Note: This content is for informational purposes only. Our law firm does not handle matters involving medical malpractice.

Fort Walton Beach Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Were you or a loved one injured as a result of a medical procedure in Fort Walton Beach, Florida? If a medical professional was careless, you could be entitled to significant compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and suffering. The experienced legal team at Brannon & Brannon Personal Injury Attorneys can help you fight for the money you need.

Our Fort Walton Beach medical practice lawyers have been helping injured victims throughout Northwest Florida for more than 30 years. We’ve obtained millions of dollars in life-changing awards for clients harmed by others.

Contact us today at (850) 863-5297 to learn more about how we can help you seek the compensation you deserve. Your initial consultation is free.

How Brannon & Brannon Can Help With a Medical Malpractice Claim in Fort Walton Beach

How Brannon & Brannon Can Help With a Medical Malpractice Claim in Fort Walton Beach

When the doctor you trusted to treat your injury or illness has harmed you, you may feel helpless and angry. You shouldn’t have to deal with the financial consequences of someone else’s mistake. Insurance companies backing medical professionals and facilities will fight back hard. Let us help level the playing field. You can concentrate on getting better.

Our Fort Walton Beach personal injury lawyers have more than 60+ years of combined experience helping deserving victims get the compensation they’re owed. 

When you hire us, we can help by:

  • Fully investigating the circumstances of your medical procedure or treatment to determine what went wrong
  • Identifying all potentially responsible parties
  • Hiring respected medical experts to testify on your behalf
  • Handling all communications with insurance companies
  • Carefully calculating all of your damages
  • Negotiating for a fair settlement representing full compensation for your injuries
  • Sending a top-rated trial lawyer to fight your case in court, if necessary

You don’t have to go through this alone. Call our Fort Walton Beach, FL law office today so we can understand your story. We’ll let you know how we can help. Initial consultations are completely free.

How Common Is Medical Malpractice?

According to the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), roughly $289 million was paid in 967 medical malpractice claims in Florida in 2020.

That means on average, more than 2 people a day are injured by medical malpractice in Florida in cases substantial enough to warrant compensation.

Approximately 400,000 people are harmed by preventable medical errors every year across the country. That’s more than 1,000 people per day.

About 4,000 surgical errors alone happen every year in the U.S. That’s almost 11 every single day.

What is My Medical Malpractice Case Worth?

Each case is unique. In Florida, according to the NPDB, the average payout was roughly $299,000 in 2020. Your case may be more or less, depending on the circumstances.

Generally, here are a few factors that may affect the value of your case:

  • The nature of the error that caused your injury
  • The extent of your injury
  • Whether you sustained a disability
  • Whether you need extended medical treatment or nursing care
  • Whether you followed all medical advice
  • Whether you lost time at work due to the medical error
  • How traumatized you are by the event

Nobody is perfect. Even medical professionals make mistakes. But some mistakes are so appalling they should not ever happen—these are sometimes called “never events.” 

Never events can include:

  • Operating on the wrong surgery site
  • Operating on the wrong patient
  • Performing the wrong surgical procedure
  • Performing a blood transfusion with the wrong blood type

Cases involving errors that are shockingly negligent and should truly never happen may warrant higher awards.

We’ll work hard to maximize the value of your award by making sure we have a full picture of your injuries. This includes not just your current medical bills, but a realistic projection that will cover ongoing treatment.

What Kind of Damages Are Available to Medical Malpractice Victims? 

You’ll be able to recover damages related to monetary losses (economic damages) as well as emotional trauma (non-economic damages) caused by the medical error.

These are considered compensatory damages and cover things such as:

  • Costs of medical procedures necessary to treat additional damage caused
  • Lost wages
  • Reduced earning capacity
  • Rehabilitation costs
  • Nursing care
  • Medical devices or equipment
  • PTSD
  • Mental anguish
  • Disability 
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Loss of enjoyment of life activities
  • Loss of consortium

When you’ve been injured by a medical professional who you trusted to heal an existing injury or illness, the emotional toll can be severe and long-lasting. We make sure to factor in the psychological damage done as well.

In rare cases, punitive damages may be available. These are damages that don’t compensate you but instead punish the defendant for grossly negligent conduct. It’s possible that in a case where a medical professional made a mistake, it could make sense to request such damages. This can be a strategic decision that an experienced Fort Walton Beach medical malpractice attorney will know how to approach.

Can I Recover Compensation If I’m Being Blamed For a Medical Malpractice Injury in Florida?

It’s likely. You may wonder how you could possibly be blamed for a mistake that a doctor or nurse made. But insurance companies will do anything they can to get out of paying your claim.

They might do that by:

  • Undervaluing your claim by minimizing your injuries
  • Trying to say that you had preexisting conditions
  • Blaming you for not seeking follow-up care if your conditions worsened
  • Blaming you for not following the doctor’s instructions

You’ll want an aggressive lawyer fighting back for you against unfair blame. Our founding attorney began his career as an insurance defense lawyer. That gives us valuable insight into the tactics that they’ll use to try to minimize your claim. 

If, however, you were in any way at fault, you can still recover compensation as long as you are not completely responsible for your injuries. Under Florida’s contributory fault statute, your compensation will be reduced by the portion of injuries caused by your own negligence.

We’ll Fight to Recover Compensation For All of Your Medical Malpractice Injuries

Injuries caused by medical malpractice can vary widely. Sometimes a doctor makes a mistake that causes direct harm, such as an error during surgery.

Other times, an injury might be caused by sending you home with the wrong medication. 

  • Quadriplegia
  • Brain damage
  • Permanent injuries
  • Wrongful death of a loved one
  • Birth injuries
  • Severe allergic reactions
  • Infections
  • Burns

We have a respected network of medical experts that will help us evaluate your medical records and understand the extent of your injuries.

What Are Common Medical Errors?

Some medical errors can occur before you even receive medical treatment, such as failing to tell you about the risks of a procedure or medication. In a recent study, slightly more than half of malpractice claims paid were related to outpatient care.

Some common errors made by medical professionals include:

  • Surgical errors
  • Missed or delayed diagnosis
  • Failure to adequately inform of risks
  • Prescribing the wrong dosage of medication
  • Prescribing the wrong medication
  • Delivery room mixups
  • Anesthesia errors
  • Emergency room errors
  • Charting errors
  • Improper training on medical equipment
  • Processes or procedures that lead to mistakes
  • Failing to properly label medications
  • Failing to properly maintain equipment
  • Failure to properly secure the patient in wheelchair or gurney

Medical malpractice claims are complicated and have high stakes for the professionals and facilities involved. Often, multiple parties are involved. The claims themselves are often tricky because of the medical terminology and concepts involved. Be sure to hire a law firm equipped to handle complex medical cases.

What Is Medical Malpractice?

Medical malpractice is when a medical professional causes harm through an act or omission that deviates from the standard of care accepted in that specialty of medical practice.

On a basic level, medical malpractice is negligence. As a concept, negligence is pretty simple. It’s the legal basis for most personal injury claims, such as ones related to injuries sustained in a car accident or a slip and fall.

Negligence is based on the idea that people must conduct themselves as a reasonably prudent person would in similar circumstances.

The basic elements of negligence are:

  • Duty: the defendant owed you a duty of care
  • Breach: the defendant breached the duty of care
  • Causation: the breach of duty caused your injuries
  • Damages: you suffered damages as a result

Not every injury or even every mistake caused by a doctor is a basis for medical malpractice. There’s an inherent risk in almost every medical procedure or treatment. Think of the laundry list of side effects you hear on every drug commercial.

When you’re trying to prove medical malpractice, you’ll have to prove that the harm you experienced was unreasonable under the circumstances and was a foreseeable injury that could have been prevented by another similar professional.

Medical malpractice laws in Florida are extremely complex. The Fort Walton Beach personal injury attorneys at Brannon & Brannon are highly skilled at handling complicated legal issues. We’re also well-known throughout Northwest Florida for our integrity and diligence. Experts in the medical field, as well as the defense firms, respect us and take us seriously. Our local connections will be an asset to you when you need to go up against doctors or hospitals.

How Long Do I Have to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit in Florida?

Like everything else with medical negligence cases, the deadline for filing a lawsuit can also be complicated. You could have anywhere from two to seven years to file a case, depending on the circumstances. In most cases, you’ll have two years from the time you discovered your injury to initiate your lawsuit.

Sometimes, the harm is not immediately discoverable. If it wasn’t, you might have up to four years to file your case. If fraud or concealment was a factor and prevented you from discovering the harm, then you could have up to seven years.

If you think that a medical professional has caused you harm, don’t wait to seek legal advice. The deadlines can be difficult to figure out. And the doctors and hospitals will try to fight you to try to get your case thrown out. We offer free consultations, so you have nothing to lose. 

Your Trusted Fort Walton Beach Medical Malpractice Lawyers

If you’ve been harmed or lost a loved one because a health care professional was careless, don’t suffer through it on your own. Contact an experienced Fort Walton Beach medical malpractice lawyer at Brannon & Brannon today to evaluate your case.

We’ve handled complex injury cases for more than three decades—and with great success. We’ve recovered millions of dollars for victims of negligent acts. Your initial consultation is completely free, so call today.

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