Can You Sue If You Get an Infection After Surgery?

Undergoing surgery can be worrying enough, but once you’re in the recovery room, you may still face unexpected issues as you recover. There are many causes for surgical site infections, and some may result from negligence or carelessness by your practitioners. Can you sue if you get an infection after surgery? 

The answer may be “Yes,” depending on your circumstances. If you or a loved one experienced complications with infections after surgery, a medical malpractice attorney at Hodes Milman is ready to hear your story and help you develop your claim. Contact us at (949) 640-8222 or through our online form to arrange a free consultation today. 

What Is a Surgical Site Infection (SSI)?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a surgical site infection (SSI) is an infection at the location where surgery occurred on the body. You may experience SSI symptoms within a week or as long as 90 days after your operation. Your doctor may treat the issue with antibiotics, but if your infection doesn’t respond, you may require more invasive treatment, such as additional surgery.

There are three main types of SSIs:

Superficial Incisional SSI

Superficial incisional SSIs happen on or under the skin at the incision site, and you may experience redness, swelling, or pus draining from the incision closure. Frequently, those undergoing facelifts or other types of aesthetic procedures may develop infections and need help from a plastic surgery malpractice lawyer.

Deep Incisional SSI

Deep incisional SSIs involve tissue, such as the deeper layer of skin (the dermis), muscles, and connective tissue. You may need stronger antibiotics to correct this infection, but you could require surgery if it moves into other body parts. As with superficial incisional SSIs, you are at risk of sepsis without diagnosis and treatment.

Organ or Space SSI

When the infection occurs in an organ or the space surrounding your organs, it can be harder to identify. If you fail to diagnose it promptly, you may rapidly experience sepsis or organ failure. If you suffer from an organ or space SSI, you will likely require emergency surgery, powerful antibiotics, and hospitalization to treat the condition.

Other Types of Post-Surgical Infections

While most infections happen at the surgical site, you can also suffer post-treatment infections due to other facets of your care. For example, you may end up with a respiratory infection from poor ventilation or intubation techniques or develop a kidney infection from unsanitary catheter placement. You may even develop an infection from donating blood.

Our award-winning attorneys will stand by your side and work to get the most compensation possible for your hospital-acquired infection lawsuit. We have worked to aid the vulnerable and injured for over 30 years, and our founding partner, Dan Hodes, brings 40 years of experience to our firm.

What Happens if You Get an Infection After Surgery?

Healthcare providers are responsible for maintaining safe and sterile conditions during medical care, especially when undergoing an operation. If they neglect to adhere to these requirements, you may contract an infection that could complicate your recovery to full health. You may even need additional surgery to correct the problem caused by their negligence.

Signs and Symptoms of an Infection After Surgery

Understanding what happens if you get an infection after surgery is crucial to avoiding serious health issues. You may experience the following conditions within a few days to a month after an operation or other invasive treatment in a hospital. Be on the lookout for these signs and symptoms of an infection after surgery:

• Coughing that produces phlegm 
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness or headaches
• Feeling fuzzy or unable to think clearly
• Fever
• Joint soreness
• Low blood pressure
• Nausea
• Pain or burning while urinating
• Redness, scaly skin, or itching at the surgical site
• Shortness of breath

Many of these symptoms indicate the risk of developing sepsis. Sepsis arises when your body fails to respond to an infection, potentially leading to low blood pressure and organ damage. The best treatment is for medical staff to take all precautions so you never get an infection.

If the medical staff failed to keep tools and the environment sterile, you could have grounds to file an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit for compensation with the help of a team of experienced medical malpractice lawyers. 

Can You Sue if You Get an Infection After Surgery?

If there is evidence that your surgeon or surgical staff failed to uphold their duty to maintain a safe and clean environment for you, you could have the right to file a personal injury lawsuit. 

Trying to sue for surgical errors is often challenging because every patient is unique, and definitively proving negligence or careless action can be difficult. However, an experienced and dedicated malpractice lawyer can assist you in determining whether you can file a lawsuit if you develop an infection after surgery.

Gathering evidence and expert testimony to demonstrate negligence requires thoroughly investigating the circumstances. Your medical malpractice attorney will work to demonstrate how hospitals’ inadequate training, poor sanitation practices, or lack of sterile operating rooms contributed to your infection. 

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) happen to an average of 1 in 31 patients every day, according to the CDC. 

Instead of being a statistic, you can stand up to those who hurt you by pursuing a lawsuit to recover the compensation you deserve for your extra medical costs, lost income, and other expenses. Schedule a free consultation with Hodes Milman at (949) 640-8222 to discuss your case and understand your legal options today. 

Potential Compensation for Infection After Surgery

Many people are unaware of the range of expenses they can demand as part of a medical malpractice lawsuit or how much they could potentially win in a settlement or jury award.

While every case differs, settlements can range from a few thousand dollars to over seven figures for life-threatening infections. Your surgical error lawyer can help you calculate your compensation for infection after surgery, which may include:

• Doctor bills associated with the infection
• Surgery, ICU, or ER costs after your infection
• Lost income or benefits while you recover
• Antibiotics and other medications to treat the infection
• Physical therapy 
• In-home healthcare or the cost of a nursing rehab center
  

In many instances, you can also secure non-economic damages that address your pain and suffering. You can seek compensation for the mental anguish, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life, as well as for any permanent disability or disfigurement you experience. Your lawyer can explain how medical payouts operate in your state and how they may affect your claim.

Your hospital-acquired infection could severely affect you, leaving you unable to care for your physical needs for some time, possibly forever. You shouldn’t pay for someone else’s negligence when you weren’t at fault. Instead, you can seek the compensation you deserve to cover your expenses, treatment, and care to recover as fully as possible.

How a Hospital-Acquired Infection Lawsuit Works

At Hodes Milman, we dedicate ourselves to handling the legal demands of your lawsuit, allowing you to concentrate on your healing process.

We begin collecting vital evidence that allows us to fully understand the nuances of your case and identify if it is medical malpractice or medical negligence. We collaborate with medical and surgical experts to determine how your medical practitioners failed to keep you safe from SSIs.

The most critical part of a hospital-acquired infection lawsuit is demonstrating who committed negligence and how. In doing so, we open the door for you to receive compensation from those at fault. To show medical malpractice, we must use evidence to establish the following five elements of negligence:

1. You had a doctor-patient relationship with the defendant.
2. They owed you a duty of care as a medical provider for your health and safety.
3. They failed in that duty.
4. You suffered illness or injury due to the practitioner’s actions or inactions.
5. You have expenses associated with your illness or injury that should be repaid.

While we may begin by filing a claim against the hospital’s insurance policy, we strive to identify all potentially liable parties and seek to maximize your compensation. 

Your lawyer will attempt to negotiate a fair settlement with insurance providers while preparing your case for trial if they do not meet our demands. Ultimately, we are on your side, fighting fiercely as your legal advocate to protect your rights.

Contact us online or by phone at (949)-640-8222 to get started on your free consultation.

Your Surgeon and Medical Staff Owe You a Higher Duty of Care

Given the seriousness of medical care, healthcare providers bear a heightened responsibility to protect you. We hold doctors, nurses, and staff to a higher standard of care to prevent neglect. When they fail in this duty, you have the right to hold them accountable and seek justice for the harm they cause you. 

Every hospital or medical facility employee must adhere to protocols and standards to prevent infections. They should adhere to the following responsibilities at all times:

• Keeping their hands clean: Anyone who enters your room should wash hands with soap and water every time before administering care. For surgery, all participants should observe what’s known as surgical hand preparation.
• Keeping equipment sterile: Surgical staff should sterilize and disinfect all equipment, drapes, surfaces, and tools before the procedure.
• Maintaining antiseptic techniques: All staff must follow antiseptic techniques during the procedure by avoiding contact with nonsterile tools and surfaces. This includes proper disposal of surgical waste.
• Using Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Surgical teams should wear masks, gowns, gloves, and eye protection to prevent infection from falling hair, sneezing, or other sources. 
• Taking preventative action: Surgical teams can limit the occurrence of SSIs by administering antibiotics during or shortly after surgery, properly preparing surgical sites, and cleaning wounds after closure.
• Keeping surgeries and patient rooms clean: To limit infections, sterile surgery rooms must be ensured, and all patient environments must be kept as clean as possible. Sanitation staff in the facility should clean frequently to reduce the risk of harm and the spread of hospital-acquired diseases.
• Isolating patients with infections: It’s easy for infection to jump from one patient to another in a hospital, and failure to isolate someone with an infection could mean you contract a similar illness after your surgery.

In addition to these precautions, all medical facilities should have programs to monitor infection rates, outbreaks, and other concerns regarding HAIs. 

These programs allow them to take preventative measures to limit the spread and further harm. Facility administrators must also provide regular and rigorous training for all staff and doctors to ensure providers understand current treatment practices and avoid infections.

File a Lawsuit for a Hospital-Acquired Infection With Hodes Milman

Suffering a hospital-acquired infection after surgery can impact the rest of your life, significantly limiting your ability to work. The additional stress and worry can affect your healing process if you can’t provide for yourself and your family. Ultimately, you could suffer a debilitating injury and need care for the rest of your life.

Instead of facing this difficult time alone, put your case in the hands of the skilled medical malpractice attorneys at Hodes Milman.

We offer contingency fee pricing so you can get the help you need without worrying about adding to your mounting bills. You do not pay any fees if we do not secure a settlement or jury award for you. 

It’s as simple as that. Call Hodes Milman at (949) 640-8222 to arrange a complimentary case review to see if you qualify for a hospital-acquired infection lawsuit today. 

Related Resources

If you found this medical malpractice content helpful, please view the related topics below: 

• California Surgery Error Attorney
• Lack of Adherence to Protocol Causes Infections Killing Infants
• Woman Suffers Serious Bile Duct Injury Infection After Botched Gallstone Removal

Contact us if you have specific questions on the matter or if you’d like to schedule a free consultation.