Going into surgery requires an enormous amount of trust. You place your health, and sometimes your life, in the hands of a surgical team and expect them to follow the careful procedures that keep patients safe. When that trust is broken by a preventable mistake, the physical and emotional toll can be devastating, and recovery can take far longer than anyone planned.
At Cimino Law Office, LLC, we provide compassionate, steady guidance to patients and families who believe something went wrong in the operating room. As a surgical error lawyer in Denver, CO, John Cimino draws on nearly four decades of legal experience to help you understand what happened and whether you may be entitled to justice and compensation.
Surgical complications are not always malpractice. Every procedure carries known risks, and a poor result alone does not prove negligence. A claim arises when a surgeon, anesthesiologist, nurse, or hospital fails to meet the standard of care that a reasonably careful provider would have followed, and that failure causes harm. As a surgical malpractice attorney, our role is to separate an unavoidable complication from a preventable error and explain the difference to you in plain terms.
Some mistakes should never happen. These include surgery on the wrong patient, the wrong body part, or the wrong side of the body; sponges, clamps, or other instruments left inside the patient; and unintended cuts or punctures to nearby organs, blood vessels, or nerves.
Other surgical errors involve anesthesia dosing or monitoring, failure to recognize bleeding or infection after the procedure, and discharging a patient too soon. Problems can also begin before surgery, when a condition is incorrectly identified and an unnecessary procedure is performed. If you suspect a diagnostic problem led to your surgery, our page on misdiagnosis explains how those claims work.
Surgical errors can occur in hospitals, outpatient surgery centers, and specialty clinics alike. In many cases, more than one person shares responsibility, such as a surgeon who made the mistake and a facility whose safety checks failed to catch it. Identifying every responsible party is an important part of protecting your claim.
Before most procedures, you have the right to understand the risks, the benefits, and the reasonable alternatives. If a surgeon failed to explain a significant risk that later caused you harm, and a reasonable patient would have chosen differently with that information, you may have a claim even if the procedure itself was performed correctly. Consent forms do not protect a provider from negligence.
A surgical malpractice case requires careful review of operative reports, anesthesia records, nursing notes, and follow-up care. In most cases, Colorado law requires a Certificate of Review, which confirms that a qualified medical professional has reviewed the claim and believes it has merit. Your claim must also be filed within strict deadlines, generally two years from when you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury and its cause, with an outer time limit that can apply even when a problem is found late.
Damages in these cases may include corrective surgery, ongoing medical care, lost wages, reduced earning ability, pain and suffering, and the emotional toll of a life changed by a preventable error. Our firm works to document each of these losses so that nothing is overlooked.
You should not have to face the aftermath of a surgical error alone. We work with patients throughout the Denver area and across Colorado, including Colorado Springs, Boulder, Fort Collins, and Brighton. To discuss what happened, contact our office at (720) 434-0434 to schedule a free consultation, and let us help you understand your options and protect your rights.
Cimino Law Office, LLC helps patients harmed by preventable mistakes before, during, or after surgery, including wrong-site procedures, retained instruments, organ or nerve damage, anesthesia errors, and missed post-operative complications. The firm also evaluates informed consent claims where a surgeon failed to explain a significant risk that later caused harm.
Is a bad surgical outcome the same as malpractice?
No. Every surgery carries known risks, and a complication alone does not prove negligence. A claim exists when a surgeon or surgical team failed to meet the standard of care and that failure caused harm.
What are examples of preventable surgical errors?
Wrong-site or wrong-patient surgery, sponges or instruments left inside the body, and accidental damage to nearby organs, nerves, or blood vessels are common examples. Anesthesia mistakes and missed signs of bleeding or infection after surgery can also support a claim.
Can I have a claim if I signed a consent form?
Yes. A consent form does not protect a provider from negligence. You may also have an informed consent claim if a surgeon failed to explain a significant risk that later caused harm and a reasonable patient would have chosen differently.
Who can be held responsible for a surgical error?
Responsibility may fall on the surgeon, the anesthesiologist, nurses, or the hospital or surgery center itself. Many cases involve more than one party, which is why reviewing operative reports and facility policies matters.
What damages can be recovered after a surgical error?
Damages may include corrective surgery, ongoing medical care, lost wages, reduced earning ability, and pain and suffering. Colorado limits certain categories of damages in medical malpractice cases, and the firm explains how those limits may apply during a consultation.
