Kreisman Law Offices has been handling medical negligence cases for more than 40 years. We have handled birth trauma injury cases, wrongful death cases, hospital errors cases, emergency department errors cases and lawsuits where the cause of the injury or death is failure to diagnose, cases where surgical errors are made causing injury or death and other types of other medical malpractice cases.
In a medical malpractice lawsuit filed in Illinois, the prerequisite is that the lawyer representing the injured or the family of someone who has died wrongfully because of medical negligence must first obtain a certificate of merit from a doctor practicing in the same or similar area of practice as the individual physician who was thought to have caused the injury or death to the patient. Once the certificate of merit is written, and that would take place after the physician has reviewed all of the relevant medical records, an Illinois attorney is then allowed to file the lawsuit attaching the certificate of merit in accordance with 735 ILCS 5/2-622.
At Kreisman Law Offices in cases where a patient has been injured or killed by the negligence of a medical provider, the first step is to collect all of the medical records and bills from the hospitals and physicians that treated the patient that led to his or her injury or demise. In many cases where hospital records are obtained, there are layers and layers of repetitive records usually because of electronic medical records. These records are often times cumbersome and difficult to wend our way through to heart of the case. In every case at our office, we request the written electronic log summarizing all of the entries made by doctors, nurses and physician’s assistants and any medical provider. This document is a way to understand what individuals entered the patient’s electronic chart at any time. This is called the audit trail.
In all cases of serious injury whether it be it in the hands of a physician, hospital or other medical provider, the lawyers at Kreisman Law Offices have the resources and experience to conduct the immediate investigation that is necessary to identify the cause of the injury or death. In medicine, the practice needs to be at the level of the standard of care. In any case where there is medical negligence, the act or omission would have been described by a medical professional as being below the standard of care which was a cause of the patient’s injury or death.
To evaluate the damages for any injury suffered by a patient at the hands of a medical provider, the significance of the injury and its permanency are first considered followed by the cost of cure. This means how much did it cost in medical expenses to remedy or try to remedy the injury caused at the hands of a medical professional.
On top of the expenses already paid, it would need to be known and proven what the future expenses might be required to treat and cure the patient’s injury.
In cases of a wrongful death, however, the value of a case is dependent on the next-of-kin and the decedent’s relationship to the kin and also what dependents relied on the income of the decedent during the patient’s life.
Under Illinois law, a wrongful death claim is brought under the Illinois Wrongful Death Act. In many cases where death follows, there is a statute in Illinois called the Illinois Survival Act which allows for the recovery to the estate of a decedent who survived for a time, but suffered what is commonly referred to as pain and suffering. Pain and suffering experienced is a damage item that can be assessed by a jury and is considered in evaluating a medical malpractice claim. The value of the suffering is then considered and how long the person suffered to determine the value of that injury and subsequent death. Wrongful death and survival actions are two different areas of law that measure damages that are allowed under Illinois cases. They are two statutory actions, but are procedurally and substantively different.
Importantly, Kreisman Law Offices has 40 years of experience handling, trying and settling medical negligence cases and wrongful death cases associated with medical negligence. Our cases have been successfully handled in Cook County, Illinois, California, South Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Wisconsin and many other jurisdictions.
Robert Kreisman of Kreisman Law Offices has been handling medical negligence and wrongful death cases for more than 40 years. Kreisman Law Offices has prevailed in trials and settlements in Chicago, Illinois and surrounding communities and has successfully resolved cases for those injured or killed by medical malpractice cases.
With our 40 years of experience in trying and settling medical malpractice cases, Kreisman Law Offices provides the best possible services to our clients and have achieved unsurpassed results. Our service is unmatched. Please call us 24 hours a day at 312.346.0045 or toll free 800.583.8002 for a free and immediate consultation, or complete a contact form online. There is no charge for a consultation that will include an evaluation of your case, assessment of damages such as lost income, lost wages, medical and hospital bills, past and future pain and suffering, loss of normal life and wrongful death.