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Use these tips to help prevent medical malpractice before and during surgery.

While patients have no control over what happens to them when they are unconscious on the operating table, they can do certain things to reduce the risk of falling victim to a medical mistake.

Here are some important tips for patients to remember leading up to and on the day of the surgery:

• Discuss all options with your doctor and surgeon. Make sure all specialists and surgeons are on the same page when it comes to your treatment.
• Research your procedure. Learning what should happen before, during, and after your surgery can help you recognize something out of the ordinary.
• Follow all pre- and post-operative instructions. Doing so will make it less likely that you get blamed for your medical problem.
• Tell all nurses and healthcare staff who you are and why you are having surgery. It might sound repetitive, but telling your name and type of surgery to every staff member you encounter will greatly reduce the chance that you are mistaken for another person, especially if you have a common name.
• Have a spouse or someone there who will advocate for you..If you are a patient you have enough stress and anxiety.It is helpful to have a spouse or close friend there who will ask questions or call the nurse if there is a concern. Also you should never feel bad about calling for a nurse it is their job to be patient advocates and speak up for you if a doctor is not responding.

A nurse's who won't advocate for you is commiting nursing malpractice.

If you or someone you care about has suffered a serious injury due to a medical mistake made by a doctor, nurse, or other healthcare professional, or if you need help finding out, then contact the Mellino Robenalt at 216.241.1901 or by clicking here for our online contact form.