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According to a mandated study on Medicare recipients in the year 2008, 1 out of every 7 hospital patients in the US are said to have experienced at least one unintended medical harm that prolonged their hospital stay, resulted in permanent injury or life-sustaining treatment, or even resulted in premature death.

A visit to the hospital is sometimes unavoidable. So, what can you do to ensure that you walk out of a hospital healthy and ready to take on the world? Plenty, say researchers, nurses and physicians. Listed below are a few pointers you must follow when you need to seek medical treatment.

1. Choose your hospital carefully

According to studies, infections that are acquired after the patient checks into the hospital accounts for about 31,000 deaths a year which rivals the count of breast cancer deaths every year. And, most of these deaths could have been easily prevented.

And, this is why it is important that you choose the right hospital for your treatment. If it is possible, ask your doctor about the infection rates of the hospitals that you can pick from. The best hospital's infection rates are zero in one thousand catheter days for a whole year. Anything above three should raise a red flag.

2. Check your doctor's experience

Your doctor's experience plays a great role in your recovery post-surgery. The more often the physician has performed the procedure you will be undertaking, the more familiar will he or she will be with its many variations and complications.

Check ABMS.ORG to see if the physician you have chosen is board certified. Also, look for a second opinion, before you decide to go under the knife to avoid hospital mistakes in New York.

3. Say no to Fridays and weekends

As convenient as it may be, weekends, holidays, and nights aren't the best time for a surgery. If you are undergoing an elective surgery, try to ask for a slot at the beginning of the week or midweek, as the operating staff could be more fatigued by the end of the week. If feasible, ask for a second or third slot of the morning on a weekday, which is the best time for a surgery.

4. Electronic records

If possible pick a hospital that uses electronic records of medication orders which can bring down prescription slip-ups by sevenfold. In a busy hospital, complicated prescription orders are dictated rather quickly to the staff, which can lead to hospital mistakes in New York. When information is entered into a computer, it can alert staff to potential issues if programmed to flag improper dosages, drug interactions, etc.

5. Don't go alone

If you know that you may be admitted, you are likely to be stressed out and worried which can cloud your judgement. Never go alone to the hospital. Request a friend or relative to come along and act as your advocate. They can ask questions that you may never have thought about and understand instructions that you may overlook because of your anxiety.

Even with the best preparation, hospital mistakes in New York do occur. If you or someone you know of has been a victim of hospital errors, you can seek the help and guidance of noteworthy medical malpractice attorneys at Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff, & Wolff of RMFW Law. Call 212-344-1000 for a free appointment to discuss your case in detail.

We know how this process works. We know you are upset and frustrated by screaming at everyone around you does not help. The medical culprit, the doctor who did this, or any other medical professional, is no longer around. Taking your wrath out on random medical personnel is not helping you one bit. You need to call us, you need RMFW Law on your side.

You also need a medical professional on your side which we can help you get. Without one, you do not have a claim no matter how much pain you are in. We know how to win cases inside and outside the courtroom. RMFW Law has won millions of dollars for past patients. You too can be on this list. Call us today!

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