Whenever we go to see our dentist we are putting our trust in them and assuming that they will do all they can to keep our teeth healthy and to carry out any restorative work or treatment with care? Just like other medical professionals, dentists have a duty of care to their patients, meaning that they should be competent and give their patients quality care and treatment. You should be able to claim for medical negligence compensation if you receive substandard care or suffer an accident or injury caused by your dentist’s incompetence.
Dental negligence is when a dentist gives substandard care causing an injury, health problems or an error in dental work. Here are some examples of dental negligence:-
1. Carelessness – If a dentist is not concentrating properly while performing dental surgery or treatment, they can injure the patient.
2. An error with medication – A dentist may make a mistake with the dosage of a drug or even give a patient the wrong medication. A patient could also suffer personal injury from a dentist giving them a drug that they are allergic to when it is clear from their patient notes that they should not be given this drug.
3. A missed diagnosis or delay in diagnosis – A dentist can be found to be negligent if they miss a problem or condition which they should have spotted and the patient goes on to suffer as a result. A delay in diagnosis could lead to a patient losing a tooth or teeth and having ongoing problems, such as pain.
4. A dentist removing a healthy tooth or the wrong tooth.
5. Instrument problems – A dentist could be found to be negligent if they use instruments that have not been properly sterilized or if a patient swallows an instrument.
This list is not exhaustive and you should be able to claim for medical negligence if you have suffered pain or an injury because your dentist was incompetent in some way.
As in all cases of personal injury, you should consult a specialist personal injury lawyer who has knowledge and expertise in the area of medical negligence.
It is imperative that you consult a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after your accident so that you can start the claim process and so that your solicitor can gather the evidence needed to support your case. Your solicitor should be able to work on a no win, no fee basis, also called a conditional agreement.
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