Potential Defendants in Medical Negligence Cases

Physicians are not the only medical providers who are subject to medical malpractice suits. Many other healthcare professionals can be held liable too, as well as institutions that employ such professionals.

Individual Providers

Regardless of what particular professional is involved – physician’s assistant, nurse practitioner, pharmacist, dentist, chiropractor, or alternative healthcare provider – the concept is the same. There is a standard of care that the public expects when they put themselves in a medical professional’s care. Violation of this standard is actionable. If you can prove that the provider’s medical negligence caused you significant harm, you may be able to obtain fair compensation.

Hospitals

Hospitals can be held liable in two ways:

1. Direct Negligence – meaning their own administrative or procedural negligence. Some examples of direct negligence would be:

• Not inquiring adequately into an applicant’s background, and hiring someone who later injures a patient.
• Not adequately investigating a physician’s credentials before extending hospital privileges to him or her.
• Not maintaining enough registered nurses on duty to provide quality patient care.
• Failing to perform relevant clinical tests.
• Not keeping accurate medical records.
• Improperly admitting patients; for instance not treating a seriously ill or injured person on an emergency basis, but instead delaying treatment with admission paperwork; or deciding who to treat or admit based on race, religion, national origin, or ability to pay.

2. Vicarious Liability – meaning the hospital is held responsible for its employee’s behavior. This is known as the legal doctrine of "respondeat superior". It states that if an employee is negligent while acting within the scope of his employment, the employer may be held liable. This doctrine gives the plaintiff a source of compensation: an institution with greater financial resources than an individual would have.

In another scenario, some healthcare providers, including physicians, are not considered employees, but independent contractors. This invalidates the respondeat superior doctrine. However, a plaintiff can still hold the hospital liable for negligence in giving privileges to an incompetent or unlicensed physician.

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3. Your free consultation

Medical malpractice laws are a complicated maze. Give us a call at the Law Offices of Craig Goldenfarb, or send an email so that we can help you through them and build a strong case for you. We do not charge for the initial consultation, as it is a time for us to listen and start determining whether you have a valid claim. If we then choose to work with you, it will be on contingency, meaning that our fees are not paid until we win a settlement amount or jury award for you.

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Florida medical negligence lawyer Craig Goldenfarb represents clients throughout South Florida, including the cities of Palm Springs, Stuart, and Fort Pierce, and residents of Palm Beach County, Martin County, and St. Lucie County. Our office in West Palm Beach, Florida, is located a quarter mile west of I-95 on Palm Beach Lakes Blvd., behind Chick-Fil-A in the Legacy Bank Building.