Auburn Memorial Hospital

Auburn Memorial Hospital, now known as Auburn Community Hospital, is located in the Finger Lakes Region of New York. It is a not-for-profit hospital with 99 beds in its acute care facility. The hospital serves a population of around 80,000 people. More than 95% of its physicians are board certified in at least one specialty. Although there are many experienced and excellent doctors and nurses at Auburn Memorial Hospital, you may still be injured by a doctor or nurse's failure to abide by the professional standard of care, such as during a surgical procedure. If you were harmed as a result of professional negligence during your hospital stay, the experienced Auburn medical malpractice attorneys of DeFrancisco & Falgiatano can help you understand your legal options.

Medical malpractice can occur in many different ways, but not every error constitutes actionable medical malpractice. To establish medical malpractice in New York, you'll need to show: (1) a doctor-patient relationship, (2) breach of the professional duty of care, (3) causation, and (4) actual damages. Doctors and nurses can breach the professional duty of care in many different ways. They can fail to sterilize equipment, fail to conduct a proper differential diagnosis, fail to diagnose, misdiagnose, use an improper treatment, make a prescription error, err during surgery, order a surgery that isn't warranted, or fail to obtain informed consent.

Although you have two and a half years from the acts constituting medical negligence to sue for damages, it is better to consult a seasoned medical malpractice attorney in Auburn earlier, as soon as you suspect misconduct. It can be difficult to find and consult with an expert who believes there is malpractice, and it is important for the expert to have time to review your medical records and form expert opinions.

When you file a medical malpractice complaint, you will also need to file a Rule 3012-a certificate. The certificate has to state that the facts were reviewed and discussed with a healthcare expert who is licensed to practice medicine, and that you reasonably believe she understands the medical issues associated with your claim. You have to be able to say that due to this consultation, you think it's reasonable to sue your health care provider. Sometimes multiple doctors or nurses at a hospital have committed malpractice, but only one certificate need be filed. Still, it can take time to find the right expert, and a skilled Auburn medical malpractice lawyer can help you identify one.

If you bring a medical malpractice lawsuit, you will need to show it's more likely than not: (1) a doctor-patient relationship existed, (2) the defendant fell below the professional standard of care, (3) actual and legal causation occurred, and (4) damages resulted. Usually it is clear that there was a doctor-patient relationship. However, you will need an expert to establish what the professional standard of care was in most circumstances, and also to establish causation. Sometimes defendants argue that the harm you claim was caused by professional negligence is actually the result of the illness or medical condition progressing.

In addition to holding a specific doctor or nurse liable for malpractice, you may be able to hold the hospital itself accountable. A hospital may be accountable for its employees' negligence in the course and scope of their jobs. They may also be held accountable under the doctrine of apparent authority, even if the doctor who committed malpractice is not a hospital employee, so long as the doctor appeared to be employed by the hospital (such as an ER doctor). Sometimes a hospital may be responsible for a laboratory's misreadings of diagnostic imaging or blood work.

It may be possible to recover compensatory damages arising out of medical malpractice. These are damages intended to put you back into the condition you would have been in if appropriate care been given and malpractice not occurred. These damages can include medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and mental anguish.

DeFrancisco & Falgiatano represents patients injured at Auburn Memorial Hospital and other facilities. Please call us at 833-200-2000 or contact us via our online form to learn more about your options after suffering harm due to medical malpractice.