Most patients rely on their doctors when it comes to diagnosis and treatments, as they should. Doctors, nurses and other medical professionals train for years to be experts in their field, and they often rely on minimal information to come to an official plan.
However, medical staff members are just as vulnerable to mistakes as we are. They may make a bad judgment or rely on false information. There are also situations where there is a staff member or doctor who acts in negligence against a patient.
Whatever the circumstances are, it’s important that patients can spot the signs of misdiagnosis and seek additional action when it’s necessary.
What to watch out for
There are a few telltale signs that misdiagnosis could be a possibility, including:
- A lacking conversation with your doctor – Most medical professionals rely on their patients to describe symptoms, medical histories and any critical information for a diagnostic. If the conversation is lacking information or questioning, it could lead to a totally different treatment plan than necessary.
- Not all the possibilities were considered – Many illnesses share similar symptoms but have completely different treatments. Many doctors misdiagnosis lupus for other illnesses such as rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia. It’s up to the doctor to find the distinctions and make sure the treatments are working properly.
- The second opinion was extremely different – You can always seek a second opinion, and sometimes it may only validate your prior diagnosis. However, there are situations where a second opinion differs from the first. And you may question whether you need to speak to a specialist or re-evaluate your treatments.
- The treatment isn’t working – The biggest sign of misdiagnosis is that your medications aren’t working. You don’t seem to be getting better and your test results reflect that. It may be time to ask for a reassessment of your health.
You don’t have to suffer in silence. You have every right to ask questions and seek the treatments that help you and your physical health in the long term. If you feel negligence was involved in your misdiagnosis, you may need to gather evidence through the hospital to show that argument in court.