Ray Gupta & Associates Discusses Unnecessary Surgery

    CHICAGO, IL, September 01, 2015 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Medical malpractice lawyers, Ray Gupta & Associates provides information on the topic of unnecessary surgery.

Unnecessary surgery occurs when a doctor or other medical professional orders or conducts a surgery that is not medically necessary. This not only includes surgery for nonexistent or minor conditions, but also includes ordering surgery when less invasive or lower-risk treatment choices are possible.

Unnecessary surgery may occur due to greed, incompetence, fear, or attempts to take a shortcut. The American healthcare system rewards and pays medical professionals for the number of procedures conducted. This structure encourages doctors to do more surgeries or to "err on the side of caution" which includes self-enrichment. Some healthcare providers subconsciously believe that if insurance will pay for it, it might as well be done. Other times, doctors may lack the skill, knowledge, or patience in order to treat a condition with less invasive means.

To add insult to the patient's injury, the only ones that benefit are the doctors and healthcare companies. When this happens, these doctors should pay for the harms and damages they cause their patients. A lawsuit for medical malpractice may be able to make that happen.

Unnecessary Surgery is Very Common
Unnecessary surgery is a widespread issue plaguing the American healthcare system today. USA Today states that 10-20% of surgeries in some specialties of medicine are unnecessary. Furthermore, studies indicate that 22.5% of caridoverter-defribilator installations and 17% of back and neck surgeries are unnecessary. Some experts believe two thirds of hysterectomies are unneeded.

Unfortunately, specific statistics are unavailable because the federal government and states do not require the tracking of unnecessary surgeries. This lack of oversight gives doctors an opportunity to conduct more unnecessary surgeries.

Common Unnecessary Surgeries
While any surgery can be done unnecessarily, several forms of unnecessary medicine are particularly common.
These most common forms include the following:

Unnecessary Stents
Unnecessary Pacemakers
Unnecessary Back Surgery
Unnecessary Spinal Fusion
Unnecessary Knee Replacement
Unnecessary Joint Replacement
Unnecessary Hysterectomy
Unnecessary Cesarean Section (C-Section)
Unnecessary Cardiac Catherization

Consequences of Unnecessary Surgery
All surgeries involve some form of risk. These risks include anesthesia errors, blood poisoning, paralysis, infection, and death. For example, 1-2 percent of patients undergoing stent surgery experience complications such as infection, paralysis, heart attack, or stroke. A patient who undergoes an unnecessary surgery and encounters a "known risk of surgery" may still have a claim for medical malpractice if the surgery never should have been done.
In addition to the general risks of surgery, unnecessary surgery can also wreak further damage upon a person and family.

This may include, but is not limited to:

Unnecessary loss of body parts (such as a hysterectomy or unnecessary amputation)
Inability to bear children
Pain or decreased mobility
Diminished cardiovascular capacity (such as unnecessary pacemaker installation)
Financial burden of medical bills and related expenses
Death

How Does Unnecessary Surgery Malpractice Occur?
Unnecessary surgeries may occur due to various reasons such as greed, lack of communication, overzealous doctors, and incompetence.

Some ways unnecessary surgeries happen include:
Fraudulently ordering unnecessary surgery for profit
Ordering questionable surgery because insurance will pay for it
Failure to consider alternate less-invasive treatment
Failure to communicate risks and advantages to patients
Fear of being sued for not doing surgery
A misdiagnosed medical condition
Improperly conducted or interpreted medical testing
Mistaken identity
Lack of knowledge concerning alternate treatments

Are You a Victim of Unnecessary Surgery?
Our firm has the background and experience to determine whether an unnecessary surgery has occurred. It is generally challenging to prove that medical malpractice, especially unnecessary surgery malpractice, has occurred. Unnecessary surgery involves complex range of medical and legal issues. Your doctor will likely do everything possible to argue that your surgery was not unnecessary.

In order to face these challenges, we will develop a customized plan to uncover the truth. These plans typically include getting your medical records quickly, having those records reviewed by medical experts, and using legal processes to get answers from your healthcare provider.
If you believe that you may have been the victim of an unnecessary surgery and our investigation supports this type of medical malpractice, our firm can help you get the compensation you need and deserve to help offset all your harms, losses, and damages. We select our cases carefully so we can provide personalized attention and invest the time to get you the best outcome possible.

CONTACT OUR UNNECESSARY SURGERY ATTORNEYS FOR A FREE CASE EVALUATION
If you believe that your doctor did an unnecessary surgery, call Ray Gupta & Associates - we help people and families throughout Illinois and Indiana at (312) 379-9527 or (219) 923-5839. You can also email us to schedule a free consultation with an experienced lawyer.

You also learn more @ www.rayguptalawgroup.com

Cases are taken on a contingency fee basis. You pay NO FEE unless we recover damages for you.

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