When seeking medical care, most people expect to be treated by a licensed physician. However, physician assistants (PAs) play a significant role in modern healthcare, often providing direct patient care under the supervision of a doctor. With the increasing responsibility PAs carry, a common question arises: Can a physician assistant commit medical malpractice? The answer is yes. Like doctors, PAs can be held liable for malpractice if their negligence causes harm to a patient.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional provides treatment that falls below the accepted standard of care, resulting in injury or harm to a patient. To prove malpractice, the following elements must typically be established:
- Duty of care: The PA had a professional obligation to provide appropriate care.
- Breach of duty: The PA failed to meet the standard of care.
- Causation: The PA’s negligence directly caused or contributed to the patient’s injury.
- Damages: The patient suffered harm, such as physical injury, emotional distress, or financial losses.
When Can a Physician Assistant Be Sued for Malpractice?
Physician assistants can be sued for malpractice in several scenarios, including:
1. Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis
PAs are often responsible for examining patients and diagnosing conditions. If a PA misdiagnoses a serious illness or fails to order necessary tests, the patient could suffer harm due to delayed or incorrect treatment.
Example: A PA misdiagnoses a patient’s appendicitis as a stomach virus. The patient’s appendix ruptures, leading to life-threatening complications.
2. Improper Treatment or Medication Errors
If a PA provides the wrong treatment or improperly administers medication, they can be liable for malpractice. This may include prescribing the wrong dosage, failing to review a patient’s allergies, or miscalculating medication interactions.
Example: A PA prescribes a medication that dangerously interacts with a drug the patient is already taking, causing severe side effects.
3. Failure to Supervise or Collaborate with a Physician
In many states, PAs are required to work under a supervising physician. If a PA fails to consult with their supervising doctor on complex cases or acts outside their scope of practice, it could constitute malpractice.
Example: A PA performs a minor surgical procedure without consulting the supervising physician, despite lacking the necessary experience, and the patient suffers complications.
4. Inadequate Follow-Up Care
PAs may be responsible for monitoring patients’ progress and providing follow-up care. Failure to provide proper post-treatment instructions or to recognize signs of complications can result in malpractice claims.
Example: A PA neglects to follow up with a patient showing signs of post-surgical infection, leading to sepsis.
Who Can Be Held Liable in PA Malpractice Cases?
When a physician assistant commits malpractice, multiple parties may be held liable, including:
- The physician assistant: PAs are licensed medical professionals and can be sued individually for negligence.
- The supervising physician: Since PAs work under the supervision of doctors, the physician may share liability if they failed to properly oversee the PA’s care.
- The medical facility or employer: The hospital, clinic, or healthcare facility employing the PA can also be held liable under vicarious liability or negligent hiring doctrines.
How to Prove PA Malpractice
To successfully pursue a medical malpractice claim against a PA, the patient (plaintiff) must prove that:
- The PA owed them a duty of care,
- The PA’s negligence breached the standard of care,
- The negligence caused direct harm or worsened their condition, and
- They suffered measurable damages, such as medical expenses, lost wages, or pain and suffering.
Contact Otorowski & Golden, PLLC
Please know that our firm is here to help if you were injured due to a medical provider’s malpractice. Otorowski & Golden, PLLC provides free consultations to all our potential clients. The attorneys at our law firm also have over 120 years of combined experience representing injured parties in medical malpractice cases. They never back down to insurers and fight for their clients’ interests every step of the way. Do yourself a favor and contact them now for the quality legal representation you deserve.