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Your Relationship With Your Mental Health Care Professional Is Very Personal. When You Suffer From Emotional Trauma, Or Need Mental Health Treatment, You Expect Your Psychiatrist To Help You Deal With Your Mental Health Condition. An Error Or A Misstep In Your Treatment Can Have A Significant Effect On Your Mental Health. In Serious Cases It May Lead To Devastating Results And Even Suicide. If Your Mental Health Professional Fails In His/Her Duty Of Care And You Suffer Harm As A Result, You May Have A Claim For Compensation For Mental Health Negligence.

It Is Essential That Mental Health Care Providers Maintain The Highest Level Of Care Possible In This Intensely Personal Relationship. There Is A Recognized Standard Of Care Required Of Mental Health Care Professionals And In Some Cases The Duty Of Care Can Even Extend Beyond Their Own Patient. Medical Malpractice Lawsuits In The Psychiatric Field Are As Common As In Any Other Medical Field.

Your relationship with your mental health care professional is very personal. When you suffer from emotional trauma, or need mental health treatment, you expect your psychiatrist to help you deal with your mental health condition. An error or a misstep in your treatment can have a significant effect on your mental health. In serious cases it may lead to devastating results and even suicide. If your mental health professional fails in his/her duty of care and you suffer harm as a result, you may have a claim for compensation for mental health negligence. 

It is essential that mental health care providers maintain the highest level of care possible in this intensely personal relationship. There is a recognized standard of care required of mental health care professionals and in some cases the duty of care can even extend beyond their own patient. Medical malpractice lawsuits in the psychiatric field are as common as in any other medical field.

A duty to provide professional care of the highest standards

Breach of this recognized standard of care can take many forms and as with any other medical malpractice case, it is not always easy to establish. Examples of mental health negligence can include:
  • A mental health professional should be able to make a definitive diagnosis after a proper assessment of his patient. Misdiagnosis of your mental illness or prescribing the wrong medication or dosage, can lead to a case for malpractice.
  • The standard of care requires that your psychiatrist must do a proper assessment of suicide risk on any patient that is potentially suicidal. Failure to cover all the relevant factors could amount to negligence, or
  • Once the psychiatrist determines that there is a suicide risk, he needs to take the necessary steps to prevent the patient from committing suicide. Inadequate supervision in the hospital could amount to negligence. The same applies if he/she fails to admit or keep a patient in hospital.
  • There should be clear professional boundaries between a psychiatrist and his/her patient. Any attempt to violate these boundaries, for example engaging in sexual encounters with the patient, or abuse of his/her knowledge and power over the patient can result in a medical malpractice claim. The patient has the right to expect competent and professional conduct from the psychiatrist. In such cases the harm will mostly be emotional in nature.

What about third parties?

In some instances the duty of care can even extend to other people. If a patient, during a counseling session, threatens to harm another person, the doctor might be in a very difficult position. On the one hand there is doctor/patient confidentiality, and on the other there is a responsibility towards the safety of others. The courts have ruled that the doctor will have a duty to warn this other person of the threat. This implies that the patient or his/her family might have a malpractice claim against the doctor should the patient act on the threats and the doctor failed to warn them.

When is it medical malpractice?

If you feel that your health care provider did not act in accordance with his/her duty of care you should meet with an attorney to evaluate the merits of your case. You may feel particularly vulnerable and already under a lot of emotional stress, but your psychiatrist never has the right to treat you without respect or due care. Each step of your treatment should adhere to the standard of care and be aimed at improving your mental health condition.
Similar to any other medical malpractice claim you need to prove:
  • A doctor-patient relationship.
  • The standard of care required of a psychiatrist with equal qualification under similar circumstances.
  • That the doctor negligently breached the standard of care.
  • The negligence caused foreseeable harm.
If you are successful in your negligence claim you may be able to recover compensation for pain and suffering, the cost of any further treatment, loss of wages and any impairment in your ability to enjoy life.

Contact a lawyer to protect your rights

You will almost always need the testimony of an expert medical witness to assist you in proving all the elements of your case. Don’t hesitate to contact our firm. We will evaluate your case and offer expert legal advice on the merits of your case. If you agree with us to move forward with your case, we have years of experience in medical malpractice litigation. We will assist you all the way and provide the best service and advice to claim and recover the compensation that you are entitled to.

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