We count on psychiatrists to help us manage and overcome mental health issues like depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and schizophrenia. When psychiatrists are negligent in providing treatment they can cause serious, potentially life-threatening issues. Proving a psychiatrist was negligent is complicated and requires a thorough investigation and understanding of the treatment of mental health issues. The Cincinnati psychiatric malpractice lawyers at our firm have vast knowledge of these issues and how to build a strong case in defense of your best interests. We are prepared to manage every aspect of your case and aggressively pursue the fair compensation you deserve. Our medical error attorneys offer free, no obligation legal consultations and does not charge legal fees unless you receive compensation.
What Do Psychiatrists Treat?
Psychiatrists provide treatment for a variety of emotional and mental health problems, including:- Depression
- Bipolar disorder
- Psychotic symptoms like hallucinations and delusions
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
- Schizophrenia
- Compulsive behaviors
- PTSD
- Anxiety
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Borderline personality disorder
- Eating disorders
- Panic disorder
Forms Of Psychiatric Malpractice
Our Cincinnati attorneys know psychiatrists do not always provide appropriate treatment or take the proper steps to help their patients manage their condition. There are also rare cases where psychiatrists intentionally harm their patients. Some common forms of psychiatric malpractice include:- Physically abusing patients
- Having a sexual relationship with a patient
- Misdiagnosing a patient's condition
- Failing to diagnose or treat a patient's condition, this could include many things, like failing to prescribe medication
- Making verbal threats against a patient
- Failing to do an appropriate suicide risk assessment
- Failing to take appropriate steps to deal with a patient who is suicidal
- Prescribing medication without warning the patient about dangerous side effects
- Failing to monitor a patient after changing his or her medication
- Failing to properly assess a patient's risk of engaging in violent behavior
- Failing to obtain informed consent before prescribing medication
- Failing to respond when family members contact the psychiatrist with concerns about a patient's suicidal behaviors
- Failing to document a patient's medication history, which can result in prescribing medication that causes an allergic reaction
- Failing to change a medication when the patient experiences severe or dangerous side effects
- Improper use of restraints
- Sharing patient information without consent
- Failing to warn people about threats made against them by current patients, as required by law
- Prescribing a medication at too high of a dosage, causing the patient to suffer severe side effects, like suicidal thoughts or actions
What Are The Consequences Of Psychiatric Malpractice?
Patients dealing with mental health issues are already vulnerable, but psychiatric malpractice can make things even worse. Some of the consequences of psychiatric malpractice include:- Attempting or committing suicide
- Physical injuries from abuse
- Worsening of depression or other mental health issues
- Increase in suicidal thoughts
- Increase in violent or aggressive actions
- Sexual dysfunction
- Increased manic episodes
- Trouble sleeping
- Memory problems
- Seizures
- Trouble breathing
Do I Have A Case?
Your Cincinnati psychiatric malpractice attorney will need to prove malpractice occurred for you to have a chance of recovering compensation. There are five elements of malpractice that must be proven regardless of the specifics of your case:- Doctor-patient relationship – This means you agreed to be treated by a psychiatrist or you were treated in the absence of an agreement. Our attorneys can use receipts, bills or treatment records to establish there was a doctor-patient relationship.
- Duty of care – This duty is created once a doctor-patient relationship has been established. The duty is a legal requirement for the psychiatrist to provide treatment that meets accepted standards in the medical community. The duty of care for your case depends on the specifics of your treatment and psychological issues you were dealing with.
- Breach of duty of care – Your psychiatric malpractice attorney in Cincinnati needs to provide evidence that the doctor who treated you did not meet accepted medical standards. For example, maybe we can prove the doctor should have prescribed you a different medication or done another type of treatment. In cases of suicide, our attorneys will review the psychiatrist's assessment of the patient's risk of suicide. In these cases, psychiatrists could breach the duty of care by failing to monitor the patient, document the second or third suicide risk assessment, or failing to notice signs the patient could be a risk to himself or herself.
- Link between breach of duty of care and harm – You need to establish a direct link between the failure to comply with accepted medical standards and the injuries you suffered. This is often difficult in psychiatric malpractice cases because your injuries may be emotional or mental rather than physical. For instance, it can be much more difficult to prove your depression got worse than to prove you suffered some type of physical injury.
- Existence of damages – This means your injuries created damages, like medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages. Our team will help you collect evidence to prove the value of all your damages.
