Misdiagnosis almost costs pregnant New York mom her baby

Misdiagnosis is a serious problem in the New York medical community. Sometimes the advice given to patients is simply wrong and often the patients tragically follow the recommendations they have been urged to observe. One recent misdiagnosis, which brought the entire issue into focus, actually resulted in good news. But it was only because the patient refused to follow the doctor's advice.

There are, regrettably, medical malpractice errors committed in our country every day. At times, the incorrect advice of doctors may cause an innocent victim serious injury or even their life. One pregnant woman was experiencing a difficult pregnancy with early spotting. She was scheduled for another ultrasound, after which the hospital informed her that the worst had occurred. Her baby had died.

Doctors wanted her to take some pills which would spur a medical abortion. Still in shock and perhaps denial, the woman refused the pills. Instead, she requested a surgical abortion and it was scheduled for two weeks later. When she arrived for the operation, she asked that they do one last ultrasound to be certain. That ultrasound confirmed a heartbeat.

While the woman was understandably ecstatic the baby was alive, she was also furious about the misdiagnosis. It almost caused her to lose her child, solely through medical malpractice. If she had taken the pills the doctors prescribed, an abortion would have been induced, killing the baby. Fortunately, she did not listen to her doctors and the baby was saved.

Doctors and medical staff make mistakes. Sometimes people enter the hospital to address a medical problem, only to be seriously injured or die from another medical issue created by the negligence of those treating the patient. The law permits recovery of monetary damages for victims of medical malpractice, and a New York attorney may help gather the evidence to hold those accountable for their professional errors.

Source: The Babble, "Healthy Pregnancy Wrongly Diagnosed As Miscarriage," Sierra, Aug. 17, 2011