Medical malpractice can have devastating consequences. In Lubbock, Texas, patients are protected by laws that hold healthcare providers accountable.
From misdiagnoses to surgical mistakes, medical malpractice can severely impact patients’ lives. Know the signs and when to take action in Lubbock, TX.
Medical malpractice is the area of law that handles claims when a patient is injured by a medical professional while receiving healthcare. “Injured” can mean the person suffered an injury or illness or an existing condition worsened due to the medical professional’s negligence.
This can happen at any level of healthcare, from a phlebotomist who makes a mistake during a routine blood draw to a surgeon tending to a trauma patient after a serious accident.
Medical malpractice occurs when a medical professional deviates from what is considered in the field to be the accepted standard of care.
This can include (but is not limited to) the following types of mistakes:
- misreading or disregarding a lab result
- unnecessary surgery
- failure to diagnose a condition
- incorrect diagnosis
- improper medication or dosing
- poor or insufficient follow-up care
- premature discharge
Lubbock medical malpractice cases
The U.S. military and the death of Caleb Smither
Lubbock resident Heather Baker took her son’s story public in 2022. Baker has filed a lawsuit against the Army for the death of her son, though the U.S. Army conducts its own investigation.
Baker’s son, Caleb Smither, was a young army private who was stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina for only seven weeks before he died. According to Baker, Smither died of bacterial meningitis. Hospital reports indicate he was vomiting water, sensitive to light, shaking and pale prior to his death. However, Baker claims Smither was told to wear goggles for the light sensitivity and he was forced to stay in his room; she says soldiers were supposed to check on him but didn’t. She says their failure to check on him and provide medical treatment is gross negligence that resulted in his death. Smither was ultimately found deceased in his bunk after six days of being left alone.
Claims involving the U.S. military are adjudicated within its own military courts and outside of the U.S. court system. However, this is an example of how medical malpractice claims sometimes arise from a lack of medical treatment and negligence.
Harper v. University Medical Center
In another instance, a lawsuit was filed against a group of Lubbock doctors and nurses at University Medical Center for the death of 57-year-old Nelda Harper of Lubbock in 2001.
Harper had gall bladder surgery in April of 1999. In June of that year, she died from improper treatment of an infection (sepsis) caused by a bile leak from surgery. According to the victim’s family’s lawsuit, doctors and nurses were grossly negligent by failing to respond to lab and diagnostic reports, the patient’s complaints, and apparent signs over a two-month period indicating a bile duct leak.
McQuillen v. Lubbock Heart Hospital
This case was made sensational for an unusual reason: Lubbock resident Kassandra “Chaos Kass” McQuillen is best known for her role on the television series Survivor. She’s also the plaintiff in a medical lawsuit for what she claims were unnecessary heart surgeries performed at Lubbock Heart Hospital.
McQuillen claimed her cardiologist implanted a pacemaker in her body when it was unnecessary. Later opinions from other doctors indicated she did not have a condition that required a pacemaker.
In most instances, the outcome of these types of cases is not publicly available.
What should you do if you might have a Lubbock medical malpractice claim?
If you believe you’re a victim of medical malpractice in Lubbock, there are a few steps you can take toward seeking compensation:
- Contact a Lubbock medical malpractice attorney. Medical malpractice is part of personal injury law, though some lawyers will be more experienced in this particular practice area than others.
- File a complaint with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) Health Facility Compliance Unit.
- Know the statute of limitations for your claim. The statute of limitations is when you must file a lawsuit, or the court can decide not to hear your case. In Texas, the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice lawsuit is two years from the date of the injury or two years from the date the injury was discovered.
There are exceptions to this rule, however. If the harm was part of ongoing treatment, the clock begins to run when the treatment ends. If the injury is to a child under 12, the parent or guardian has until the child’s 14th birthday to file a lawsuit. The final exception is if the healthcare provider intentionally conceals the negligence that led to the injury, then the statute of limitations pauses until the patient discovers the fraud. - Preserve evidence and maintain documentation of the injury. If you suspect medical malpractice, it’s important to document your condition each day, particularly if there are changes to your symptoms. Maintain a journal where you keep records of how you feel daily, any treatments, doctor visits, medications, and financial costs. If you visit a specialist or seek additional opinions about your condition, you should make notes of those doctors’ assessments and recommendations.
Daily “check-ins” are important because if you ever need to testify to your symptoms in court, you have more credibility if you can say, “I suffered a headache on these 12 days in the month of March,” rather than, “I have a lot of headaches,” without specifics. - Seek a second opinion. It’s important to be examined by a physician with knowledge of the specialty related to your illness who is not affiliated with the doctor or hospital that you believe committed the medical malpractice.
How can you prove medical malpractice?
Medical malpractice is based on the provider’s negligence.
Negligence has four elements:
- Duty. Once the doctor/patient relationship is established, the health care provider owes you a duty of care. This duty requires your doctor to act like any other doctor would in that same situation and follow accepted medical practices considered standard in the field.
- Breach. Once the duty of care is established, your physician must exercise reasonable care and treat you like any similar doctor would. They must follow common procedures and typically accepted treatments.
- Injury. To win a medical malpractice suit, your attorney must prove that your doctor directly caused your injuries, illness, or worsened condition.
- Damages. Your attorney must prove that the patient suffered economic and non-economic damages from the injury. Economic damages are the financial costs for medical treatment, lost wages, costs of daily living and childcare, and so on. Non-economic damages include pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and other emotional distress.
Damage caps on Lubbock medical malpractice claims
Some jurisdictions place maximums (caps) on the damages available to a plaintiff in some types of lawsuits. Texas caps damages for medical malpractice claims; regardless of how severe the injury is and how much the jury wants to award, the verdict or settlement cannot exceed these caps.
- Non-economic damages: $250,000 cap per claimant against a physician or health care provider
- Non-economic damages: $250,000 cap per claimant against a single healthcare institution
- Non-economic damages: $500,000 cap per claimant against multiple healthcare institutions overall, and no single institution can be liable for more than $250,000
- No cap on economic damages
If you or a loved one are the victim of Lubbock medical malpractice, you can find a medical malpractice attorney who will guide you through the process, negotiate on your behalf, and explore your options for compensation.
See our guide Choosing a personal injury attorney.