The studied lawyers at Percy Martinez Law firm at encountered injured people who believe that their injuries were caused by a first responder such as a paramedic or ambulance company who acted negligently. The question they ask is: “Can these first responders be held responsible for the medical malpractice injuries that they caused me while being treated? Like so many other questions related to the law, the answer to this is “it varies”.
Who Is Responsible for EMS-related Errors?
For example, a man suffered a neck injury that restricted the blood from going to his brain. 911 was called by one of his relatives. The ambulance takes approximately 15 minutes to arrive, which is an extremely long time. The operation on the victim begins an hour after the whole problem surfaced. The patient suffers severe brain damage but thankfully survives. The expert medical witnesses for the case states that if the surgery would have commenced within 20 minutes of the 911 call than it had originally done, a full recovery could have happened.
Now, who can be sued in that situation? Since the ambulance service is a private organization, and the 911 service is county-owned, the injured person could sue one or all the following: the EMT, the hospital facility, the county, and the private organization of the ambulance service. There are special immunity rules that apply to the county workers, which often can be difficult to prove that they were at fault. Every case is distinct and all have different variables.
EMT and Paramedic Malpractice Cases Affect by Laws
Regardless of what medical malpractice case it is, the root of it all is that the patient must prove how the defendant acted negligently. A breach of the duty of care must be displayed. Each state has a different policy tied into cases where a paramedic or EMT was negligent. ‘Medical standard of care’ is the most common policy, which is when EMT’s need to act as would another similarly skilled EMT in the same situation. The EMT or paramedic would be held responsible under this standard.
‘Gross negligence’ is another policy used. This is when lawsuits are limited for EMT if they happened to fall under the level of care that another EMT would have provided. For example, an EMT does not treat someone having a heart attack, that would be considered gross negligence, but if the EMT treats the person suffering a heart attack, but does so incorrectly, that may not be considered gross negligence.
Another policy is known as the “willful and wanton” conduct. Under this standard, the injured person would have to prove how the EMT did not want to treat them even though they could have for whatever reason, an example being discrimination. Proving this can be challenging, but very rarely does it happen
Finding Out Your Rights
Regardless of how it happened, contacting a skillful Miami Personal injury lawyer at Percy Martinez law firm can help determine whether the victim has enough to establish a case against a first-responder. The firm has encountered many victims who suffered by a first responder’s hands. They fight for the maximum compensation and do not rest until the victim has regained some enjoyment in their life. Receive a free consultation today (305)529-001
