Medical malpractice is an oversight or omission of the proper medical treatment available by a health care professional in the care of an individual that results in injury or harm to the patient. Every year thousands of Americans are injured, hospitalized or die from mistakes due to incorrect diagnosis, hospital negligence or prescription errors. The consequences to the patients and their families can be devastating. You should not expect to endure a life of pain and suffering because of someone else's oversight or negligence. The Dummit Law Firm will work aggressively to see that those responsible are held accountable.

Medical malpractice, sometimes referred to as medical negligence, occurs when a health care provider violates the governing standard of care when providing treatment to a patient, causing the patient to suffer an injury. Medical malpractice can result from an action taken by the medical practitioner, or by the failure to take a medically appropriate action. Examples of medical malpractice include:

• Misdiagnosis of, or failure to diagnose , a disease or medical condition;
• Failure to provide appropriate treatment for a medical condition;
• Unreasonable delay in treating a diagnosed medical condition;

To successfully pursue a medical malpractice claim, the following four criteria must be met:

• There must be a duty owed to the patent to follow the standard of care
• There must be a breach of that standard of care - this is typically proven by way of expert testimony
• The breach must be the proximate cause of the injuries
• The injuries must have caused damages

For actions filed on or after January 1, 1996, an expert witness must be a licensed health care provider practicing or teaching in the same or similar specialty as the person for whom or against whom testimony is offered. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 8C-1, Rules of Evidence, Rule 702 (Supp. 1996). On motion by either party, the trial court may allow expert testimony from a person not meeting these criteria, but who is otherwise qualified as an expert witness. Id.

A complaint that alleges medical malpractice shall be dismissed unless it asserts that a health care provider meeting the qualifications described in Rule 702 is willing to testify that the medical care did not meet the applicable standard of care, or it asserts facts exist establishing negligence under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1A-1, Rules of Civ. Pro., Rule 9(j) (Supp. 1997).