My dad went to the ER with chest pain and died from a heart attack shortly after at the hospital. I feel like they didn't take him seriously and waited too long to diagnose him—do I have a case?

It all depends on the details of your specific case.

When it comes to cardiology malpractice, it all boils down to whether or not the medical professionals your father encountered acted negligently. Just because he died on their watch does not necessarily mean it was legally their fault. Tragedies can happen even with the best of medical care. Malpractice is a matter of blatant negligence. This means that the treatment those doctors provided was not consistent with the established standards of care. A negligent doctor acts differently from the way other doctors in the same situation would respond.

If your father was in the ER for a while, clearly exhibiting signs of a heart attack while the staff made him wait or tried to say he was suffering from something benign like acid reflux, there may be a case. This could be especially true if your father was suffering from heart disease, knew he was, told the medical staff he was and they still did nothing.

However, even if the medical professionals involved made bad decisions, it may also have been a situation where nothing would have helped. If your father died fairly quickly after arriving at the hospital, he may have been beyond the point of being saved by treatment.

Again, whether or not you have a cardiology malpractice case will depend on the specific details of your situation. It is important that you contact a medical malpractice attorney immediately and have them evaluate everything for you. If you live in Texas, Oklahoma or Arkansas, contact Girards Law for a completely free consultation at 888-897-2762.