New Jersey Ophthalmologist Malpractice and Optometry Malpractice Lawyers

Compassionate New Jersey Ophthalmologist and Optometry Malpractice Lawyers Pursue Financial Compensation on Behalf of Injured Victims

At Team Law, our New Jersey ophthalmologist malpractice and optometry malpractice lawyers have been protecting the rights and interests of injured patients for more than 60 years. After you’ve been harmed by a healthcare professional you trusted to make you better, you need attorneys willing to fight as hard as possible to help you recover financial compensation for your losses and obtain justice and accountability. 

Ophthalmology is a medical specialty dealing with the treatment of the eyes. Ophthalmologists are medical doctors and must adhere to a high standard of care when rendering treatment to patients. If you see an ophthalmologist for a problem with your eyes, you trust that the treatment you receive will improve your condition. Unfortunately, in rare cases, a patient’s condition will be made worse by substandard treatment. When this occurs, it may be considered ophthalmologist malpractice.

Optometrists are not medical doctors.  Optometrists receive a doctor of optometry (OD) degree after completing four years of optometry school, preceded by three years or more years of college. They are licensed to practice optometry, which primarily involves performing eye exams and vision tests, prescribing and dispensing corrective lenses, detecting certain eye abnormalities, and prescribing medications for certain eye diseases.  They are not licensed to perform eye surgery.   

Contact our firm today for a free case evaluation with our knowledgeable New Jersey ophthalmologist malpractice and optometry malpractice lawyers to learn more about how having our firm on your side can help you in pursuing fair and full compensation for the harm and losses that you have endured.

What Is Ophthalmologist Malpractice?

An ophthalmologist may commit malpractice when the treatment they render to a patient falls below the applicable standard of care for an average ophthalmologist. Mistakes that may lead to ophthalmologist malpractice can include:

• Failure to diagnose/delayed diagnosis/misdiagnosis — Ophthalmologists are specialists in diagnosing and treating medical conditions and disorders of the eyes. An ophthalmologist may not timely diagnose — or may not diagnose at all — a patient’s eye condition. This can result in the patient’s condition worsening, leading to vision problems or other threats to the patient’s health. The patient may also lose out on the opportunity for more effective or less invasive treatments when their conditions worsen, requiring the patient to be subject to additional expense and physical distress from more intensive treatment. 
• Failure to consult — In some cases, an ophthalmologist should consult with another member of the speciality who has experience handling certain types of cases, or they should consult with a doctor in another specialty when the patient’s condition and symptoms warrant. Failing to consult when an ophthalmologist lacks sufficient knowledge, training, or experience to treat a patient’s conditions may lead to malpractice.
• Errors during procedures — Ophthalmologists should have sufficient training and experience to perform various procedures to treat a patient’s eye condition. If an ophthalmologist performs a procedure they lack the training and experience to safely perform, or if they make an avoidable mistake during a procedure that injures a patient, they might be held responsible for malpractice.  
• Medication errors — Ophthalmologists sometimes prescribe medications for a patient’s condition. However, an ophthalmologist may commit errors such as prescribing medication contraindicated for the patient’s condition or failing to prescribe medication needed for the patient’s condition.

When an ophthalmologist commits an error during care, it can lead to malpractice when the patient suffers some sort of injury due to the error and incurs expenses or losses for which they can be financially compensated. 

How Can a Patient Be Injured by Ophthalmologist Malpractice?

Ophthalmologist malpractice can lead to a wide variety of patient injuries, including:

• Physical damage to the structures of the eye
• Vision loss or decreased vision
• Permanent blindness
• Infection
• Loss of an eye

When medical malpractice injures a patient, the patient must usually undergo additional treatment for the harm inflicted, which means more medical bills, lost time from work, and other expenses and losses that the patient otherwise would not have incurred.

What Is Optometry Malpractice?

An optometrist may commit malpractice when the treatment they render to a patient falls below the applicable standard of care for an average optometrist. Mistakes that may lead to optometry malpractice can include:

• Failure to diagnose/delayed diagnosis/misdiagnosis — Optometrists are specialists in diagnosing and treating medical conditions and disorders of the eyes. An optometrist may not timely diagnose — or may not diagnose at all — a patient’s eye condition. This can result in the patient’s condition worsening, leading to vision problems or other threats to the patient’s health. The patient may also lose out on the opportunity for more effective or less invasive treatments when their conditions worsen, requiring the patient to be subject to additional expense and physical distress from more intensive treatment. 
• Failure to consult — In some cases, an optometrist should consult with an ophthalmologist who has experience handling certain types of cases. Failing to consult when an optometrist  lacks sufficient knowledge, training, or experience to treat a patient’s conditions may lead to malpractice.
• Medication errors — Optometrists sometimes prescribe medications for a patient’s condition. However, an ophthalmologist may commit errors such as prescribing medication contraindicated for the patient’s condition or failing to prescribe medication needed for the patient’s condition.

When an optometrist commits an error during care, it can lead to malpractice when the patient suffers some sort of injury due to the error and incurs expenses or losses for which they can be financially compensated. 

How Can a Patient Be Injured by Optometrist Malpractice?

Optometry malpractice can lead to a wide variety of patient injuries, including:

• Physical damage to the structures of the eye
• Vision loss or decreased vision
• Permanent blindness
• Infection
• Loss of an eye

When malpractice injures a patient, the patient must usually undergo additional treatment for the harm inflicted, which means more medical bills, lost time from work, and other expenses and losses that the patient otherwise would not have incurred.

Let the New Jersey Ophthalmologist Malpractice and Optometry Malpractice Lawyers of Team Law Help You Hold Negligent Healthcare  Providers Accountable for Your Injuries

If you’ve been the victim of negligent care from an ophthalmologist or optometrist, the New Jersey ophthalmologist malpractice and optometry malpractice lawyers at Team Law can help you pursue financial recovery for the losses and expenses that you incur due to the injuries you suffered, including for:

• Medical bills and other treatment expenses
• Lost wages from missed work
• Loss of earning potential
• Pain and suffering 
• Lost quality of life from disability

Our firm will thoroughly investigate your case to recover the evidence needed to persuasively show that you received treatment that fell below the accepted standard of care and that your injuries and harm resulted from that substandard care. Let our attorneys handle the work of building your case, aggressively negotiating with insurance companies and defense attorneys to try to reach a fair and full settlement in your case, and advocating on your behalf in court and at trial if necessary. 

Contact Us Today for a Free Case Review to Learn More about How We Assist with Your Case

If you’ve suffered harm and disability due to negligent ophthalmological care or negligent optometry care, contact Team Law today for a free, no-obligation consultation to speak with our New Jersey ophthalmologist malpractice and optometry malpractice lawyers about your case and to discuss your legal rights and your options for holding your healthcare providers accountable for rendering negligent care and injuring you.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ophthalmologist Malpractice and Optometry Malpractice in New Jersey