Although it is sometimes difficult to except, death is an inevitable event in life. While it is a stage in life, you are often not prepared to deal with and accept the sudden death of a loved one due to the negligence of a medical professional.
Because must trust is placed in doctors and hospitals, it is challenging to understand how their conduct resulted in the death of a loved one. In addition to the emotions and grief, the losses can be extensive for the surviving family members. Thus, it is important to understand how a wrongful death lawsuit could help to address the losses and damages suffered.
Wrongful death action
When seeking help from a hospital for an injury or illness, the last thing expected is for negligence or mistakes to result in the death of a patient. However, when these unfortunate events occur and result in death, the law provides a remedy for surviving family member to hold the negligent party accountable and recover compensation for losses.
In Montana, a wrongful death action is filed by the personal representative of the decedent’s estate. This civil lawsuit claims that the decedent died due to the negligence of another party, or, in other words, breached their duty of care. With regards to hospital, they owe a duty of care to their patients. As such, when that duty of care is breached and results in death, a wrongful death action could be filed against the hospital.
Medical malpractice and hospital liability
When a hospital is named in a wrongful death lawsuit, it is likely that the matter also involved medical malpractice. This occurs when the medical professionals at the hospital provided care to the patient that deviates from the established standard of care for their profession. As a result, this resulted in the harm, injury or death of the patient.
Often, claims of medical malpractice leading to the wrongful death of a patient involves negligent conduct. This could include misconduct such as misdiagnosis, medication errors, medical negligence, surgical errors or the failure to provide proper treatment.
A wrongful death suit not only helps loved ones recover compensation to address the losses suffered, but it can also help with the grieving process. While it is difficult to navigate a complex and serious situation while you are coping with a loss, you should understand that you do not need to go through this alone. A legal professional can provide guidance, ensuring you are aware of your rights and legal options.
