A Patient’s Worst Nightmare: Waking Up Under The Knife
Imagine going in to the hospital for a simple procedure. You have your pre-op with the surgeon, the anesthesiologist then comes in to put you under, and you fall blissfully unconscious before they even wheel you into the operating room. Not only did the staff administer anesthesia, but they also gave you a paralytic to keep your muscles from twitching during the surgery.
Unfortunately, the anesthesiologist did not administer the correct dosage. You woke up just as the surgeon was making an incision into your abdomen. The paralytic kept you from alerting the doctors that you were awake. You endured hours of surgery, unable to even open your eyes much less signal the staff, while completely awake. This is one of the worst fears of every patient that has to have a surgical procedure can experience. Unfortunately, for a woman in Canada, this fear became a reality, and she suffered a horrific experience.
Medical Malpractice Can Happen to Anyone
Waking up during surgery due to a medication error, or being the victim of any type of medical malpractice, happens more often than we think. We walk into the hospital and give our absolute trust to surgeons, nurses and other health care providers. We tend to forget that people in the medical field are only human, and that means they make mistakes. However, due to their professional status, they must adhere to established standards of care.
When the doctor-patient trust is broken, or health care professionals do not use a reasonable amount of care, accidents happen. Sometimes these accidents have catastrophic consequences.
What Options Do Medical Malpractice Victims Have?
As a victim of medical malpractice in New Haven, you have rights and options. An attorney can review your case to determine how best to help you. Doctors and hospital staff responsible for errors and negligence should be accountable in order to avoid future incidences. At the very least, you should take steps to ensure that the malpractice-related injuries you suffered are corrected.
Filing a medical malpractice action can be a lengthy and complicated process. However, you are entitled to be made whole again, either through medical treatment, compensation or both. No one who has suffered due to a professional health care provider’s negligence should be forced to bear the costs of the resulting injuries.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of a doctor’s negligence or a medication error, there are options for recovery. Get in touch with a local attorney for advice on pursuing your medical malpractice action.