If a nurse makes a mistake and you get hurt because of it, you may be able to file a medical malpractice claim.
Nursing malpractice happens when a nurse does not do their job the right way, and a patient gets hurt because of it. This can happen in many ways, such as giving the wrong medication, giving the wrong dose, or not telling a doctor when something is seriously wrong with a patient.
In these cases, one of the main questions is who is legally responsible. It could be the nurse, the doctor, or the hospital, depending on what happened. The person or organization that is found responsible may have to pay for the harm they caused.
A Virginia Beach medical malpractice lawyer can review what happened, explain your rights, and help you understand your next steps. The team at Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp can examine your situation and help you determine whether you may have a claim and what to do next.
How Does Nursing Malpractice Happen?
Nursing malpractice is similar to malpractice committed by a doctor. It happens when a nurse does not do their job the way a reasonably careful nurse would in the same situation, and a patient is hurt because of it. It is important to understand that not all mistakes or bad outcomes in a hospital or doctor’s office is considered negligence.
Nursing malpractice can occur in many different ways, but here are some of the most common examples:
Not Taking Action or Speaking Up When Necessary
Nurses are usually the first people to notice when something is wrong with a patient. If a patient has a sudden emergency, a nurse may be held responsible if they do not act right away. This could include giving needed medication or calling for help quickly.
Nurses also have a duty to monitor their patients’ conditions. If they noticed or should have noticed that something was amiss, they may be responsible for malpractice if they do not tell the doctor.
Harming a Patient With Medical Equipment
A nurse may be responsible for malpractice if they hurt a patient while using medical equipment. This can happen in different ways, such as dropping something heavy on the patient, causing a burn, or leaving a sponge inside the patient after surgery.
Administering Medication Incorrectly
Giving medication the way the doctor ordered is a common part of a nurse’s job. If a nurse does not follow those orders and the patient is hurt, the nurse may be responsible for malpractice.
A nurse can also be responsible if they give the medication the wrong way, even if the order itself was correct. For example, this could include giving the drug in the wrong place, like into a muscle instead of a vein, or giving it to the wrong patient.
Who Is Liable When Nursing Malpractice Occurs?
In most nursing malpractice cases, the main question is who is liable for the nurse’s negligence: the hospital or the attending physician.
The Hospital
A hospital could be liable for nursing malpractice provided that:
- The nurse was doing their job when the patient was hurt
- The nurse works for the hospital
- An outside doctor was not in charge of the nurse at the time
Because most nurses are hospital employees, hospitals are often included in nursing malpractice cases.
The Attending Physician
Even if a physician is overseeing the nurse, the hospital may still be responsible. In some cases, both the hospital and the doctor can be held liable, depending on who had control and what went wrong.
To decide this, the law looks at things like:
- Whether the doctor was there at the time
- Whether the doctor could have stopped the nurse’s mistake
Example: During surgery, a nurse gives a patient too much medication, and the patient is hurt. The doctor may be responsible because the doctor was there and was in charge of watching everything that happened during the surgery, including how the medication was given.
The question of whether the doctor had control over the nurse at the time is usually a disagreement between the doctor and the hospital. It usually affects who is responsible for paying, but in some situations, it can also affect how a claim moves forward or whether full compensation is available.
Even if a doctor was supervising the nurse, the hospital may still be responsible if the doctor gave the wrong instructions and the nurse should have known they were wrong but followed them anyway.
Example: A nurse tells a doctor, who is not there, that a patient is having a bad reaction during a blood transfusion. The doctor tells the nurse to keep going. The nurse follows that order, and the patient is hurt.
If a nurse exercising reasonable caution would have put a stop to the transfusion, even with the doctor’s order, both the hospital and the doctor may be responsible for what happened.
Will Expert Testimony Be Required?
The same basic rules that apply to a doctor’s malpractice also apply to nursing malpractice. In most cases, both sides need a qualified medical expert to explain what a careful nurse would have done and whether the mistake caused the injury.
In many states, this expert cannot just be any doctor. It usually has to be a nurse or someone with training in the same medical area involved in the case.
In rare cases, a medical expert may not be needed if the mistake is obvious to a layperson, but Virginia courts usually require expert testimony in medical malpractice cases. For example, this can include giving a patient the wrong drug or knocking over important medical equipment.
Talk to a Virginia Beach Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Virginia medical malpractice law is complicated, and the rules can be very different from one state to another. Because of this, it is often important to talk to a lawyer or have one represent you.
The Virginia Beach medical malpractice lawyers at Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp have over 100 years of combined experience. They know how to gather strong evidence, deal with insurance companies, and protect your right to recover money after an injury.
Medical misdiagnosis cases can be complicated and can change lives. It is important to work with a lawyer who has handled these kinds of cases before. Our firm has done this successfully, including winning a $2.23 million jury verdict for the family of a woman who died after a delayed diagnosis of hospital sepsis.i
If you or a loved one believes you were harmed by medical negligence, you can call (833) 997-1774 or fill out the quick contact form on the website to schedule a free case review. The firm has offices in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Hampton.
