Port St. Lucie Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Did you or a family member suffer harm because a doctor, nurse, or healthcare professional made a mistake? Medical professionals in Port St. Lucie, FL, have a legal duty to provide a certain level of care. If they fail to do so, an experienced Port St. Lucie medical malpractice lawyer at Kibbey Wagner Injury & Car Accident Lawyers can help you fight to recover compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and more. Call us today at (772) 247-3374.

Our team of lawyers has over 40 years of combined experience. Since we opened our legal practice, we’ve recovered over $60 million in compensation for accident victims and their families. We handle all types of injury cases involving brain injuries, Port St. Lucie catastrophic injuries, slip and fall accidents, workplace accidents, Port St. Lucie product liability, and more.

Call our law offices in Port St. Lucie, Florida, to schedule a free consultation to discuss your legal options today.

How Kibbey Wagner Injury & Car Accident Lawyers Can Help With a Medical Malpractice Claim in Port St. Lucie

How Kibbey Wagner Injury & Car Accident Lawyers Can Help With a Medical Malpractice Claim in Port St. Lucie

It’s important to have an experienced attorney by your side when taking legal action. Medical malpractice laws are complicated. Hospitals, insurance companies, and their defense lawyers know how the system works. To successfully recover fair compensation, you’ll need a lawyer who also understands the rules of the road.

At Kibbey Wagner Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, our personal injury lawyers in Port St. Lucie, FL, have earned a “Superb” rating on Avvo, a website that rates and reviews lawyers nationwide. Our law firm was also founded by a former insurance defense attorney who is board-certified in civil trial law.

We’ll use our experience and reputation to your advantage by:

  • Locating evidence to prove you were a victim of a medical error
  • Hiring leading experts to testify on your behalf
  • Handling all paperwork to comply with Florida medical malpractice laws
  • Assessing your case value and identifying your damages
  • Handling all insurance negotiations on your behalf

Our Port St. Lucie personal injury lawyers believe that every client deserves the highest possible quality legal representation. To get the help you need, call for your free consultation today.

How Common Is Medical Malpractice in Port St. Lucie?

If you were harmed because of a medical mistake, you aren’t alone. A frequently cited study by the prestigious Johns Hopkins medical center has found that more than 250,000 people die because of medical mistakes each year. In fact, some experts believe that medical malpractice is now the third-leading cause of death in the U.S.

In Florida alone, insurance companies paid out about $335,769,400 in medical malpractice claims in 2020.

Our lawyers handle all types of medical malpractice claims in Port St. Lucie, including those involving:

  • Emergency room errors
  • Anesthesia errors
  • Failure to diagnose
  • Misdiagnosis
  • Birth injuries
  • Medication errors
  • Nursing negligence
  • Surgical errors
  • Pharmacy negligence
  • Hospital negligence

If you suspect that you or a loved one has been a victim of medical negligence, reach out to our lawyers for a free case review today.

What Is My Port St. Lucie Medical Malpractice Case Worth?

Many unique variables will come into play when determining how much your case is worth. The most important factor tends to be the severity of the harm you have suffered due to the medical error.

Additional factors that our lawyers will evaluate include:

  • The cost of your medical care and other expenses incurred because of the error
  • How the mistake impacts your future health and quality of life
  • Your lost wages and income
  • Whether your future earnings will be impacted
  • Your physical pain and suffering
  • Damage to your emotional wellbeing
  • The nature of the doctor’s mistake

You can count on our lawyers to examine all of the details when assessing your case value. To learn more about your specific case value, call to discuss your case today.

What Types of Damages Are Available to Victims of Medical Malpractice?

Like any personal injury victim, victims of medical negligence are entitled to seek economic damages and non-economic damages. Overall, your compensation should attempt to compensate for all of your losses–both financial and non-financial.

Examples of your economic damages include:

Previously, state law capped the amount of non-economic damages that victims could recover at $500,000. However, there are no longer any damage caps on economic or non-economic damages in the State of Florida.

Our Port St. Lucie Medical Malpractice Attorneys Will Fight To Recover Compensation for All of Your Injuries

The lasting consequences of a medical mistake can be severe. 

Some of the most common types of damage caused by medical errors include:

  • A need for more invasive and extensive medical care
  • Ancillary medical conditions
  • Reduced life expectancy
  • Infections 
  • Sepsis 
  • Stroke
  • Bed sores
  • Depression and other mental health disorders
  • Reduced quality of life
  • Wrongful death

These are the types of consequences that can have a serious impact on your future. If you’re suffering because of a doctor’s mistake, contact our lawyers in Port St. Lucie today. We’ll do everything we can to recover the fair compensation you deserve.

What Causes Most Medical Errors in Port St. Lucie, Florida?

Mistakes happen in the workplace all the time. Unfortunately, when a doctor makes a mistake, the results can be catastrophic for the patient. In any medical malpractice case, it’s important to identify what caused the harm you sustained.

Some of the most common causes of medical errors include:

  • Misdiagnosis
  • Failure to diagnose cancer and other diseases
  • Delayed diagnosis
  • Failure to order the proper diagnostic tests
  • Misinterpreting diagnostic tests
  • Wrong-site surgery
  • Charting and communication errors
  • Inexperienced medical providers
  • Adverse drug interactions
  • Overtreatment or undertreatment
  • Improper blood transfusions
  • Defective medical devices and medical equipment
  • Dangerous drugs
  • Failure to take a complete patient medical history
  • Failure to recognize a patient’s symptoms
  • Failure to refer the patient to a specialist when appropriate
  • Negligent hiring practices
  • Failure to properly train and supervise medical staff

Often, mistakes happen when hospitals and medical facilities are understaffed. Understaffing leads to situations where doctors and nurses are overworked and fatigued. “Physician burnout” is a serious issue in today’s medical community. Unfortunately, it is always the patient who suffers the most.

As the patient, it can be difficult to know the exact cause of the harm you’ve suffered. Our lawyers can help you determine what happened. We’ll gather the evidence you need to prove your personal injury claim. Just call our Port St. Lucie medical malpractice attorneys to get started today.

How Do I Know Whether I Have a Valid Medical Malpractice Case in Florida? 

Not all mistakes amount to malpractice. A health care professional commits medical malpractice when they provide care that does not meet the standard of care developed by the medical community. When doctors deviate from the medical standard of care, they can be held liable for any resulting harm suffered by the patient.

In any personal injury or products liability case based on negligence, the victim must establish:

  • The responsible party’s duty of care
  • A breach of duty
  • The breach was the direct cause of the harm you suffered
  • The damages you sustained

In cases based on medical negligence, the victim must also establish the medical standard of care. The medical standard is the level of care that a reasonably competent medical professional would have provided under the circumstances.

The standard varies from case to case and is based on:

  • The patient’s specific injury or illness
  • The patient’s age, medical history, and overall prognosis
  • Geographic location
  • The medical professional’s level of training

As required under Florida medical malpractice laws, our lawyers will consult with experts when establishing the medical standard of care that applies to your case. Just call our law firm in Port St. Lucie, FL, to learn more about how we can put our skills to work for you.

What Time Limits Apply to Medical Malpractice Lawsuits in Florida?

Several different time limits are important in medical malpractice cases.

The statute of limitations in medical malpractice cases is two years. You must file a lawsuit within two years of the date the malpractice occurred. However, a “date of discovery rule” also applies. If you don’t discover the error right away, you have two years from the date you discovered the injury or reasonably should have discovered the injury.

However, you only have a total of four years from the date of the malpractice to file a lawsuit–even if you don’t discover the mistake immediately.

You must also notify the defendant 90 days before you file a lawsuit. The pre-suit notification must inform the defendant about the basis for the lawsuit and the medical expert who has evaluated your case and completed the required affidavit. During the 90-day period, the defendant will conduct their own investigation to determine whether they’re responsible.

Contact a Port St. Lucie Medical Malpractice Lawyer for a Free Consultation

Were you harmed because a trusted healthcare provider made a mistake? Medical malpractice cases can be difficult to prove. Contact Kibbey Wagner Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, today to learn more about how a Port St. Lucie medical malpractice lawyer can help you recover the compensation you deserve. As always, your initial consultation is entirely free of charge.

Our personal injury law firm in Port St. Lucie, FL, also provides: