Which Medical Specialists Get Sued for Medical Malpractice the Most?

Medical malpractice often involves a preventable medical error that violates the standard of practice and causes injury to the patient. Doctors and other medical professional commit these negligent actions in every area of medical specialty. A medical malpractice lawsuit allows the injured patient to recover compensation from the medical professional who caused their injury, and sometimes from the hospital or health care facility that employed the doctor.

Which medical specialties had the most medical malpractice claims?

The New England Journal of Medicine published a report, Medical Malpractice Risk According to Physician Specialty, which looks at medical malpractice claims according to physician specialties:

1. Neurosurgery
2. Thoracic-cardiovascular surgery
3. General surgery
4. Orthopedic surgery
5. Plastic surgery
6. Gastroenterology
7. Obstetrics and gynecology
8. Urology
9. Pulmonary medicine
10. Oncology

The specialty with the highest percentage of doctor being sued for malpractice, Neurosurgery, had 19.09% of doctors with a malpractice claim. Oncologists scored the lowest, with 9.14%.

What are some examples of medical malpractice?

Not every medical mistake is malpractice. Here are a few examples of medical mistakes that could lead to a cause of action for medical malpractice:

• Diagnostic errors
• Misinterpretation of lab results
• Wrong site, wrong side, wrong patient surgical errors
• Medication errors
• Anesthesia errors
• Negligent follow-up care
• Birth injuries

Preventable medical errors account for hundreds of thousands of deaths each year in the United States in hospitals and other health care settings.  Human error is a factor, but the incredibly high level of preventable errors such as misdiagnosing a deadly disease, giving the wrong patient the wrong dose of medication, to operating on the wrong body part, preventable medical errors and medical mistakes cause so much injury and death.

At McGowan, Hood, Felder & Phillips, LLC, our South Carolina medical malpractice attorneys are skilled in handling complicated cases of medical mistakes. We protect clients’ right to compensation after an injury caused by a doctor’s error. You are invited to call 803-327-7800 or fill out our contact form to schedule a free consultation today.