Medical malpractice cases can be extremely tricky to prove, as it may be difficult to show that a medical professional acted in bad faith and is liable for damages. Your first thought when facing a medical malpractice case should be, “I need to contact a medical malpractice lawyer near me.” A medical malpractice lawyer can be a huge help in building your case and in litigation. Stille, one of the most important things a medical malpractice lawyer can do for you is connect you with expert witnesses. Expert witnesses usually play a key role in medical malpractice cases, and you definitely should have one on your side. So why are expert witnesses so important, and what can they add to your case? Let’s explore the role of expert witnesses in medical malpractice cases.
Educate Those Involved
One of the most important jobs of an expert witness in a medical malpractice case educating all of those involved. Medical malpractice cases can be extremely complex and involve lots of medical jargon, making it difficult for non-experts to grasp and understand. As a result, many times judges and others involved in the case are unable to understand exactly what is going on. This can be a major problem, as if the judge can’t understand the information you’re presenting, then your case will run into some major problems. Thankfully, an expert medical witness can educate those involved, putting complex concepts into easy-to-understand layman’s terms. Helping others understand all aspects of your case could be key in getting them to realize that malpractice has occurred.
Establish Standard of Care
An extremely important task that expert witnesses have in medical malpractice cases is establishing a standard of care. In the medical field, medical professionals have a standard of care that they need to uphold. Doctors and other medical professionals have sworn to follow this standard of care and to help their patients. The standard of care can be defined as the level of skill and expertise that a similar physician from a similar community or background would provide a patient. Essentially the standard of care is how an average doctor would have treated a patient. An expert witness from the medical field would be able to layout and establish the standard of care for your doctor, detailing how they should have performed if they gave average treatment.
Prove Failure to Reach Standard of Care
Building on the establishment of a standard of care, expert medical witnesses can also help prove that a doctor failed to reach the standard of care. By establishing and proving a standard of care, the expert witness can then compare the doctor in question to the established standard. When doing this, they can point out exactly what areas the doctor neglected and how they failed to meet the standard of care. Typically, a medical expert will use cases from other doctors in the same area or similar background. The expert witness will show how these doctors helped their patients and were able to avoid the current problems the plaintiff is facing. By establishing a standard of care and then comparing the defendant to it, an expert witness can really expose the shortcoming of a doctor and prove malpractice.
