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Public Health Law Map - Beta 5 - Medical and Public Health Law Site

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defendant to pay the plaintiff money to compensate the plaintiff for an injury cased<br />

by the defendant’s actions. When the claims against private defendant, there will be<br />

medical malpractice insurance which the cost of hiring an attorney to defend the<br />

claim <strong>and</strong> any settlement or verdict awarding the plaintiff damages. If the award is<br />

very large, it may exceed the limits of the insurance <strong>and</strong> the defendant will have to<br />

contribute from personal or corporate resources. If the medical care practitioner<br />

works for a governmental agency, the governmental entity will defend the claim <strong>and</strong><br />

pay any damages.<br />

There are many other possible personal injury claims in medical care. Individuals can<br />

be injured by dangerous conditions that are unrelated to medical care delivery itself,<br />

such as slick floors or a malfunctioning elevator. There can also be intentional<br />

injuries, such as the rape of a patient by hospital employee or an assault by another<br />

patient. If the injury results from criminal activity, it may not be covered by<br />

insurance. The medical care practitioner or institution will have to pay for both the<br />

defense of the claim <strong>and</strong> any jury verdict or settlement.<br />

a) Negligence<br />

Most personal injury claims are based on negligence: that the defendant negligently<br />

injured the plaintiff. To prove a claim of negligence, the plaintiff must show four<br />

things, called the prima facie case for negligence:<br />

1. Duty—a statement of the facts that establishes the legal relationship between the<br />

plaintiff <strong>and</strong> defendant.<br />

2. Breach of the duty to the plaintiff—a statement of facts that illustrate that the<br />

defendant breached a legal duty owed the patient. In medical malpractice, this<br />

means that the defendant provided medical care that fell below the legally required<br />

st<strong>and</strong>ard.<br />

3. Causation—that the breach of the defendant’s duty caused the plaintiff’s injuries.<br />

4. Damages—the monetary value of the plaintiff’s injuries<br />

Upon the filing of these claims, the defendant may ask the judge to dismiss the<br />

plaintiff’s lawsuit for deficiencies in prima facie case. For the purpose of a motion<br />

to dismiss, the judge will assume that the facts presented by the plaintiff are<br />

correct. If, despite this assumption, the plaintiff’s prima facie case is incomplete or<br />

legally unfounded, it may be dismissed, or the plaintiff may be given an<br />

opportunity to amend it to satisfy the defense’s objections. During the pretrial<br />

phase of the lawsuit, the plaintiff must present legally sufficient evidence to<br />

support the allegations in the prima facie case.<br />

b) Res Ipsa Loquitur<br />

Res ipsa loquitur means, roughly, “the thing speaks for itself.” Courts developed the<br />

concept of res ipsa loquitur to deal with cases in which the actual negligent act<br />

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