Medical malpractice is a broad concept that encompasses any error that occurs in a medical setting. Common medical errors that may result in a medical malpractice claim include:

 

Failure to diagnose or improper diagnosis

Failure to advise of diagnosis

Surgical errors

Medication errors

Medical instruments, sponges, or other foreign objects left inside the patient following surgery

Errors in prenatal diagnostic testing

Failure to obtain informed consent

Abandoning a patient

Performance below standard treatment or performing treatment incorrectly

Continuing a treatment that has been demonstrated to be ineffective

Improperly prescribing a drug to a patient

Failing to inform a patient of treatment options