Severe Infection Medical Malpractice Claim

Build an infection timeline from time-stamped records

A severe-infection review often turns on chronology: symptoms, vital signs, laboratory or culture results, clinician assessments, escalation of care, and the later diagnosis. The presence of an infection alone does not show malpractice.

Records to place side by side

• Emergency, inpatient, nursing, and rapid-response notes
• Vital-sign flowsheets and laboratory/culture timestamps
• Medication administration records for antibiotics and supportive treatment
• Imaging, source-control procedure, or operative reports when applicable
• ICU, transfer, discharge, and later follow-up records

Questions for expert review

• What signs were documented at each stage?
• When did the suspected source of infection become apparent?
• What treatment decisions are actually being questioned?
• What harm was caused by the infection itself, and what additional harm is alleged to have resulted from delayed or inadequate care?

Document the resulting harm

Organ injury, additional procedures, prolonged hospitalization, rehabilitation, work loss, and future-care needs should be tied to records rather than assumed from the diagnosis name.