Loss of Chance Doctrine Claims Can Be Avoided, Health Risk Management quotes Henry Norwood, Esq., 12-1-2024

Plaintiffs can claim loss of chance when a medical condition is not diagnosed soon enough. The physician is responsible for damages equal to the potential for cure that was lost.

Two Main Types of Claims

There are only two areas where these types of claims normally happen, says Henry Norwood, JD, an attorney with the Kaufman Dolowich law firm in San Francisco. The first is misdiagnoses, in which a provider does not recognize indications of disease, fails to properly test, or misconstrues symptoms, he says. The patient subsequently is found to have a serious ailment, and the misdiagnosis reduces the chance of survival, he explains. “The second biggest area normally happens in hospitals, specifically where a patient is admitted, and they’re essentially forgotten about or neglected while they’re in a patient room. The patient is sort of sitting there with an emergency condition, and they’re not getting treatment,” Norwood says. “Either the patient passes away, or the providers finally get to them, and they’re able to treat them. But, as a result, they have some sort of a debilitating condition just because they weren’t seen quickly enough.”age-based number,” Norwood says. “And, as a result, we’re seeing cases that allow 14% as sufficient for a loss of chance claim to go forward, whereas only a 1% to 3% chance is not substantial enough. As a result, there are more loss of chance claims being allowed, and they’re becoming more popular.” See rest of quote at link.

Read more at the full article.