Unlike other professions, when doctors make mistakes the results can be traumatic, often leading to serious injury or death. For this reason, New Mexico's medical community is knowingly held to one of the highest levels of professional standards and conduct.
In addition to a traditional primary care doctor, a medical malpractice claim can be filed against any number of licensed health care providers, including surgeons, nurses, dentists, counselors, optometrists, psychologists and/or psychotherapists, as well as a number of other medical professionals.
Our Medical Malpractice Lawyers Are Prepared to Fight For You
If your doctor failed to competently perform his or her duties, it's possible you have a medical malpractice claim. And because these lawsuits are among the most costly and complex to pursue, it's critical that you protect your rights and any potential claim by speaking with an experienced medical malpractice lawyer.
Having a law firm that has professional relationships with medical experts is key to the building of your potential claim. Our attorneys have built a network of legal and medical professionals that we can call upon to help validate your medical malpractice claim as well as increase the strength of your case.
For more than 75 years, Keller & Keller has helped clients across the country receive compensation for highly complex and difficult injury claims, including medical malpractice lawsuits. Before you try handling this type of claim on your own, please contact one of our attorneys for free advice.
Common Types of Medical Malpractice
There is no limit to the types of medical malpractice that can occur, however, experience and time has revealed common medical mistakes that occur more often than others.
The types of medical malpractice witnessed by our office often falls into one of the following categories:
Medical Treatment Mistakes
Typically, our clients who have suffered injury due to a mistake in treatment have undergone a procedure that was either performed incorrectly or unnecessarily.
An example of a medical treatment mistake might include a surgeon operating on the wrong area of the body, or performing a surgery that was not needed.
Failure to Diagnose
If you believe your doctor failed to treat a known disease or illness, or made a diagnosis that didn't adequately address an existing condition, it's possible you'll need an attorney to investigate a potential medical malpractice claim on your behalf.
An example of failure to diagnose might include a doctor that missed the signs of a dangerous blood clot that later led to the death of a person.
Failing to Warn a Patient of Known Risks
There are varying levels of risk associated with any type of medical treatment, however, your doctor is bound by the "duty of informed consent," obligating them to warn you of any dangerous side effects associated with a procedure or type of treatment.
An example of failure to warn might include a doctor not informing you that a specific drug could worsen an existing health condition.
Who Can File a New Mexico Medical Malpractice Claim?
Anyone who believes their injury was caused by the failure of their doctor to competently treat them, can have possible grounds for a medical malpractice claim in New Mexico, but there are three important questions we typically review with our clients before your claim can be properly evaluated by a Keller & Keller attorney:
- Was There an Official Doctor-Patient Relationship?
One of the most critical aspects to any malpractice claim is proving that the doctor responsible for your injuries was officially treating you. In other words, we will need to provide proof that your doctor was knowingly hired by you and was treating you in a professional capacity.
- Was There Negligence on the Part of the Treating Doctor?
There is a large difference in perceived negligence and actual negligence with regard to medical malpractice claims. To have a valid claim, we will need to prove that your injury was caused by the treating doctor's specific mistake or error and could have been prevented had they exercised a competent level of skill and ability.
In addition to an act of negligence, you must also prove that the injury wasn't the side-effect of an already existing condition or illness.
- Are There Measurable Damages as a Result of the Negligence?
If you believe your doctor failed to meet an appropriate standard of care threshold, you must be show signs or symptoms in one or more of the following ways:
Physical Injury
Emotional Distress
Inability to Work or Earn a Living
Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations in New Mexico
Time is yet another critical factor to the successful outcome of a medical malpractice claim.
New Mexico has specific time limits (statute of limitations) of which you must be aware. If you fail to abide by the statute of limitations, your right to a recovery can be forever barred.
The statute of limitations for your case can depend on a number of factors, however, the safest way to determine the deadline dates for your particular claim is to speak to an experienced medical malpractice lawyer in New Mexico.
Contact Us for an Analysis of Your Malpractice Claim
To speak to one of our experienced injury attorneys, please call us at 1-800-253-5537, or if you prefer to write to us with the details of your medical malpractice claim, you can use our confidential, free contact form.
Our main office is located in downtown Albuquerque's Compass Bank Building, however, we can meet with you wherever is most convenient for you, including the hospital or your home.
Medical malpractice victims that have called us for help with their case live in cities throughout New Mexico, including Las Cruces, Santa Fe, Rio Ranch, Alamogordo, Roswell, Farmington, Clovis, Hobbs, Gallup, and Las Lunas, among many others.
