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THERE IS SUCH A THING AS DENTAL MALPRACTICE
BUT HOW WILL YOU KNOW IF IT HAPPENS TO YOU?
Malpractice is the professional equivalent of running a red light. Just as you must adhere to a certain standard of care in your driving (for example, staying on the right, stopping at stop signs, maintaining safe speeds) so do professionals in their treatment of patients and clients.
When professionals provide treatment below the standards of their profession, they commit malpractice; and if injury results, you have the right to make a claim.
There are possibilities for malpractice in any professional setting, but this brief explanation is only about the possibility of dental malpractice. |
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WHAT ARE EXAMPLES OF DENTAL MALPRACTICE?
There arc a variety of dental treatments and procedures. All of them require a standard level of competence in their performance; to name a few where questions can arise:
*Implants are a great way to avoid dentures, when done correctly, they are fantastic; but, if improperly designed, or if mispositioned, they can cause serious problems and complications.
*Periodontal disease is an insidious disease which, if it goes undetected, can destroy the supporting structures of the teeth. The standard of care in dentistry includes means of detecting periodontal disease early, and providing a modality of treatment as soon as possible.
*Antibiotics are sometimes necessary before dental procedures. When warning signs are present and no antibiotic is given, a simple tooth extraction can spread bacteria throughout the body and cause various health problems, a brain abscess, for example, or even heart failure.
*Temporomandibular Joint Disorders (TMD) are problems, which cause radiating pain,backaches and headaches. These are also accompanied by popping and grinding sounds. TMD sometimes occurs when orthodontic care has been substandard or where crown and bridgework has not been properly done. The treatment of TMD also requires non-surgical approaches initially before surgery is considered. Even then it is wise to obtain a second opinion before submitting to surgery to correct a TMD problem.
* Root canal therapy requires careful measurement of canal lengths of the tooth before and during the procedure usually by the use of adequate x-rays. Sometimes when the canal is overfilled there can be complications, and under certain circumstances the overfill should have been avoided.
*Tooth extractions must be performed with attention to the surrounding nerves. When proper attention is not paid to these structures and nerve damage results, there may be an issue of negligence. |
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ARE THERE OTHER EXAMPLES?
All aspects of dental care must be performed according to the standards of the profession. Root canal work, administrating of anesthesia, and, other medications, or prescriptions, orthodontic care, and diagnostic work-up all require the applications of the standards of dentistry, and, therefore, regrettably leave room for the possibility of substandard treatment.
IF YOU SUSPECT DENTAL MALPRACTICE WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
One thing to be aware of is that a bad result, by itself, does not always mean malpractice. There are circumstances where, even with the best of care, the procedures may be ineffective or cause complications. It is indeed true that "sometimes bad things happen to good people".
By all means ask an attorney versed in the area to investigate the possible claim. If the attorney agrees to do so, he or she will need to collect your dental records and have the circumstances of the suspected bad treatment analyzed against the standards of the profession. IF YOU HAVE A SUFFICIENTLY MERITORIOUS CLAIM, usually the lawyer will handle it on a contingency fee basis. This means he will charge a fee based on a percentage of the actual recovery. There are certain expenses associated with the handling of a dental malpractice case, which are unrelated to attorney fees, however. These are costs incurred in the pursuit of the claim, such as filing fees, expert fees, deposition costs and so forth. These are the responsibility of the client and should be asked about prior to committing to the hiring of a lawyer. Usually they can be estimated and planned for in a way that will not seriously impair your ability to pursue the claim. |
