Arizona Medical Malpractice: FAQ

Questions & Answers about Medical Malpractice

What is medical malpractice?
Medical malpractice can be defined as a medical professional’s failure to provide a reasonable level of care based upon accepted medical standards at the time, resulting in injury to a patient. For example, a careless surgeon or nurse, may leave an instrument behind in a patient, leading to serious complications and possibly death. This may be considered a form of medical malpractice: a surgical error.

How do I know if I have grounds for a lawsuit?
To successfully file a medical malpractice claim and recover a settlement or jury award, it will be necessary to establish four main elements:

• The doctor had an obligation/duty to you (i.e. you were a patient);
• The doctor failed to perform in compliance with accepted medical standards (was negligent, reckless or intentionally caused injury);
• You were injured; and
• The doctor’s action or inaction caused your injuries.

How long do I have to file a claim?
Under the Arizona statute of limitations, a patient has 2 years to file a medical malpractice claim, from the time that the injury was discovered or should have reasonably been discovered. Different terms may apply in the case of injuries to children including birth injury.  Further, if your claim is against a public entity or a person employed by a public entity, different time limitations may apply.  For example if a state entity is involved you may have only 180 days within which to file a Notice of Claim.  Because every case is different, you should consult an attorney as soon as possible to be certain that you do not limit your rights through inaction. 

How much is my case worth? 
If you have a valid claim against a health care provider,  is impossible to say what your medical malpractice claim is or should be worth, without conducting a complete case evaluation and investigation.  Even then, case valuation is a very subjective process.  Any and all medical costs should be evaluated, as well as the need for future medical care, the impact the injury will have on the patient’s life, any lost income, and numerous other factors. However, it is safe to say that more serious injuries usually result in higher settlements or jury awards, sometimes totaling in millions of dollars depending on the case.

If you are interested in discovering whether you have a viable claim and what your case may be worth, Arizona medical malpractice lawyer David H. Cluff can offer you a free initial consultation. Contact us today!