Rehabilitation and physical therapy help patients recover from traumatic injuries by regaining strength and mobility for daily life. The neglectful or wrongful acts of a physical therapist can quickly worsen your condition by aggravating previous injuries or causing new ones. When these incidents occur, a Southfield rehabilitation and physical therapy malpractice lawyer could help you understand your legal rights by evaluating your claim for personal injury.
Thurswell Law has been helping clients in their personal injury claims since 1968. Clients choose our medical malpractice attorneys because they know experience gets results. We operate our practice on a contingency fee basis, which means you do not pay us until we recover compensation on your behalf. You could learn more about malpractice claims arising from physical therapy or rehabilitative care by scheduling a free consultation with our legal team.
What Are Examples of Rehabilitation and Physical Therapy Malpractice?
Malpractice can take many different forms when working with a physical therapist or rehabilitation care provider. The primary job of these medical professionals is to recommend and manage various exercise and care programs to improve your physical condition. However, additional injury can occur when a physical therapist commits the following types of mistakes or errors in your care:
- Using excessive force
- Working with broken or malfunctioning equipment
- Failing to supervise patients
- Applying improper techniques to an exercise or while handling a patient
- Not listening to a patient’s reported pain or symptoms
- Conducting a poor evaluation of a client’s condition
- Ignoring orders from the doctor who prescribed the physical therapy
Michigan Compiled Statutes § 600.2912a requires proof that your physical therapist failed to meet the recognized standard of care in the state at the time of the malpractice. Our Southfield attorneys could review your medical file to evaluate the connection between rehabilitation care and a recent injury to determine whether the physical therapist failed to meet the standard of care, resulting in negligence.
Recovering Compensation for Damages From Malpractice
Physical therapy and rehabilitation malpractice can cause a wide range of injuries, including broken bones, nerve damage, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, or the worsening of a pre-existing condition. Recovering compensation for the damages from these injuries generally requires filing a civil complaint in accordance with MCL § 600.2912b. The compensation pursued in a case will depend on the nature of the injury and the extent of your damages. For example, you may have a claim for compensation based on the following types of damages from physical therapy malpractice:
- Past and future medical care expenses
- Additional physical therapy or rehabilitative care costs
- Lost wages
- Diminished earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Lost quality of life and relationships
Our attorneys take the time to understand how the injury impacts your life and account for these damages when making a malpractice claim on your behalf.
Consult with our Southfield lawyers as soon as you become aware of an injury from physical therapy rehabilitation that may meet the definition of malpractice. Michigan has a complex statute of limitations for malpractice claims in MCL § 600.5838a. You generally have two years from the date of the malpractice or six months from the date you should have discovered the malpractice. However, you cannot pursue a claim any later than six years from when the malpractice happened. Meeting this filing deadline is essential for preserving your right to recover compensation in court.
Call Our Rehabilitation and Physical Therapy Malpractice Attorneys in Southfield
Pursuing a claim for medical malpractice is important for your financial recovery after an injury as well as to hold healthcare institutions accountable. A Southfield rehabilitation and physical therapy malpractice lawyer from our legal team can review your case for potential claims and advocate for your right to compensation. Contact Thurswell Law today to schedule a free consultation.
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