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Resident Sues Oak Brook Healthcare Center For Medical Malpractice

Walner Law®
Walner Law®

April 9, 2019

ENGLEWOOD
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legal scaleA woman is suing a long-term healthcare facility in Oak Brook for medical malpractice after suffering injuries while in the facility’s care. Donna Keller has filed a lawsuit against Oak Brook Care, alleging that the facility’s neglect led to her injuries. According to the lawsuit, Keller was a resident of the healthcare center in March 2017. While at the facility as a resident, an incision on her left leg opened, which caused a heel pressure sore to deteriorate. This ultimately led to multiple debridement procedures, a significant loss of her physical, mental, and psychological health, and unnecessary pain and suffering. She claims that the healthcare facility’s staff was negligent in their care and treatment of her condition, which directly led to her injuries.

Illinois Medical Malpractice Law

Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor, nurse, surgeon, pharmacist, or other medical professional is negligent in their standard of care with a patient who is injured or killed as a result of that negligence. In Illinois, the victim of medical malpractice must demonstrate the following elements for their claim in order to prove medical malpractice took place:

  • There was a duty of care through a doctor/patient relationship
  • The duty of care was breached by the doctor in the patient’s treatment
  • The breach directly caused injury to the patient
  • The injury caused actual damages to the patient

Illinois law only allows for the victim of medical malpractice to file a lawsuit in a small window of time following the incident. Known as the statute of limitations, a victim of medical malpractice only has two years from the date the victim knew or should have reasonably known about the injuries caused by the malpractice. In no event can the victim of medical malpractice file a lawsuit more than four years after the date of injury, except if the malpractice victim was under the age of eighteen years old when the incident took place. In that situation, a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed within eight years of the injury but no later than the victim’s twenty-second birthday. If a victim of medical malpractice fails to file a lawsuit in this time, the court can throw out the lawsuit for violating the statute of limitations and the victim will be barred from recovering any compensation for their injuries.

Compensation for medical malpractice claims in Illinois include costs for economic and noneconomic damages suffered by the victim. Economic damages include payment for current and future medical expenses, lost wages, and the loss of future income and benefits caused by the malpractice. Noneconomic damages include compensation for pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, anxiety, scarring, disfigurement, and disability. There are no caps on the economic or noneconomic damages a victim of medical malpractice can collect in Illinois.

Talk to a Lawyer Now

If you believe that you have a medical malpractice claim, the Chicago medical malpractice lawyers at the office of Harvey L. Walner & Associates are here to help. Call the office or contact us today to schedule a free consultation of your case.

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