Can I Sue for a Lack of Follow-Up Care?

Follow-up care is an important part of your medical treatment. A doctor can follow up with more tests and labs to diagnose your medical condition. Doctors also follow up after you start taking a new medication to see how it is working. If the doctor never follows up, you could face complications or worsening conditions.

Medical malpractice, also known as medical negligence, is the failure of a health care professional to follow standards of care. This could include negligent action or inaction. If you suffered injuries because of a lack of follow-up care, talk to a medical malpractice lawyer for legal advice about filing a lawsuit.

What Is Follow-Up Care?

Health care can involve multiple visits with medical professionals, testing, exams, and regular checkups. A patient’s condition can change over time. Follow-up care helps the doctor evaluate changes in their health. The purpose of follow-up care includes:

• Monitoring treatment progress
• Managing medication effectiveness
• Monitoring recovery and health changes
• Providing personalized treatment
• Detecting potentially serious conditions early
• Answering patient questions

For example, follow-up care is vital for cancer patients. It helps doctors evaluate treatment, monitor progress, and see if the cancer has come back. This follow-up care can include blood tests, diagnostic tests, imaging tests, and physical exams. Without follow-up care, cancer can come back or spread to other parts of the body.

Follow-up care empowers people to have an active role in their health care. You and your loved ones can get health information from health care providers. Information and communication help you learn strategies to support your well-being.

What Is Abandonment of Care?

Sometimes, failure to help a patient is abandonment. Patient abandonment is when a doctor stops treatment without giving you notice or time to find another doctor. When a doctor takes you as a patient, they create a doctor-patient relationship. If you still need care, the doctor is responsible for providing care. Suddenly stopping treatment is abandoning you.

Do Doctors Have To Provide Follow-Up Care?

Generally, doctors have a duty to follow up with you about clinically significant information. If a doctor orders lab tests, they should follow up with you in a timely manner after getting significant test results. Failure to do so could be a breach of medical standards.

A doctor’s duty to patients depends on the situation. Doctors may not have to follow up on non-urgent issues or results. For example, if a regular blood test comes back normal, the doctor may not have to call you immediately. However, follow-up contact is generally part of medical care best practices.

You also have a duty to pursue your health care. If a doctor refers you to a cardiologist, you’re responsible for contacting them. If you ignore the doctor’s treatment plan, you may be responsible for not following up.

What Are the Health Impacts of Inadequate Follow-Up Care?

Inadequate follow-up care can lead to serious injuries, illnesses, and even deaths. When X-rays or other tests show serious health concerns, doctors should follow up immediately. Without following up, the condition could spread, get worse, or make treatment more difficult.

For example, parents take their child to an emergency room complaining of vomiting and fever. Doctors order blood tests but send the child home with medication before getting the test results. The child later dies from septic shock. The lab tests showed risk factors for a severe infection. Failure to follow up after getting the lab tests likely contributed to the child’s death.

Lack of follow-up care can lead to delayed diagnosis. When a patient goes to the ER complaining of symptoms, the doctor may not have enough information to make a proper diagnosis. The doctor not ordering follow-up tests or follow-up appointments can delay diagnosis.

Can You File a Medical Malpractice Claim for a Lack of Follow-Up Care?

Medical malpractice involves failing to follow medical standards of care. Lack of follow-up care can qualify as medical malpractice. To prove your medical provider is liable in a medical malpractice lawsuit, you have to prove the following:

• The doctor owed you a duty of care
• The doctor deviated from medical standards by not following up
• The doctor’s actions (or inactions) caused your injuries
• You suffered harm caused by the doctor’s negligence

Medical standards of care are based on what a reasonable doctor would do in similar circumstances. The standard of care factors in medical training, education, experience, and region.

You can use a medical expert to help a jury understand these medical standards. Medical experts have similar training, experience, and education as the doctor in your lawsuit. They can explain to the jury what kind of follow-up care the doctor should have provided and how the lack of care caused your injuries.

What Compensation Can You Get for a Lack of Follow-Up Care?

Negligent doctors and hospitals are liable for your injuries and damages. Damages in a medical malpractice case include economic damages like medical bills and lost income. You can also get non-economic damages for pain and suffering and emotional distress. Talk to your lawyer about what damages you can get for your injuries.

When Should You Contact a Medical Malpractice Lawyer?

You have a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit against a negligent doctor. The statute of limitations only gives you a certain amount of time to take legal action. Depending on the state, the statute of limitations can be from one to four years. Contact a medical malpractice attorney as soon as you find out that a lack of follow-up care caused your injuries. A lawyer can explain your legal rights and help you through the claims process. They can negotiate with the insurance company for a maximum settlement or take your case to court.