Mistakes to Avoid After a Medical Malpractice Case

Answer:

When you’re dealing with a medical malpractice case here in Arizona, because of the complexity of these cases and the detailed nature of them and the professional areas of medical practice that you could be dealing with (oncology or gastroenterology, for example), there are a number of mistakes you can make. One of the most common mistakes is not going to follow up appointments. If there are independent medical examinations that are ordered by the court or requested by an opposing party as a part of the litigation, don’t take those things lightly. You’re going to need all of your medical records going years back. Another common mistake we see clients make is not taking this stuff seriously. We get it. It’s an arduous process. People are prying into your personal business, learning about medical issues that you may have had that are not even relevant to the case that you’re pursuing the medical malpractice claims for, but you have to endure that process and not tire out. Take all of your appointments seriously. Get all of your records, all of your bills. You can’t come along 30, 60, or 90 days after the case has settled or a verdict has been given to you by a jury and say, “Oh, wait, I forgot this $90,000 helicopter bill.” That’s really not going to work in your favor, so get all of your medical records, all of your medical bills. Get all of the information that is requested by your attorney and by the opposing attorney to make sure that we have a complete picture of what has happened to you, so we can determine what the deviation from the standard of care was, what was done compared to what should have been done, so that we can get this information to the experts that will be necessary. Take the process seriously. I get it. It’s a slow process and you want it to be over quickly, but, again, don’t make the mistake of not taking the gathering and the collection of information seriously as it relates to your medical malpractice case here in Arizona. Our statutes demand that these records be turned over within a certain number of days after the complaint and the response is filed. You really have to be on top of this stuff so that you don’t lose any of your claims. Talk with your attorney. If you know you’re going to have problems getting the records or getting the bills, make sure you let one of us know so that we can walk you through the process and we can make sure that your claims are preserved.