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{{Dial-A-Law TOC|expanded = health}}
=Negligence=Doctors or healthcare providers are negligent if they fail to provide the standard (or type) of care that a reasonable doctor or healthcare provider would provide in similar circumstances. If the negligence causes injuries or illness to a person, then the doctor or healthcare provider may be liable to pay damages (money to pay for the harm done) to the person. It’s no excuse for a doctor to say, “I did my best. I just didn’t know any better.” If the doctor should have known better, they may be liable. For example, let’s say that you see your doctor because you are not feeling well and your doctor prescribes a drug to treat the symptoms you described. You take the drug and it harms you. It turns out that it was not appropriate, considering your medical history and the other drugs you were already taking. If other doctors with a similar practice would not have prescribed the drug, your doctor may be negligent. '''Not every mistake or bad result means there was negligence'''—doctors and healthcare providers are not liable for every mistake. The law realizes that doctors often have to make quick decisions without the best information. Let’s say The key question is this: did the doctor made a reasonable decision that other reasonable doctors would have made in the same situation—even if later it turns out to be the wrong decision that caused a bad result. For example, you complain to your doctor of severe head pain. He pays They pay attention and examine you. They carefully takes take your medical history, listens listen to you describe your symptoms, and orders order the right tests. Then he decides Using the results of this examination, they decide that you have an ordinary tension headache that will go away. Later, it turns out that your doctor was wrong, and his mistake has put your health in dangerthe pain was not caused by a tension headache. The doctor’s diagnosis was wrong. In this case, But your doctor may have used still provided the proper standard of care but still made a mistake. That’s probably , the case if same care that other doctors would have treated provided in this case. The doctor was not negligent and you the same way. You probably won’t win if you sue the doctor for malpractice. In other words, the key issue is whether the doctor made a reasonable decision that reasonable doctors would have made in the same circumstances—even if it turns out later to be the wrong decision leading to a bad result.
'''The standard of care'''—this differs from place to place. It also varies with the level of specialty of the doctor—the standard may be higher for specialists. And it varies with time—today’s standard may not be good enough next year. You can’t always expect the best care available at the most sophisticated research hospital. The standard of care is based on the hospital that treats you and the community it is in. You can’t judge a small-town doctor in an isolated BC town by the same standard as you judge a doctor at Vancouver General Hospital.
In summary, not every mistake or bad result automatically means there was negligence. A doctor may take all the right steps and still make a mistake or get a bad result.
'''Damages for negligence'''—if you prove there was negligence and the negligence caused your injury or illness, a court will normally may order the doctor, hospital, or healthcare provider to pay you damages for things the harm the negligence caused, including your . This can include lost earnings, medical and other expenses, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. This last category is the court’s attempt to compensate you for the effect of an error the negligence on your life , in general. The doctor is responsible only for the harm that his their negligence caused. For example, say you needed consented to surgery that would leave require you with a mild disability to take 2 months off work to recover, if done properly. But the surgeon was negligent and caused as a result you a greater disabilityhad to take 6 months off. In this case, you would be paid only for the extra disability 4 months of lost earnings caused by the negligence, . You would not be compensated for the mild disability first 2 months off because you had consented to that. And you still would have had to take the 2 months off if the surgeon surgery had not been negligentgone as planned.
'''Others may be responsible'''—if a doctor delegates work to someone else, the doctor is generally still legally responsible for the work. If a doctor leaves a patient in the care of another doctor, both doctors are may be responsible. If an inexperienced intern performs the duties of a doctor, the intern has to give the same medical care the doctor giveswould give. But a doctor can rely on the employees of a medical facility and expect that they’ll meet the standard of care required in their jobs. So if a doctor leaves proper instructions with a nurse who doesn’t follow them, the nurse, not the doctor, is normally may be responsible. If a person is harmed by the negligence of another healthcare professional, they can sue that professional. They can also file a complaint with the regulatory body for that profession. For example, the College of Registered Nurses of BC licenses nurses. The Emergency Medical Assistant Licensing Board licenses paramedics.
'''Patients are responsible tooComplaints that hospitals can’t resolve'''—as —each health authority has a patient, you are '''[https://www.patientcarequalityreviewboard.ca/makecomplaint.html Patient Care Quality Office]''' to deal with complaints that hospitals cannot resolve. Each health authority also responsible for your healthcarehas a '''[http://www. You must give the doctor all the important information about your condition, your medical history, and any other relevant informationpatientcarequalityreviewboard.ca/ Patient Care Quality Review Board]'''. If you don’t, and They review complaints that leads to an error in diagnosis or treatment, it will be your fault and not the doctor’s[https://www. As well, a doctor is patientcarequalityreviewboard.ca/makecomplaint.html Patient Care Quality Offices] have not responsible for problems if you don’t follow the doctor’s advice and your failure causes the problem you complain aboutresolved. For examplemore information, it would be hard to prove that a surgeon was negligent in operating on you, if you don’t follow call 1.866.952.2448 or see the surgeon’s instructions about diet and exercise after the operation—and then you get sick from ignoring those instructions[http://www.patientcarequalityreviewboard.ca/ Boards’ website].
Suing because of malpractice—legal advice and time limits If you start a lawsuithave questions or concerns about your treatment, you have talk to be patientyour doctor. Malpractice suits often take two to five years or more from start to finishThen, if you feel that you’ve been the victim of medical malpractice, get legal advice right away.
Costs of suing—some lawyers will work for a contingency fee, meaning the fee depends on the result of the case. If you lose, the lawyer gets nothing. If you win, the lawyer gets part of your compensation award. Win or lose, though, you usually have to pay the expenses of suing, which can be thousands of dollars, especially if you have to hire experts to help prove your case. The Law Society regulates contingency fee contracts to ensure they are fair to clients. For more information about lawyers’ fees, check script 438, called “Lawyers’ Fees”.
Complaining to the College at the same time as suingYou can also file a complaint with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC. There is no time limit for complaining to the College. And you can do this at the same time as you sue for malpractice and contact the police if you think you were assaulted. But the College cannot order a doctor to pay you money—only a court can do that. Script 423, called “Making a Complaint against Your Doctor” explains how to file a complaint. Contact the College through its website or call it at 604.733.7758 in Vancouver and 1.800.461.3008 elsewhere in BC.[updated April 2014March 2016]