Liability in Charleston Medical Malpractice Cases

If a person signed an informed consent form, that means that the person has arguably been told what the risks and rewards of the procedure may be. If something happens due to an act or omission of the doctor, the health care facility, or any of the professionals providing the treatment, the individual or individuals should contact a skilled medical malpractice attorney right away. An attorney can help the individual compile the necessary evidence to prove liability in Charleston medical malpractice cases.

Filing a medical malpractice claim can be for any medical professional that has gone beyond informed consent, any actions were taken that were not part of the risks, resulting in damages to the patient. Under these scenarios, a patient would have the ability to bring a case for medical malpractice in order to recover damages that occurred, because those damages occurred outside the scope of that risk and the consent that was provided to the patient.

Role of Liability in Medical Malpractice Cases

The role of liability in Charleston medical malpractice cases is whether or not the medical professional or facility, provided treatment that is below the standard of care for the industry. If they do provide treatment that is below that standard of care, then arguably medical malpractice has occurred and the injured party could bring a claim against them. The attorney will likely try to recover the damages that occurred such as physical damages and economic damages, as a result of the medical malpractice.

Signing a Consent Form

Consent or informed consent in South Carolina is the signed document that gives their permission to whoever it is that is providing treatment in the case, to treat the patient. The fabric of that informed consent is making sure that there is a proper diagnosis of whatever the medical condition(s) is.

The document points out:

  • Any risks of performing the procedure
  • The risks of not having the procedure performed
  • Any alternative procedures that may be available
  • The type of treatment that is being recommended
  • The probability of the procedure’s success
  • Level of success based upon the treatment or procedures that are being recommended

The doctor cannot commit malpractice by either not getting the permission from the patient at all to provide the treatment, or without getting all of the necessary information of that consent. It is truly an informed consent for the patient so they understand the situation when making the decision to go forward with the medical procedure or treatment that is being recommended.

Beyond Informed Consent

If something in the procedure goes beyond what was provided in the informed consent, the patient/injured party would have the ability to bring a claim for medical malpractice in order to recover damages that occurred. If someone is informed of certain risks of a procedure and something that is outside of those risks occurs, it may or may not be malpractice. However, to establish liability in Charleston medical malpractice cases, the injured party has the ability to hire experts to determine whether or not there has been medical negligence or malpractice.

It may be determined by those experts that the injured person has the ability to pursue a case to recover damages. After this is established it is important to contact an attorney to discuss the injuries that occurred outside of the scope of informed consent.

Statute of Limitations

In South Carolina, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice cases is typically three years with exceptions. One exception would be if there was some type of government nexus with the medical facility or doctors, then the injured person would be looking at a two-year statute of limitations under the State Tort Claims Act. Any type of medical malpractice claim against any type of federal facility would be subject to the two-year statute of limitations under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Generally speaking, there is a three-year statute of limitations unless something is found the Discovery Doctrine, which says that in a South Carolina medical malpractice case, the injured person has three years from when they knew or should have known that there was malpractice.

An injured person should not rely on the extension of the statute and should file their claim within three years of the malpractice or event. In some cases where the discovery doctrine can be used to extend the statute of limitations, however, there is also a concept known as the “statute of repose.” What that means is after a six-year period of time, regardless of the facts of the event or malpractice or when it occurred; after six years the claim would likely be barred regardless of when the plaintiff discovered, or knew, or should have known, that the malpractice occurred. When the malpractice concerns a minor, there is also some extension of the statute. These are all good reasons why an injured party who thinks they may be the victim of medical malpractice in South Carolina should contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney to help them work through those issues.

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