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How do I know if I have a valid medical malpractice claim?

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Four elements must be established in a Texas medical malpractice case:

• The doctor’s duty to a high standard of care.
  In the past, general medical standards varied greatly from one location to another. However, in recent times there has been more movement toward a nationwide standard of care to which all doctors practicing in the United States must adhere.


• The doctor failed to uphold that standard of care.
  You must prove the doctor made a mistake. Also, the mistake must be one that a “reasonable and prudent” doctor would not have made under the same, or similar, circumstances. Typically, this requires that an expert witness (another doctor in the same specialty) must come forward and testify that your doctor did in fact make a mistake.


• An injury must have happened.
  Texas medical malpractice suits cannot be filed for “what might have happened.” An error that caused no negative consequences has no standing for a medical malpractice case.


• The doctor’s negligence caused your injury.
  In addition to showing an injury or harm occurred, you also must show the doctor or healthcare agency’s mistake caused that injury and if it wasn’t for that negligent action, your injury would not have occurred or your condition would have improved. An unanticipated or unsuccessful result from medical treatment or surgery does not, in itself, mean medical malpractice has been committed.

In addition to the above points, before a physician may be held liable for medical malpractice, a doctor-patient relationship must be established. A doctor-patient relationship is found as the result of a contract, either express or implied, that the physician will treat the patient with professional skill. In addition, the doctor must take some action to treat the patient before a doctor-patient relationship is established.

Finally, for a doctor to be held liable for professional negligence or medical malpractice, a physician-patient relationship must have existed between the doctor and the plaintiff at the time the complained act or omission occurred. The doctor’s duty ends when the physician-patient relationship ceases to exist.

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