Suffering an injury caused by medical malpractice is always difficult to overcome. Not only must you deal with physically recovering from your injuries, you must also resolve the malpractice issue fairly. These matters take time and energy, and without proper attention paid to both, one may suffer. If you do not properly focus on your own recovery, you may suffer ongoing symptoms for many months or even years.
In many instances, medical malpractice claims list hospitals as defendants, but not always. If you suspect that the hospital where you suffered an injury holds some liability for the harm you experienced, then consider very carefully the legal grounds you may have to name them in a malpractice claim. However you choose to build your claim, it is crucial to assess all the potential defendants involved, in order to increase the likelihood of securing complete compensation that fairly addresses your injuries and losses.
Hospitals may face negligence liability
If your injury arose because the hospital did not maintain proper facilities or staff, or failed to properly vet the qualifications of an individual who caused you harm through malpractice, then the hospital may hold liability for negligence.
Hospitals have a responsibility to keep their facilities up to safe standards of care and functionality, but far too many hospitals cut corners to keep their overhead low. This often arises when it comes to the number of nurses and other attendants that a hospital schedules for each shift. Commonly, a hospital may staff fewer nurses on a shift than required under safety regulations. If you suspect that such cost-cutting measures contributed to your injury, you should certainly look closer at this oversight.
Hospitals may face vicarious liability
Depending on the legal relationship between the hospital and the practitioner who harmed you, it may bear responsibility vicariously as an employer. It is important to note, however, that some hospitals distance themselves from this liability by hiring practitioners as independent contractors. When a practitioner operates as an independent contractor, he or she holds greater personal liability, shielding the hospital from costly lawsuits, among other things.
If the practitioner is technically an employee, then it is well worth considering the merits of adding the hospital to your claim under vicarious liability, to spread a wide net to obtain greater compensation for your losses.
Your medical malpractice ordeal may take a long time to resolve completely. Carefully scrutinize the tools you have under the law to ensure that your rights and privileges enjoy strong protections while you seek justice for your injury.