Podiatric Malpractice

No person is happy when their feet hurt.  We have to walk; it cannot be avoided.  So when foot pain persists, many people feel hopeless.  The pain makes one cranky and often with the feeling of despair.

Eventually, people suffering from foot pain will turn to a podiatrist for help.  These doctors specialize in diagnosing and treating foot disorders.  Since they specialize in just this one area of the body, they may be the best type of doctor to turn to for help.

Unfortunately, the experience of this Kingston medical malpractice attorney has shown that podiatrists make negligent mistakes amounting to medical malpractice.  Any mistake in treating a person’s feet can have disabling effects.

Podiatrists treat many different disorders, many of which you may be aware.  Consider the following disorders commonly treated by podiatrists:

• Flat feet
• Bunions
• Achilles tendonitis
• Hammer toe
• Nail fungus
• Plantar fasciitis
• Neuromas
• Corns
• And many more

These are all serious issues that can require ongoing treatment from an experience podiatrist.  Surgery may even be needed to cure some.  Podiatrists can commit mistakes with any one of them.

Failures to Diagnose Foot Problems:

One way podiatrists commit malpractice by failing to diagnose the patient’s ailment.  This is a serious problem.  Podiatrists are specifically trained to diagnose foot diseases and should do so in accordance with the standards set by the profession.

Misdiagnoses:

These happen when the podiatrist diagnoses the patient with a certain disorder, but the patient actually has a different disorder.

In either of the two mistakes listed above, the patient’s disease persists untreated.  The ailment can progressively get worse, and the patient continues to live in pain.  Since the pain relates to the foot, the patient will probably have had to modify his/her lifestyle.

Improper Treatment:

Even if the podiatrist diagnoses the patient’s foot ailment properly, the doctor may then fail to treat the patient according to proper standards.  Every disease and or disorder has a tried and true method for successful treatment.  The doctor should follow these methods.  If the podiatrist strays from proper treatment to the extent that another podiatrist in the area would not have gone so far, then the treating doctor can be held liable for medical malpractice.

Surgical Errors:

Lastly, podiatrists can commit negligence during surgery.  Again, the surgery should be preformed the way that the profession dictates.  All tools and machines should be used according to manufacturer instructions.  Medications should be administered properly.  When things go wrong, the patient can end up with distorted feet, nerve injuries, and complications from improper administration of anesthesia.  Malpractice can even occur when the patient did not receive proper informed consent.

But what do you think?  I would love to hear from you!  Leave a comment or I also welcome your phone call on my toll-free cell at 1-866-889-6882 or you can drop me an e-mail at jfisher@fishermalpracticelaw.com.  You are always welcome to request my FREE book, The Seven Deadly Mistakes of Malpractice Victims, at the home page of my website at www.protectingpatientrights.com.