Doctors are human and make mistakes. However, when a medical care providers actions or lack of action fall below the acceptable standard of care and result in injury or death, medical malpractice may have occurred. Florida laws allow patients to pursue compensation if they are injured by a doctor, hospital or nurse's malpractice. However, these lawsuits are often complex and hospital lawyers vigorously defend these claims. That's why you need your own skilled and experienced medical malpractice attorney fighting for your rights.

Serving victims of medical malpractice since 1965, Rosen & Rosen has grown to be one of South Florida's pre-eminent law firms in the area of medical malpractice. We have successfully represented patients injured due to medical negligence and we will aggressively fight for you.

Medical Errors

An average of 195,000 people in the United States died in each of the years 2000, 2001 and 2002 due to potentially preventable medical errors, according to a study of patient safety in American hospitals. The study by Health Grades, a leading independent health care quality company, concluded medical errors were a leading cause of death in the United States. Another 238,000 potentially preventable deaths occurred in hospitals during 2004 through 2006, according to the follow-up study.

According to a 2006 report by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, medication errors are among the most common medical errors, harming at least 1.5 million people every year. Errors occur at every stage, from incorrect prescriptions to improper administration of a drug to a failure to monitor a patient’s adverse reaction to a particular drug.

Florida Statistics

If you've been the victim of medical malpractice, you are not alone. In a 2002 comprehensive report, “Florida’s Real Medical Malpractice Program: Bad Doctors and Insurance Companies, Not the Legal System,” the Washington, D.C. based consumer watchdog group Public Citizen found the following:

• The number of medical errors reported by Florida hospitals exceeds the number of medical malpractice claims filed each year by 6 to 1. In one three-year period, Florida hospitals reported 19,885 incidents but only 3,177 medical malpractice claims. This meant that for every 6 adverse incidents in the hospital during that time, only one malpractice claim was filed.
• Six percent of the doctors in Florida were responsible for half the malpractice. Public Citizen’s analysis of the federal government’s National Practitioner Data Bank information found that 2,674 of the state’s 44,747 doctors active in the study period paid two or more malpractice awards to patients. These doctors were responsible for 51 percent of all payments.
• Many of Florida’s most dangerous doctors continued to practice and the state watchdog is asleep on the job. The study found 1,555 practicing physicians who had been disciplined by Florida’s state medical and osteopathic boards for incompetence, mis-prescribing drugs, sexual misconduct, criminal convictions, ethical lapses and other offenses.

Common Types of Medical Malpractice

Although there are numerous types of malpractice claims here are the most common:

• Wrongful death;
• Birth injuries;
• Hospital, physician, and nursing negligence;
• Misdiagnosis;
• Nursing home injuries and elder abuse;
• Pharmaceutical errors; and
• Medication errors.

Our medical malpractice attorneys believe doctors should be held accountable for these kinds of mistakes, and our goal is to determine as quickly as possible whether you have an actionable claim. This is because medical malpractice cases are by their very nature complex and expensive to pursue, and have a high risk of little or no recovery.

In 1988, the Florida Legislature enacted the Medical Malpractice Act, which substantially affects the rights of patients injured due to medical negligence. There are strict pre-suit requirements and time limitations for pursuing medical malpractice claims. Therefore, it is important to immediately contact with a medical malpractice lawyer at Rosen & Rosen to protect your rights.

If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a health care provider’s medical negligence, please contact the injury lawyers at Rosen & Rosen, P.A. We have successfully represented patients injured due to medical negligence and will aggressively fight for you. If you have lost a loved one because of medical malpractice, contact our personal injury attorneys. Call Rosen & Rosen now at (954) 981-1852 or contact us online for a free consultation.

We work on a contingency fee basis, which means we will not receive a fee unless you receive monetary compensation. We have successfully represented families harmed by medical malpractice and are dedicated to serving you in your fight for justice.