When you place your trust in a medical professional, you expect to receive competent care that meets established standards. Medical errors in Marietta hospitals, clinics, and medical facilities can lead to serious harm, permanent disabilities, or even death. These preventable mistakes occur more frequently than many people realize, affecting thousands of patients across Georgia each year.
The Persons Firm holds negligent healthcare providers accountable for their actions. We have successfully represented numerous clients who suffered from substandard medical care in the Marietta area. Our legal team possesses the medical knowledge and courtroom experience necessary to pursue complex malpractice claims against hospitals, doctors, and other healthcare providers. Contact our experienced Marietta medical malpractice lawyers today to discuss your potential case.
What Constitutes Medical Malpractice in Georgia
Georgia law defines medical malpractice as a healthcare provider’s failure to exercise the degree of care and skill expected of a reasonably competent practitioner in the same field under similar circumstances. This legal standard requires proving four essential elements: duty of care, breach of that duty, causation, and damages.
Healthcare providers owe patients a duty to provide treatment that meets accepted medical standards. When they fall below this standard, they breach their duty. The breach must directly cause harm to the patient, resulting in measurable damages such as additional medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, or permanent disability.
Georgia’s medical malpractice statute, found in O.C.G.A. § 51-1-27, establishes specific requirements for pursuing these claims. The law requires that medical malpractice cases be supported by expert testimony from qualified medical professionals who can testify about the appropriate standard of care and how the defendant’s actions fell short of that standard.
Common Types of Medical Malpractice Cases
Medical errors can occur in various healthcare settings and involve different types of negligent conduct. Our Marietta medical malpractice lawyer has handled cases involving numerous forms of medical negligence that have caused significant harm to patients and their families.
Surgical errors represent one of the most serious categories of medical malpractice. These mistakes can occur during any phase of a surgical procedure and often result in severe, life-altering injuries:
- Operating on the wrong body part or the wrong patient
- Leaving surgical instruments or foreign objects inside the patient
- Damaging organs, nerves, or blood vessels during surgery
- Failing to maintain sterile conditions can lead to dangerous infections
Diagnostic errors also frequently result in malpractice claims. When doctors fail to properly diagnose a condition or provide an incorrect diagnosis, patients may not receive necessary treatment or may undergo inappropriate medical interventions:
- Failure to diagnose cancer, heart disease, or other serious conditions
- Misreading medical test results or imaging studies
- Failing to order appropriate diagnostic tests
- Delaying diagnosis beyond a reasonable timeframe
Medication errors affect patients in hospitals, pharmacies, and outpatient settings. These preventable mistakes can cause serious adverse reactions, organ damage, or treatment failures:
- Prescribing the wrong medication or incorrect dosage
- Failing to check for dangerous drug interactions
- Administering medications to the wrong patient
- Ignoring known patient allergies when prescribing medications
Birth injury cases involve negligent care during pregnancy, labor, or delivery that results in harm to the mother or baby. These cases often involve permanent disabilities that require lifelong care:
- Failure to monitor and notice fetal distress during labor
- Improper use of delivery instruments like vacuum extractors or forceps
- Delayed cesarean section when medically indicated
- Failure to treat maternal infections that can harm the baby
The Legal Process for Medical Malpractice Claims
Pursuing a medical malpractice claim in Georgia requires adherence to specific legal procedures and deadlines. The process begins with a thorough investigation of the medical care provided and the harm that resulted from any negligent treatment.
Georgia law requires plaintiffs to file an affidavit with their complaint, stating that they have consulted with a competent medical expert who has reviewed the case and believes there is a reasonable basis for the lawsuit. This expert must be qualified in the same specialty as the defendant’s healthcare provider and must be actively practicing medicine or have done so recently.
The statute of limitations for Marietta medical malpractice claims is generally two years from the date the victim knew or should have known about the injury. However, the law provides some exceptions to this rule. For cases involving foreign objects left in the body, patients have one year from discovery to file their claim. The statute of repose provides an absolute deadline of five years from the date of the negligent act, regardless of when the injury was discovered.
Damages Available in Medical Malpractice Cases
Victims of medical malpractice may be entitled to various types of compensation for their injuries and losses. Georgia law allows recovery of economic and non-economic damages, subject to certain limitations established by state statute.
Economic damages compensate for measurable financial losses resulting from the malpractice. These damages can include past and future medical expenses, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and other out-of-pocket costs directly related to the injury. There is no cap on economic damages in Georgia medical malpractice cases.
Non-economic damages address the intangible harm suffered, including pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, and loss of companionship. Georgia limits non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases to $350,000 per healthcare provider, with a total cap of $1.05 million when multiple providers are involved. However, these caps do not apply in cases involving catastrophic injuries or wrongful death.
Areas We Serve
The Persons Firm proudly serves clients throughout the greater Marietta area and surrounding communities. We handle medical malpractice cases for residents in the following zip codes:
30060, 30061, 30062, 30063, 30064, 30065, 30066, 30067, 30068, 30069, 30090, 30168, 30177, 30309, 30327, 30339, 30342, 30350, 30360, 30363, 30370, 30374, 30375, 30376, 30377, 30378
Our office location allows us to serve clients in Cobb County, Fulton County, Cherokee County, and other nearby jurisdictions where medical malpractice may have occurred.
Contact Our Legal Team Today
Medical malpractice cases are complex legal matters that require immediate attention due to strict filing deadlines and evidence preservation requirements. If you believe you have been harmed due to negligent medical care in the Marietta area, contact The Persons Firm for a comprehensive evaluation of your potential claim.