The administering of anesthesia to patients in preparation for medical procedures presents particular risks, and serious problems may arise if there are errors made. Similar to other professional medical procedures, the hospital must uphold standards of practice to ensure the safety of patients who are undergoing treatments, and if those standards are violated, the patient and his or her family could be entitled to compensation for the resulting pain and suffering.
There are three types of anesthesia (general – where the patient is unconscious, regional – where part of the patient’s body is anesthetized, and local – where only a small part of the body is treated). If the anesthesiologist administers the wrong type of anesthesia (too much or too little), fails to monitor the patient while he or she is under treatment, or fails to properly respond to complications that arise during treatment, etc., serious harm can result.
Common maladies that result from errors in the administering and monitoring of anesthesia include:
- Brain damage
- Pneumonia
- Amnesia
- Nerve injury
- Blood clots
- Allergic reactions
- Stroke
- Death
There are various factors that must be considered in assessing whether negligence has in fact caused harm to a patient. Expert witnesses—physicians with experience in the relevant fields—must review the relevant records and information and must provide testimony in support of a claim of medical negligence.
Adding to the complexity of these cases is the fact that the various types of health care providers such as surgeons, anesthesiologists, radiologists, nurses, and others often work independently, or under the employ of various corporate entities that play a role in the administering of medical care. For this reason, determining where responsibility lies for medical negligence can be difficult and arduous which is why an attorney well versed in medical malpractice law is so important when it comes to filing a lawsuit.
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