At some point in your life, you may face some major decisions about your medical care that you do not think will have a major impact on your health and life. As trusting as you are of your physician in New York, there is always the risk that he or she may not perform duties properly and make mistakes with your care.

Mistakes can happen at any time, and these could cause you to become a victim of medical malpractice. You may not think you can afford to get additional opinions. However, the price you could end up paying for your trusted health care provider’s errors could be more than you can pay. Here is why:

Your health may become compromised

All it takes is a wrong diagnosis, misinterpreted diagnostic procedure result or surgical problem to damage your health. Sometimes the damage is irreversible and can lead to a great deal of pain, suffering and a diminished standard of life. For example, you go to the doctor complaining of stomach pain. After listening to your symptoms he/she tells you that you have stomach cancer and must undergo cancer treatment. You do not get a second opinion and consent to treatment only to find out later you did not have cancer, just an inflamed colon.

The impact runs deep

You no longer look and feel like your normal self. Because your doctor made a mistake, you now have considerable medical debt and other issues to contend with. You also no longer trust your doctor and have become unwilling to trust other medical professionals. You now must deal with a variety of emotional and physical hardships. The impact of medical malpractice on victims is much deeper than what appears on the surface.

You should never take chances with your health. When it comes to medical care, the more experts who can back up a single diagnosis and medical information you receive, the better. Protect yourself and your loved ones by insisting on additional expert opinions before you consent to any major medical procedure.