Medical misdiagnosis is a reasonably common occurrence in hospitals and clinics. Based on compiled statistics, the percentage of all patients experiencing medical misdiagnosis can range from 8% to 40%. This would make misdiagnosis the most common type of medical mishap. Most often misdiagnosis occurs either in the emergency department of a hospital or clinic or in the hospital or clinic itself. Many of these misdiagnosed patient cases arise from patients who have been assigned to intensive care units.

A newly diagnosed patient should act as his or her own advocate by asking questions. Obviously the correct diagnosis is paramount in health care.

One of the ways to confirm a diagnosis is to seek out an opinion from another physician specialist. Although that may require additional time and costs, it would likely reduce the occurrences of misdiagnosis.

Many times the opportunity for a second opinion is not available. The most obvious setting is when a patient is rushed to an emergency department for treatment a severe medical condition. Physicians and hospital staffs are well-trained, conscientious and hard working. But mistakes do happen. Misdiagnosis can lead to deadly outcomes. Physicians sometimes err by placing the most deadly differential diagnosis at the bottom of a checklist given the symptoms, rather than at the top.

It is also well-known that many medical conditions are just not easy to diagnose. Some medical conditions are much less familiar than others. All of these circumstances can lead to misdiagnosis. In many cases where injury or death occurs, the physicians, clinicians and medical professionals simply chose not to objectively test for a deadly condition that is marked by the patient’s symptoms. Open communication with doctors, nurses and medical professionals is critically important.

Misdiagnosis leading to injury or death is devastating. It is imperative that you have experienced lawyers on your side. With over 35 years of experience in handling medical misdiagnosis cases, the Chicago medical malpractice lawyers at Kreisman Law Offices have the know-how and resources to aggressively handle your misdiagnosis claim and obtain justice for you and your family. Contact our Chicago office at 312-346-0045 or 800-583-8002 for an immediate free consultation, or fill out our contact form.