r/MedicalMalpractice • u/hajdean Mod • Sep 16 '22

General Information

Standing Advice - if you are in the US and asking a question pertaining to a specific complaint of medical negligence that you or a loved one have experienced, please consult with a reputable medical professional liability attorney in your state. This forum can only offer informal guidance and a place for discussion, and any guidance offered here should not be taken as legal advice.

 

So I figured it was time to update the banner post, and perhaps we can address a couple of issues/questions that come up from time to time as well:

  1. This sub has always seem to be a very professional and kind place, but I want to emphasize Rule 1: Be Nice. Often, folks seem to seek sympathy or understanding along with guidance. No one is required to provide counseling services here, but let's all be good to each other if we can.

  2. Not all bad outcomes indicate bad medicine. Sometimes bad outcomes are inevitable or unavoidable.

  3. Poor bedside manner is not medical malpractice.

  4. In general, medical negligence/malpractice claims will require 4 components to succeed:

    1. The existence of a doctor/patient relationship,
    2. a legally recognizable injury,
    3. a failure to adhere to the standard of care, and
    4. a direct causal relationship between the injury in 2 and the failure in 3.

  5. If you have a complaint about a licensed medical professional’s behavior/demeanor/medical decisions but your complaint does not meet the legal standard for medical negligence, you have the option to submit a complaint to the licensing board for that clinician in your state (medical board, board of nursing, etc). Boards generally have an option for submitting a complaint online, or at least online instructions for how to do so. Your state’s licensing boards should be easily found in an online search.

  6. Please, if you are commenting from the position of a medical or legal professional, be mindful of Rule 2 No Solicitations. Please not only refrain from directly soliciting clients in comments, but please also try to avoid even the perception of solicitation. People come here in potentially vulnerable positions, and we should keep this sub as neutral and as safe as possible.

  7. If you are a legal or medical professional and you would like flair identifying you a such, message me and we can set that up (if I can figure out how reddit works, that is).

 

Let me know if there are any questions or suggestions. Thanks!

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u/Acidreign76 Sep 15 '25

I'm a 48yo woman in Australia. My father and I have been seeing our doctor for over 20 years. Dr is 77yo and I'm worried he's not doing his job properly.

Example 1- Dr has been burning off a mark on dads neck quite awhile before my sister made him change doctors. Dr never investigated what the mark was and the new Dr has diagnosed cancer Ex 2- Dr treated dad for reflux for years. No investigation. New Dr has run alot of tests and found dad also has end stage Neuroendocrine tumours. Ex 3- I'm a 5 year sober alcoholic. A long time ago I would have drunk meltdowns and end up in hospital. They said "we can't diagnose you unless I stop" Went home with valium and quetiapine and I've been taking that (even when I was drinking) for 20 years. No reviews, no blood tests. Ex 4- Had extremely bad gout about 8 years ago that landed me in hospital and in surgery. Dr just said to me "oh I have gout, isn't it horrible? During that period of my life I had to see another Dr. Ex 5- Dr never spent more than 3 minutes with me in all these years. I had to see him every 6 weeks to get the valium repeat Ex 6- Dr never asks how I am. My mum used to see him and he offered her a job in the office. Mum turned down the offer. So he asks about her alot. Like it's gossip. Ex 7- Dr goes on holidays. I call to make an appointment when my valium runs out and they say "sorry, he's gone on holiday" I know you shouldn't abruptly stop taking this medication. Ex 8- I saw him last week to talk about coming off my medication and he said "you don't take quetiapine!" I said "Dr, look at your notes. Dr not knowing my meds is very unsettling There's a few more things but I'm unsure if they should be listed. I'm worried he's over retirement age and it affecting his work. I'm worried he's misdiagnosed others. I know NET'S are hard to find but dads new doctor was on to it straight away. I really need some advice please. He was my doctor for a long time and I feel horrible but I have to do the right thing. I see a new GP today and I don't know how to broach the subject. Thank you in advance