If someone slips and falls in a hospital, whether it is a case of medical malpractice can depend on a number of factors. It is important to determine if a case involves medical malpractice or simple negligence because it can have a significant effect on the procedural steps that must be taken by the plaintiff.
In addition to depending on the circumstances surrounding a fall, where a case is tried can also determine how a case is classified. States that have stricter rules related to medical malpractice can make it harder to prove malpractice, but even within states, different judges and jurisdictions can come to different conclusions, even with similar circumstances.
One common thread is that the plaintiff will normally need to get a medical expert to confirm that a case involved malpractice before the lawsuit can proceed. In addition, it is often required that there is a substantive link between the fall, the facility’s safety standards and its furnishing of health care to the plaintiff for a case to be classified as malpractice.
Hospital negligence in a medical malpractice setting, even when a court allows a case to proceed, often requires a comprehensive review of the plaintiff’s medical records and expert testimony from medical professionals to the effect that the hospital breached its duty of care to the patient. While a simple premises liability case also requires a demonstration of negligence, it may be easier for an injured victim’s attorney to show that the hospital was or should have been aware of a hazardous condition that led to the plaintiff falling and sustaining injuries.