Facts about nursing malpractice in Illinois

When you seek medical attention for an injury or illness, the last thing you expect is to get harmed by the very people who are supposed to help you. Unfortunately, this does happen from time to time. If you or a loved one are injured due to nursing malpractice, it’s important to understand the common causes so that you can take steps to protect your rights.

What are the common causes of nursing malpractice?

One of the most common causes of nursing malpractice is medical error. This can happen when a nurse makes a mistake in administering medication or providing treatment. Other errors can occur during diagnostic testing, surgery or other medical procedures.

Another common cause of nursing malpractice is the failure to properly monitor patients. This can lead to serious complications, such as bedsores, infections and even death. Nurses need to constantly monitor patients to ensure that they are receiving the proper care and treatment.

Additionally, nurses fail to follow medical protocols, such as not washing their hands or not wearing gloves, can also lead to nursing malpractice. This puts patients at risk of contracting infections or other diseases.

Finally, some nurses may simply be careless and make errors that could have been avoided. For example, a nurse may forget to turn off a patient’s IV drip, which can lead to serious medical complications.

What should you do if you suffer as a result of nursing malpractice?

If you or a loved one gets injured due to medical malpractice, it’s important to seek medical attention right away to have the injuries treated and documented. Next, you may want to report the incident to the state board of nursing. This can help to ensure that the nurse involved is held accountable for his or her actions.

If you want to file a medical malpractice lawsuit, you’ll need to have an expert witness who can attest to the fact that the nurse’s actions constituted medical malpractice. This may be another nurse, medical doctor or another kind of medical expert.

It’s also important to note that you’ll need to file your lawsuit within the statute of limitations, which is typically two years from the date of the incident. If you wait too long, you may not be able to recover damages.

Whatever you do, just make sure you take your time to review the facts of your case before taking any legal action. You want to make sure that you have a strong case before moving forward.