Miami Medical Malpractice Attorney

How Can I Speed up My Hospital Negligence Case?

Your medical bills, along with other expenses, are likely piling up, and you could probably use the money from your potential settlement right now. Proceedings can, however, drag on for quite some time, depending on the complexity of your case.

While the outcome of your claim is out of your hands, there are a few things you can do to protect your case, help avoid delays and disputes, and assist your Miami medical malpractice lawyer:

• Attend All Doctor’s Visits and Follow-Ups: While you are recovering from the injuries or medical complications, you may just want to lay in bed all day. If you have been instructed to attend a follow-up consultation with a doctor, however, make sure to go to your appointment. If you fail to make your appointment, the opposing party may argue that you ignored your doctor’s instructions, and your negligence has caused your condition to worsen. In this case, you may be held liable for some or all of your damages.
• Safeguard Evidence: Be sure to preserve any evidence that you collect in the days and weeks following the incident. Keep a record of all your medical bills, photographs of your injuries, and receipts for injury-related expenses. It may also be useful to keep a personal injury journal to document your daily experiences. Entries can be used to prove how your injuries have affected your quality of life and, consequently, the severity of your non-economic damages.
• Avoid Common Mistakes: Common mistakes made by claimants include posting information on social media that is harmful to their case, providing a recorded statement to the insurance company, not seeking prompt medical care, and not listening to doctor’s orders. Your medical negligence attorney can advise on common mistakes made by claimants that have been detrimental so you do not make the same ones.

Don’t Discuss the Medical Negligence Online

Being seriously injured by a healthcare provider can be both frustrating and traumatic. It is normal to want to take to social media for support and comfort from friends and family in these adverse times.

Insurance companies are, however, known to monitor a personal injury claimant’s social media feed in search of compromising content. The photos, videos, check-ins, and updates that you share online could be taken out of context and used to dispute liability and harm your claim.

While it would be in your best interests to disable your social media accounts until your claim has been settled, here are a few tips if you insist on going online:

• Set Your Accounts to Private: If you are going to make use of social media while your claim is pending, make sure to check your privacy settings. Set all your accounts to “private” so your posts, past and future, are only visible to your chosen friends and followers. You should also ensure that you need to approve any posts that others may “tag” you in before they appear on your feed.
• Do Not Accept New Friend Requests: If you receive a new friend request from someone that you do not recognize, decline the invitation. Only accept friend requests from people you know and trust. Insurance companies have vast resources at their disposal to investigate claimants, and they might try to gain access to your online content to scour for something that could be used to dispute your claim.
• Avoid Posting Pictures and Checking-In Online: Recovery from medical malpractice can be a long, painful, and uphill battle. On the days that you are feeling slightly stronger, you may want to take a few photos of yourself and share them with your followers to keep them updated on your progress. These seemingly innocent photos can, however, be used to undermine your claim. The insurance company may use these photos to argue that your injuries are not serious, or if you snapped the pictures at your favorite coffee shop, they may argue that you ignored your doctor’s order to rest. It is, therefore, best to abstain from posting any pictures until your case is settled.

Your medical bills, along with other expenses, are likely piling up, and you could probably use the money from your potential settlement right now. Proceedings can, however, drag on for quite some time, depending on the complexity of your case.

While the outcome of your claim is out of your hands, there are a few things you can do to protect your case, help avoid delays and disputes, and assist your Miami medical malpractice lawyer:

• Attend All Doctor’s Visits and Follow-Ups: While you are recovering from the injuries or medical complications, you may just want to lay in bed all day. If you have been instructed to attend a follow-up consultation with a doctor, however, make sure to go to your appointment. If you fail to make your appointment, the opposing party may argue that you ignored your doctor’s instructions, and your negligence has caused your condition to worsen. In this case, you may be held liable for some or all of your damages.
• Safeguard Evidence: Be sure to preserve any evidence that you collect in the days and weeks following the incident. Keep a record of all your medical bills, photographs of your injuries, and receipts for injury-related expenses. It may also be useful to keep a personal injury journal to document your daily experiences. Entries can be used to prove how your injuries have affected your quality of life and, consequently, the severity of your non-economic damages.
• Avoid Common Mistakes: Common mistakes made by claimants include posting information on social media that is harmful to their case, providing a recorded statement to the insurance company, not seeking prompt medical care, and not listening to doctor’s orders. Your medical negligence attorney can advise on common mistakes made by claimants that have been detrimental so you do not make the same ones.