Medical Malpractice Attorney in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
We Stand Ready To Assist You with Your Medical Malpractice Claim
At the Reed Law Office, we stand ready to assist you with your medical malpractice claim. We will fight for your rights against medical providers and their insurance companies to help you obtain compensation for your injuries. In South Carolina, a medical malpractice case may be brought by an injured patient, against any licensed health care provider, including a medical doctor, nurse, physical therapist, and/or mental health care professional.
The Most Common Types of Medical Malpractice:
- Birth Injuries & Trauma
- Failure to Diagnose or Misdiagnosis
- Failing to Obtain Proper Consent
- Failure to Make Timely Referral
- Failure to Perform Necessary Tests
- Failure to Provide Timely Care
- Hospital Errors
- Medication Errors
- Nursing Neglect
- Pharmacist & Pharmacy Negligence
- Undiagnosed and Misdiagnosed Cancer Cases
- Surgical Errors
- Wrongful Death
How Long Do you have to Pursue a Medical Malpractice Case?
In South Carolina, a party injured as a result of medical negligence generally has three years from the date of the injury to pursue a claim for malpractice. In certain cases where discovery of the injury is delayed, you may have longer to file a claim based upon the delayed detection or onset of your injury. This is often called the “discovery rule.” However, if an injury is not discovered within 6 years of the date of the initial treatment, omission, or surgery causing an injury, the claim is forever barred.
Special statute of limitations rules apply to actions involving state-supported governmental health care facilities. If an injury is caused at such a facility or by a professional employed by such a facility, the statute of limitations is two years, and the discovery rule is limited to an overall three years. In these cases, a verified claim for damages must also be filed within the first year of the injury, or discovery of the same.
Duty to Investigate
Injuries that are discovered after the initial three-year time limitation are subject to certain requirements. An injured party has a duty to exercise “reasonable diligence” to investigate known injuries. This means that if you are having symptoms of an injury, including pain, illness, or other concerns, you cannot simply ignore them and claim that discovery of your condition was delayed. The statute of limitations will start to run once a reason justifying further investigation is known, even if the full extent of your condition is not yet known to you.
Initial Preparations for Pursuing a Medical Negligence Claim
It is important that you speak with and retain a qualified attorney as soon as you know you have been injured as a result of a medical error. In complex cases involving medical negligence, the time provided by the three-year statute of limitations needs to be used effectively. There is a significant amount of work that goes into preparing a medical malpractice case, even before a lawsuit is filed. That is why it is important to leave as much time as possible for your attorney to gather evidence, investigate claims, and consult with medical experts, to provide you with the best chance of obtaining a good recovery.
Pre-Filing Requirements
To pursue a claim of medical malpractice in South Carolina, there is a special procedure that is required before a lawsuit can be filed. An injured party doesn’t have an immediate right to file a lawsuit, even if the case is obvious. Prior to filing or initiating a medical malpractice lawsuit, the plaintiff must file a Notice of Intent to File Suit, with an affidavit of an expert witness that states that at least one negligent act or omission occurred. The affidavit must also state the factual basis for each claim, based upon the available evidence at the time of the filing. The notice must be filed in a county in which venue would be proper for filing or initiating the civil action. The notice must name all adverse parties as defendants, must contain a short and plain statement of the facts showing that the party filing the notice is entitled to relief, must be signed by the plaintiff or by his attorney, and must include any standard interrogatories or similar disclosures required by the South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure.
Pre-litigation Mediation Required
After a Notice of Intent to File Suit has been filed and served, the parties are required to participate in mediation. This mediation is required to take place within ninety days, and no later than one hundred twenty days, from date of service of the Notice. If the matter cannot be resolved through mediation, the plaintiff may file suit.
If Mediation is not Successful, How Long Do I Have to File Suit?
If the mediator determines that the mediation is not going to resolve the claim, the plaintiff must file suit within 60 days, or prior to expiration of the statute of limitations, whichever is later.
Elements of a Medical Malpractice Claim In South Carolina
The South Carolina Code defines medical malpractice as “doing that which the reasonably prudent health care provider or health care institution would not do, or not doing that which the reasonably prudent health care provider or health care institution would do in the same or similar circumstances.” To prove medical malpractice in South Carolina, you need to prove the following:
- Breach of the Standard of Care: That the medical professional failed to exercise the degree of care and skill expected of an average, competent practitioner acting in the same or similar circumstances, and
- Causation: That such failure was the proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injury, and
- Damages: The losses incurred by the plaintiff due to the injury including medical bills, lost wages, disability, pain and suffering.
Expert testimony is required to establish that the medical professional failed to act within the standard of care required, and that the failure was the cause of the patient’s injury, unless the subject matter of the lawsuit falls within a layman’s common knowledge or experience.
Schedule a Free Consultation
If you have been injured as a result of medical negligence, you should not delay consulting with an attorney. We offer free consultations for medical malpractice matters. We will help you evaluate your claim, gather your records, and prepare your case for litigation.