed to refer the patient to the ophthalmologist in time for curative surgery or treatment. In these cases, you would file the medical malpractice claim against the primary case physician.
As a victim of medical malpractice, New York law allows you to recover certain damages for your harm. Typically, you will be compensated for medical bills, lost wages, future earnings, and disability, as well as pain and suffering. We can explore your case and help you determine an appropriate amount of damages in your case.
If you or a family member has been injured as a result of an ophthalmologist error, you need to reach out to a skilled Rochester surgical malpractice attorney who can examine the facts of your case. At DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Lawyers, we are committing to holding negligent medical professionals accountable for the harm that they cause. We are here to answer your questions and address your concerns. You can contact us as soon as you get a chance via phone at 833-200-2000, or you can reach us online.
More Blog Posts:
Informed Consent Malpractice in Rochester and New York, Rochester Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Blog, December 28, 2017
Nurse Negligence in Hospitals in New York, Rochester Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Blog, December 26, 2017
Medical Malpractice due to Misdiagnosis in New York, Rochester Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Blog, December 19, 2017