Is Negligent Hospital Security a Form of “Medical Malpractice” in Florida?
Florida law imposes certain requirements to file a medical malpractice lawsuit that do not apply to other kinds of personal injury cases. For example, if you want to sue your doctor for malpractice, you must first obtain a verified report from a qualified medical expert stating that you have reasonable grounds to bring a lawsuit. You must also provide presuit notice to your doctor that includes this report.
Such steps are unnecessary in personal injury cases that do not involve “medical negligence,” as defined by Florida law. Say you were injured because a fight broke out at a nightclub you were patronizing. You decide to sue the nightclub owner for negligent security. Obviously, you would have to prove negligence at trial. But you would not need to obtain an expert opinion or provide the defense with presuit notice just to get your case heard in court.
Hospital Quashes Lawsuit Over Patient Killed in ER Shooting
Health care providers and facilities understand the special protections afforded them by Florida’s medical malpractice laws. That is why they often try to characterize cases involving ordinary negligence as medical malpractice. When such efforts are successful, it can mean denying an innocent victim their day in court.
A recent decision by the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals, Indian River Memorial Hospital v. Anderson, provides an apt illustration. This tragic case involved a man suffering from mental illness. The defendant, a hospital, had the man committed under Florida’s Baker Act, which allows certain legal officers and medical professionals to involuntarily detain a person in a mental health facility for up to 72 hours for examination.
In this case, the victim was left unrestrained in his hospital bed in an emergency room hallway. The victim grabbed a pair of scissors out of the nurse’s pocket, left his bed, and started running towards some law enforcement officers in the ER. The officers shot and killed the victim.
The victim’s estate subsequently filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the hospital. Essentially, the estate alleged that the hospital was negligent in failing to “provide adequate security measures” to protect Baker Act detainees from hurting themselves or others. Additionally, the lawsuit alleged the hospital was negligent in failing to train its staff to “recognize and react to emergency medical situations and conditions.”
The hospital moved to dismiss the lawsuit. It maintained the estate was really presenting a claim for medical malpractice, and since the estate failed to follow the presuit requirements for such a case, dismissal was required under law. The trial judge denied the motion, agreeing with the estate that it presented a claim for ordinary negligence.
Undeterred, the hospital then applied for–and received–a writ of certiorari from the Fourth District. The appellate court sided with the hospital’s interpretation of the case, i.e., that the estate alleged “medical negligence” subject to Florida’s presuit requirements. The Fourth District concluded that the estate’s claim “necessarily relies on the medical standard of care for a hospital treating a mentally ill patient at risk of self-harm and taken into custody for involuntary examination.” The hospital was therefore entitled to a dismissal.
Contact a Miami Medical Malpractice Attorney Today
Medical malpractice is one of the most complex areas of Florida personal injury law. So if you, or someone you care about, has been the victim of unprofessional or negligent medical care, it is imperative you seek out timely legal advice. To speak with a Miami medical malpractice lawyer today, contact Pita Weber Del Prado in Miami today at 305-670-2889 to schedule a free consultation.
Source:
scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=14903245784748461713
