Houston Failure to Diagnose Attorney
Fighting For Failure to Diagnose Victims in Texas
When dealing with failure-to-diagnose cases in Houston, TX, it’s essential to understand the local legal framework. In Texas, medical malpractice laws require plaintiffs to provide a pre-suit declaration from a medical professional supporting the claim of negligence. This reinforces the importance of collaborating with legal professionals who possess in-depth knowledge of local statutes and court expectations. At The Brothers Law Firm, we ensure every legal avenue is explored, utilizing our network of medical professionals who can substantiate your claim.
Call The Brothers Law Firm today at (903) 829-3877 or contact us online to schedule a consultation with our failure to diagnose attorney in Houston.
What is a Failure to Diagnose Lawsuit?
Although medicine is a science, it is a less-than-perfect science where doctors make mistakes. When an error occurs due to negligence, the patient may have a failure to diagnose medical malpractice lawsuit. Failure to diagnose means that an individual saw a physician for specific symptoms, and the doctor failed to diagnose a condition or disease. Because of that failure to diagnose, the individual may have missed the window for treatment or been treated for the wrong illness or condition. If the doctor failed to recognize a set of symptoms that indicated a serious condition, the failure could result in a fatality or unnecessary suffering for a patient. Failure to diagnose could include:
- Failure to follow up with a patient regarding medical test results
- Failure to properly screen for a specific medical condition
- Failure to take a complete patient history and thoroughly discuss the patient's symptoms
- Failure to investigate potential causes of reported symptoms
- Misinterpretation of lab test results
- Failure to refer a patient to a specialist
If you feel you have suffered harm due to a failure to diagnose by your physician, speaking to Attorney John Brothers may benefit you. When the trust placed in a physician or other medical professional has been compromised, John Brothers and The Brothers Law Firm can be trusted to help you recover compensation for your damages. Money cannot change what happened; however, financial resources can help you and your family move forward.
What Conditions Are Most Likely to Be Missed?
Unfortunately, the conditions most likely involved in a failure to diagnose include serious diseases that can significantly worsen over time without an accurate diagnosis and treatment, such as:
- Lung cancer
- Colon cancer
- Breast cancer
- Melanoma
- Asthma
- Lymph node inflammation
- Heart attacks
- Fetal distress
- Meningitis
- Staph infections
- Kidney disease
- PCOS
- Strokes
How Often Does Failure to Diagnose Occur?
According to a CBS News article, approximately 12 million adults in the United States are misdiagnosed or whose medical condition is not adequately diagnosed—a figure that equals one in every 20 adults. In at least half of these cases, the failure to diagnose or a misdiagnosis can result in significant harm. Prior studies focused primarily on misdiagnoses and failures to diagnose in hospital settings; however, it appears a considerable number of patients are suffering from a failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis in doctor's offices and outpatient clinics. The 12 million Americans suffering from a misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose represent about five percent of outpatient encounters.
While this may not sound huge, when lives are at stake, it is simply too high. Doctors must take the time to do a thorough exam and listen to their patients describe their symptoms. Unfortunately, in today's world, doctor's visits tend to be rushed, almost across the board, and that can result in failures to diagnose. Patients must be their own advocates, chasing down test results if they don't hear anything following tests and ensuring their doctor is listening to them.
What Are Some of the Most Common Types of Failure to Diagnose?
Diagnostic mistakes can occur in many ways, including:
- Failure to recognize complications of a specific disease or condition. The doctor may have made the right diagnosis but then failed to identify any difficulties or factors that could worsen the illness or condition.
- Failure to diagnose a disease related to the primary condition. The doctor may have adequately diagnosed the primary condition while failing to diagnose related diseases that often accompany the condition.
- Total missed diagnosis where the patient is given a clean bill of health, even though they have a serious illness or disease.
- Failure to diagnose the disease in time (delayed diagnosis) to ensure prompt treatment, allowing the disease to progress, possibly to the point where no treatment will help the patient.
Dedicated. Experienced. Successful.
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“He kept me informed throughout my case and was always available to answer any questions…During this difficult time, he was always compassionate and understanding. I would highly recommend John Brothers.”- J. Kveton
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“He ALWAYS represented me fairly and honestly, plus he is a very good at just visiting with you. After a short while i quit worrying about his his legal ability, honesty and integrity as he has no shortcomings in these areas.”- Dick A.
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“He is wonderful and get the job done couldn’t ask for better attorney. I will definitely recommend him to all my friends if they need a medical malpractice attorney.”- Amanda S.
In zealously representing our clients, we follow the Golden Rule, providing the same representation to our clients that we would provide to our family. Our goal is to efficiently prosecute our clients’ claims to maximize client recovery, mitigate the financial burden imposed upon our clients’ lives, and to deter similar wrongs from happening to others. One of the ways we aim to stand out from other law firms by the personal service we provide.
