Medical Malpractice Attorney: Fairfax, Virginia
We put a lot of trust in our doctors, hospitals, nurses and other health care providers. When a doctor makes mistakes that result in an avoidable serious injury or death, it feels like a major violation of that trust.
If you or a family member has been injured — or worse — by a doctor's negligent care, you should immediately seek legal help from a qualified and experienced medical malpractice attorney. Medical malpractice cases can be very difficult to prove and your attorney will want to start investigating and retaining medical experts as soon as possible.
The Law Offices of P. Clark Kattenburg, P.C. ∙ Fairfax, Virginia
Medical Malpractice Plaintiffs' Attorney
703-591-1833 ∙ E-mail
Attorney P. Clark Kattenburg is a medical malpractice lawyer with more than 35 years of legal experience. He is the veteran of nearly 100 jury trials including medical malpractice cases. He is qualified to handle any type of medical malpractice case:
- Failure to diagnose cancer or other illnesses or delay in diagnosing cancer, thereby depriving the patient of any substantial chance of survival
- Hospital negligence, including bedsores (decubitus ulcers) and failing to implement bed restraints or following doctors’ orders or administering incorrect medicines.
- Pharmacy malpractice, such as incorrect dosages or incorrect instructions
- Nursing home negligence
What is Medical Malpractice?
A successful medical malpractice claim requires more than proving that a doctor or other health care provider made a mistake that led to avoidable injury, illness or pain.
A successful medical malpractice claim requires proof that your doctor or other medical provider did not meet the applicable standard of care for the procedure or diagnosis that is at issue. A physician, however, is not a warrantor or insurer of the success of the treatment and is not held to the highest standard of care known to the medical profession. Rather, the physician is held to the standard of the reasonably prudent practitioner in his field or specialty. Accordingly, a physician who undertakes treatment of a patient impliedly represents that he posses that degree of skill and diligence in the diagnosis and treatment of the patient employed by a reasonably prudent practitioner in the physician’s field of practice of specialty. This is an objective standard and expert testimony is ordinarily necessary to establish the appropriate standard of care. So, for example, if your surgeon operates on you adhering to the standard of care for the surgery that is being preformed, but an injury results nonetheless, then you may not have a valid medical malpractice claim. Likewise, a health care provider may breach the standard of care but there may be causation issues that preclude recovery. Generally, however, if your health care provider fails to follow the standard of care and causes an injury to you, then you may have a valid claim for medical malpractice.
An experienced and successful medical malpractice attorney like Mr. Kattenburg can evaluate your claim with the help of medical experts to give you an informed opinion about whether malpractice occurred and whether your claim of medical malpractice stands any chance of success.
If you have additional questions about medical malpractice, we invite you to visit our Medical Malpractice Information Center. If you need more answers, we encourage you to contact our offices to schedule a consultation. Call 703-591-1833 or send us an e-mail.
