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WA state tort law for pet medical malpractice
Benton City, WA
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Posted about 1 year ago in Medical Malpractice
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Pet Malpractice:
My dog went in for a ACL surgery on his knee. After 3 weeks the surgery failed. 1 week later he had the same surgery again, 3 weeks later it failed. Spoke with the Dr. yesterday to find out that they did the surgery unknowingly with the wrong suture material and clamps and tools. They found out because they questioned the supply company. We are in about $2500 dollars and alot of time. The average recovery takes about 12 weeks to 6months. Know he has to have the surgery for the 3rd time. Should I be going after my vet for the mess up?
Answers (1)
Laura Mcfarland-Taylor
This attorney is licensed in Illinois.
Posted 6 months ago.
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While veterinary malpractice is a valid cause of action, such suits are very expensive to litigate. It basically becomes a battle of the experts, with one side saying "this is standard procedure" and the other side saying "this is not standard procedure". In addition, the damages awarded are generally not very high unless what the vet did was truly shocking and outrageous.
Short of litigation, you can file a complaint with the American Veterinary Medical Association, http://www.avma.org/ Finally, the fact that the vet told you the problem was with materials supplied by the maker of the sutures, clamps, etc, means that they are going to probably require you to also sue the supplier — adding more time and expense to the litigation. I would speak to the vet about reducing the bill since this was a problem with the materials used. |
