Medical malpractice cases help protect public safety by holding healthcare providers accountable for not following the rules of medicine, which under the law is called the standard of care. Holding healthcare providers accountable motivates them to review their practices to ensure they are complying with the standard of care and to improve their healthcare quality in order to prevent future harm to others. Medical malpractice cases play a crucial role in protecting your physical, mental, and financial well-being and the community at large. Read on to learn more about how Chicago’s medical malpractice cases, healthcare quality, and public safety are intertwined.
If you believe you’re a victim of medical malpractice, contact the medical malpractice attorneys at Rapoport, Weisberg & Sims PC in Chicago. Call 312-445-9160 for a free case evaluation.
What Are the Medical Malpractice Laws in Illinois?
When you sustain injuries due to medical negligence, you have a right to file a medical malpractice case against the responsible healthcare provider. Several medical malpractice laws in Illinois will affect your case.
The statute of limitations on medical malpractice cases is one of the most important laws that impact injured patients’ claims. How long a person can take to file a medical malpractice case is also among the most frequently asked questions about medical malpractice.
The general rule in Illinois is you must file a medical malpractice lawsuit within two years from the date when you discovered or should’ve reasonably discovered the injury. There is also a law that generally bars medical malpractice lawsuits more than four years after the date of the incident that caused the medical malpractice injury. However, there are exceptions. For instance, if the medical malpractice victim is a minor, he or she generally has eight years or until his or her 22nd birthday, whichever is earlier, to file a lawsuit. Also, if the victim is under a legal disability at the time of injury, the time limits may be stayed unless and until the disability is removed.
To prove medical malpractice against a physician, nurse, or any other healthcare provider, you’ll need to demonstrate that:
- The provider deviated from the established standard of care
- The deviation caused your injury or loved one’s death
- You suffered damages as recognized under the law
You can pursue the full value of both economic and non-economic damages in Illinois. Punitive damages aren’t available in medical malpractice lawsuits in Illinois.
You must file an affidavit of merit along with your initial complaint when filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. The affidavit ascertains that a medical professional who’s knowledgeable about the issues relevant to the case has reviewed the victim’s medical records and determined that it merits bringing a lawsuit. Medical malpractice attorneys help victims comply with the state’s medical malpractice laws.
Role of Medical Malpractice Cases in Protecting the Public
Medical malpractice is one of the leading causes of injuries and death in the United States. When medical malpractice occurs it can have catastrophic results. Medical malpractice cases help protect public health and safety in a number of ways.
Whether through a negotiated settlement or trial, a medical malpractice case makes it possible to recover compensation for the harm done and losses suffered. If you don’t seek compensation, you’ll be responsible for your own injury-related expenses. Severe long-term consequences of medical malpractice, like exorbitant medical bills, ongoing care, and lost wages, could deplete your finances rapidly. Medical malpractice claims provide victims and/or their loved ones with compensation that protects them from enormous strain and financial ruin. Substantial compensation is also available for pain and suffering, disability, and disfigurement.
The damages that victims recover enable them to cover past and future medical expenses, replace lost income, and get their lives back on track as best as possible. In case of wrongful death, medical malpractice lawsuits help the grieving family members receive the financial assistance necessary to help offset the loss of the decedent’s financial contributions. Non economic damages also include loss of your loved one’s society, and compensation for grief, sorrow and mental suffering.
But there’s more to medical malpractice cases than just the provision of justice, monetary compensation, and financial support and security to the direct victims.
Better Patient Care
Healthcare providers stand to lose from being assigned liability for medical malpractice. This provides an incentive to adopt patient safety measures. The medical malpractice system helps compel medical providers to uphold stringent standards of care to ensure high-quality care and minimize legal liability, medical malpractice lawsuits, and the accompanying financial burden.
The impact of medical malpractice cases on quality improvement is evident in the history of anesthesia. Anesthesia mishaps caused numerous preventable deaths in the 20th century. Medical malpractice lawsuits made anesthesiologists seek to address the causes of the errors. Today, anesthesia is much safer, and anesthesia-related lawsuits have also reduced significantly.
On the other hand, a recent study by Northwestern University professors found that care became worse when laws that made it harder to sue healthcare providers were passed. When laws are passed making it more difficult to sue healthcare providers or limiting damages, as a direct result lawsuits to hold them accountable are no longer brought in many cases, which causes the quality of care to diminish.
Preventing Future Harm to Others
Medical malpractice cases help prevent others from experiencing similar harm in the future. Medical malpractice law helps discourage healthcare providers from engaging in poor medical practices and making the same mistakes in the future. A study that was published in the February 2013 issue of the University of Chicago’s The Journal of Law and Economics found evidence suggesting malpractice liability pressure helped deter preventable medical complications.
Medical malpractice cases also encourage hospitals to be selective about the medical staff they hire and retain. They can review a doctor’s medical malpractice history on databases like the National Practitioner Data Bank and protect their patients from being served by doctors who’ve racked up a disproportionate amount of claims.
The Importance of Creating Awareness and Transparency in the Healthcare System
Medical malpractice reduction and prevention require creating awareness of medical errors and best practices to follow, and fostering a culture of transparency. Institutional awareness can be created by hospitals providing ongoing training and education to keep medical staff up to date with the required safety protocols, procedures, and medical practices.
Healthcare providers should promote open communication and more transparency with patients about their treatment options, costs, and risks involved. In case of errors and unanticipated outcomes, healthcare providers should address the issue promptly, responsibly, and transparently. Providers should conduct thorough investigations and communicate the unexpected outcomes and the reasons for their occurrence to patients.
These measures will help enhance health outcomes and public trust in the medical system, and strengthen provider-patient relationships.
What Is the Impact of Medical Malpractice Cases on Healthcare Quality in Illinois?
Medical malpractice cases have led to several changes in Illinois aimed at enhancing healthcare quality and patient safety. These include:
Patient-Centered Care
Illinois hospitals that have been held liable for medical malpractice have been increasingly adopting proactive patient-centered care models to reduce adverse events.
Two major Chicago public hospital systems — the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences and Cook County Health and Hospitals — paid out over $160 million for medical malpractice cases from 2012 to around September 2016. Both hospitals resorted to taking proactive action to reduce medical errors and addressing medical mistakes transparently. Officials from both hospitals say they research malpractice incidents more thoroughly and take corrective actions to improve patient safety.
The University of Illinois Medical Center’s patient-centered system that it adopted includes staff meeting with patients after an adverse event occurs to apologize and offer a solution and waiving bills for prescription drugs and physician and hospital costs.
Since 2010, neglect and errors have contributed to more than 10 deaths at Roseland Hospital, some of which led to lawsuits being filed against the facility. Since 2021, the hospital has been examining patient safety practices and taking steps to enhance them.
Some steps the hospital took included daily nursing care audits, retraining sessions on the frequency of assessing patients, and hiring a new chief quality officer to focus mainly on ensuring adherence to patient safety protocols.
Improved Oversight of Physicians
Changes were made to the Illinois law to have additional members of the public appointed to the State Medical Disciplinary Board. The board reviews complaints filed by citizens against licensed doctors and recommends disciplinary action, such as license suspension, probation, and revocation.
Ordinary citizens have also received roles in the internal committees and advisory boards of hospitals. For example, the family of a woman who died from a medical error at the U of I Hospital in 2008 accepted the invitation to serve on the hospital’s internal committee and help with patient safety issues.
Medical boards maintain their focus on protecting the health and well-being of patients rather than trying to shield doctors from scrutiny and lawsuits when there are more ordinary citizens serving as board members.
Legal Reforms Resulting in Higher Accountability in Chicago
Medical malpractice cases in Illinois have led to legal reforms that have resulted in greater accountability and benefited patients.
Before 2010, medical malpractice cases were subject to damage caps. The Illinois Supreme Court ruled in 2010 in a lawsuit against Gottlieb Memorial Hospital that damage caps in medical malpractice cases were unconstitutional. These caps limited the rights of medical malpractice victims who had been severely injured by hospitals and doctors. It also limited the right of juries and judges to determine the fair damages to be awarded.
Medical malpractice cases filed after the ruling no longer have non-economic damage caps. This has helped ensure higher accountability, better compliance with the standard of care, and more reliability in the Illinois healthcare industry.
Nevertheless, being able to hold healthcare providers fully accountable for their actions doesn’t mean you’re assured of receiving your rightful compensation in a medical malpractice case. You’ll still need to prove the harm suffered. Additionally, the lack of a cap on the amount of non-economic damages you can recover will likely lead to medical providers and their insurers fiercely contesting your claim. Consequently, it’s crucial to have an experienced attorney who has successfully handled medical malpractice cases in Chicago and throughout Illinois and has litigation experience on your side.
Rapoport, Weisberg & Sims PC attorneys have an outstanding success record with medical malpractice cases and are skilled negotiators and experienced litigators. Contact us today for a free initial consultation in Chicago.
