Guide to surgery recovery and how to determine if you’re a post-operative medical negligence victim
Post-surgery care refers to the care you receive after a medical operation, such as medical treatment, consultations, and nursing monitoring. You should receive post-operative care as soon as you get out of surgery and until your doctor decides you no longer need to visit them for check-ups or have any treatment.
Sadly, during the post-operative period, medical negligence often occurs, triggering complications or medical issues because the healthcare providers fail to provide you with a standard of care. Medical malpractice after surgery can result in severe medical consequences such as infection or delayed recovery. Your doctor should monitor your progress after the surgery to ensure you don’t develop an infection or other serious complications. They should also conduct regular medical exams and ensure you’re properly recovering after the medical procedure.
As a patient, you should know that your healthcare providers owe you the duty to offer proper care before, during, and after surgery. Even if the extent of post-operative care differs from one case to another, it’s the medical professional’s responsibility to monitor your state. In case you experience injuries as a result of their negligence, you can claim compensation for medical malpractice with the support of personal injury solicitors, like those from Medical Negligence Law.
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Common post-operative errors
After any medical procedure, you are in a fragile health state that leaves your body vulnerable to infection or other life-threatening complications. Your doctor should monitor your state closely to identify infection signs in time and ensure you’re recovering properly after the surgery.
Here is a list of common post-surgery errors that can transform you into a victim of medical malpractice.
– The doctor doesn’t check your surgery site for signs of infection, such as increased drainage, inflammation, or discolouring.
– The healthcare professional doesn’t regularly clean your wound
– The nurses fail to change your bandages periodically
– The doctor doesn’t provide you with follow-up recommendations for post-surgery care
– The medical team prescribes inappropriate medical drugs
– The healthcare expert doesn’t analyse your test results
– The hospital isn’t a sterile environment
– The medical team doesn’t monitor your vitals
All the above post-operative errors can trigger severe health issues, worsen your condition, and prolong your recovery time. In case your surgeon fails to offer proper follow-up instructions for the post-operatory period, you may experience pains, severe consequences such as infections, and a long recovery. If you experience injuries due to medical malpractice, talk to a personal injury solicitor to learn more about how you can claim compensation.
Effects of medical negligence
You should receive continuous medical care after your medical procedure. If you don’t, your health can experience severe damage.
Your surgical site can get infected
Sadly, the most common effect of medical negligence after surgery is infection. Your body is quite vulnerable after surgery, and bacteria can easily settle in and cause health issues. Your healthcare provider should monitor your state and treat you accordingly to prevent infection and notice its signs immediately. A lack of attention during the post-surgery period (the nurses don’t regularly clean your surgical site; the medical staff doesn’t monitor your vital signs) can facilitate infection and other severe complications.
Most healthcare facilities are sterilised environments, but unfortunately, some fail to provide their patients with standard sanitary conditions and facilitate the spread of bacteria and viruses. In clinics and hospitals, infections with bacteria are common and can endanger or worsen patients’ conditions, especially after surgery.
Human bodies are more prone to infection after medical procedures like surgeries, and the medical team should periodically monitor the patients and clean their surgical sites to ensure they won’t develop infection.
You can suffer from sepsis
An untreated infection around the surgical wound can spread and lead to sepsis, a generalised bacterial infection that enters the bloodstream and causes multiple organ failure. This is a rare medical complication, but it can threaten your life, so it’s best to identify and treat the first signs of infection to prevent it from developing into sepsis. When the healthcare provider fails to monitor your condition properly and observe the first signs of infection, you can become a sepsis victim and have your organs shut down because of it.
You can experience blood clots
Another common effect of medical malpractice is blood clots. Your surgery may require you to lie in a particular position for a period or prevent you from walking for a while. Suppose you won’t be on your legs for a long time, your doctor should provide you with medication to prevent blood clots in the legs. Other solutions may imply using compression stockings and including some light exercise in your daily routine when your body will allow it.
If your doctor fails to take the needed measures to prevent blood clotting, you can get deep vein thrombosis, a medical problem that involves blood clots in the deep veins of your pelvis and legs. When not treated immediately, blood clots can threaten your life because they can cause pulmonary embolisms, stroke, or heart attacks.
How to increase your chances of a healthy recovery
If you’re about to have surgery you may want to know what steps to follow to increase your chances to recover fast.
Rest – depending on your medical procedure, you may need from two to three weeks to recover. Follow your doctor’s recommendations for how long you need to rest. In case you must change the bandages on your own, wash your hands thoroughly before and follow their recommendations.
Get help – after surgery, you’ll need help to get home, so ask a friend or family member to assist you on the surgery day and the next ones. You’ll most likely need help with daily tasks until you recover.
Eat healthily – food can heal your body, so focus on proper nutrition and hydration. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables and stick to the diet your doctor prescribes.
Stay active – walking after surgery can prevent complications like blood clots, so try to stay active if possible. However, avoid strenuous activities like hitting the gym or jogging until your doctor clears you for physical effort.
