One of the worst things about medical malpractice is you don’t always know if it’s happened until it’s too late.
And that’s how the big medical institutions want to keep it.
A recent investigative report by Cleveland’s ABC5 reveals most doctors and hospitals keep extensive records of their mistakes — they just don’t show those records to the public.
In fact, in many cases they don’t even tell the victim or their families. People who suspect malpractice can ask about it, but hospitals aren’t required to give them any information.
Even the government has access to malpractice records, but in order to convince hospitals to share the records with them, federal agencies will agree to keep the information secret.
None of this surprises Professor Max Mehlman, Director of the Law-Medicine Center at Case Western Reserve University, who says:
“People who are injured as a result of medical malpractice are almost never told… by their doctors or by hospitals where it’s happened.”
Instead, injured patients have to get the information from an outside source. Sometimes that’s a second opinion, which means an outside doctor will notice the mistake. But far too often, the victim doesn’t even find out unless a lawyer gets involved.
The report gives the example of a young woman whose face was badly scarred from burns that happened during surgery: “(Her doctor) didn’t tell her what went wrong… until she took him to court.”
We see this in our Memphis medical malpractice firm every day. Patients and their families come to us looking for answers, and sometimes every other door has been closed to them. They don’t know what happened during their treatment or surgery, but they know something went very, very wrong.
When we put our lives into the hands of the medical industry, we deserve full communication. We have a right to know what harm may have been done to our bodies. We have a right to know what mistakes were made, especially when those mistakes could cost us our lives.
I’m always grateful when I can stand up for a client and get them the information they deserve. I’m grateful we have courts that can help provide justice for these clients when no one else will.
Medical malpractice is very serious, and it’s not something we take lightly at our office. But sometimes, it’s a person’s only option. And when that happens, we’re here.
If you fear you’ve been the victim of medical malpractice, we’d be happy to discuss your situation with you for no charge. Contact us online or give us a call today at 901-327-1212.