When finding a new doctor, do you want to find someone who is already fairly well along in their career? If you walk into the office and the doctor looks like he or she is fresh out of medical school, could that be a problem for you?
Some people are concerned about this. After all, we know that young drivers cause more car accidents. Clearly, experience plays a big role with any learned skill. Being a doctor is vastly more complicated than driving a car, so should you be worried about that same lack of experience?
You probably should not. Yes, inexperience can be an issue. But doctors do have a support system of other professionals that they can turn to if needed. They are not on their own. You can always get a second opinion.
Plus, some research has suggested that mistakes get more common over time. The level of empathy that some doctors feel has a tendency to drop if they have a history of mistakes. Some suggest that drives up the odds of mistakes in the future.
So, if you find an older and more experienced doctor, what you really need to ask yourself is what type of experience they have. If they’re a good, conscientious doctor, they probably will stay that way at any age. If they’re a negligent doctor who is prone to mistakes, they may just be more dangerous now that they’re older.
Regardless of the age of your doctor, you don’t deserve poor medical care. If that professional makes clear mistakes and harms you in the process, you need to understand your legal options. You have every right to pursue compensation when a medical mistake has left your injured.