When you go to a doctor, you trust them to look out for your best interests. You trust they will prescribe the proper medication, explain what to expect, and keep you safe.
But what should you do when that does not happen? What if you were given medication and not told about serious risks? In turn, those risks ultimately harmed you or someone you love.
If this happened to you, you might feel angry, confused, and maybe betrayed. You may also be wondering if you have legal options.
What if a doctor doesn’t warn about the risks of a medication? If this failure leads to injury, it can be considered medical malpractice. And yes, you may have grounds to file a lawsuit.
You Deserved to Be Told the Truth
Doctors are legally required to inform patients about the potential side effects, interactions, and dangers of their prescribed medications. This is called informed consent. It is a patient’s right.
You have the right to understand what a medication could do to your body so you can make the best decision for yourself. That includes being told:
- What side effects might happen
- The seriousness of the risks
- Whether the drug could make an existing condition worse
- If it could interact dangerously with something else you are taking
- If there are safer alternatives
If you were not told any of that, you did not get the chance to make an informed choice. This is more than morally wrong; it is potentially negligent.
Why Does It Happen?
Doctors are legally and ethically required to warn patients about the known risks of any medication they prescribe. However, this is sometimes overlooked, and the consequences can be serious.
So why does this happen?
In many cases, it comes down to time. Doctors today are often overwhelmed, juggling tight schedules and administrative demands. As a result, important conversations about medication risks may be rushed or skipped entirely.
Some physicians may assume patients already understand the risks of commonly prescribed drugs or believe those risks are too rare to emphasize. But what’s considered “rare” in medicine can still have life-changing consequences for you.
In other situations, a doctor may not be entirely current on the latest warnings or drug interactions.
Poor communication also plays a role. Some physicians use vague language or rely on handouts or pharmacists to fill in the gaps.
No matter the reason, this is not an excuse. You have the right to be informed before taking any medication. If your doctor did not warn you about the risks and you were harmed, that failure could be considered medical malpractice, and you may have legal options to pursue justice and compensation.
What Makes It Medical Malpractice?
The situation may be the basis for a medical malpractice lawsuit in these cases. If you want to prove malpractice, your attorney will need to show that:
- You had a doctor-patient relationship, giving rise to a duty of care
- The doctor did not meet the accepted standard of care. That means they failed to warn you about known medication risks
- That failure directly caused you harm
- You suffered damages, such as physical, emotional, and/or financial harm.
In short, a reasonable doctor would have warned you, but yours did not. In turn, you were harmed as a result, and you may have a case.
Your legal team can work with medical experts to review your records and confirm whether that breach occurred. If it did, you may be entitled to compensation for:
- Medical bills and future care
- Lost wages or diminished earning ability
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of quality of life
And if you lost a loved one because a doctor failed to warn, a wrongful death lawsuit may be appropriate.
Is the Drug Company Responsible?
Sometimes, people wonder if they should sue the pharmaceutical company instead. While drug manufacturers are responsible for providing clear warning labels to doctors, it is up to your physician to share those warnings with you.
If the drug came with known risks, and your physician failed to pass that information along, that makes the doctor, not the drugmaker, liable for your injuries.
You Deserve to Hold These Doctors Accountable
You never should have been left in the dark about something that could seriously affect your health.
If you were harmed because a doctor did not warn you about the risks of a medication, that is not just a bad experience; it may be medical malpractice. You may also have the right to take legal action.
At DiPiero Simmons McGinley & Bastress, PLLC, we are ready to help in these cases. We believe that every person deserves high-quality medical care, and not telling you about the potential consequences of medication is a serious breach of trust.
Contact us to see how we can assist with a potential legal claim.
