Going to a Maryland hospital for surgery can be nerve-wracking for both the patient and his or her family. Nevertheless, a quality surgery may end up saving the person's life, thus making it worthwhile. However, if a surgeon is careless, surgical errors can take place and end up causing the patient more harm than good. One woman in another state experienced this first-hand after undergoing a spleen surgery.
In this out-of-state case, a surgeon was supposed to extract a portion of the patient's spleen. Instead, he allegedly removed the woman's left kidney, which was healthy. The spleen that was reportedly removed was apparently shaped like a kidney.
The woman chose to sue the surgeon, and a settlement of $2 million was reached. In addition, the surgeon has been forced to pay a fine of $2,500 for this error. He was also recently disciplined by his state's medical regulators for the malpractice.
Surgical errors may quickly lead to a decrease in a person's quality of life. If a patient in Maryland is hurt at the hands of a surgeon who failed to exercise a reasonable degree of care, this patient may opt to seek to hold the doctor accountable legally. He or she may sue for damages, and a successfully handled claim may help the individual to cover the cost of medical treatment required to remedy the situation and even address emotional distress caused by the medical malpractice incident. A medical malpractice lawsuit can be navigated successfully if liability is established via competent proof provided to the civil court.