What’s the Difference Between Error and Malpractice?
Gregg Hollander | December 16, 2025 | Medical Malpractice
Patients often call my office and say, “The hospital made a mistake, so it is malpractice, right?” Not necessarily. The law draws an important line between a simple error and actionable malpractice.
What’s the difference between error and malpractice? In everyday language, error and malpractice sound similar. Legally, they are different.
- A medical error can be any misstep, misjudgment, or system problem. It may or may not cause harm.
- Medical malpractice is a specific kind of negligence that meets all the legal elements of a claim.
Every malpractice case starts with what we would consider a preventable error, but not every error results in a viable malpractice case.
What Four Elements Must A Patient Prove To Win or Be Successful In a Medical Malpractice Case?
In Florida, there are four elements a patient must prove to win or be successful in a medical malpractice case:
1. Duty
A healthcare provider owed a duty to the patient. Once a doctor patient relationship exists, there is a duty to provide care that meets the prevailing professional standard.
2. Breach
The provider breached that duty. In other words, they deviated from what a reasonably careful provider in the same specialty would have done under similar circumstances.
3. Causation
The breach must be a legal cause of the patient’s injury. It is not enough that the doctor did something wrong. We must show that if appropriate care had been given, the outcome probably would have been different.
4. Damages
The patient must have suffered measurable harm. That can include physical injury, additional medical bills, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and non economic damages such as pain and suffering.
If any one of these elements is missing, there is no malpractice case, no matter how upsetting the experience was.
What Must Be Present To Prove Negligence In A Medical Setting?
What must be present to prove negligence in a medical setting? Evidence that the provider’s action or inaction actually caused a meaningful change in the outcome. I often use a simple test when I talk to potential clients about negligence: Was there anything the healthcare provider did or did not do that ultimately changed your clinical outcome?
If the honest answer is “no” then there is probably not a case, even if the care was sloppy. If the answer is “yes” we then dig in to understand exactly how the outcome changed and whether the resulting harm is significant enough to justify a malpractice lawsuit.
What Patient Right Is Most Violated?
Two patient rights come up again and again in my practice:
- Informed consent – Patients have a right to be told about the nature of a procedure, its risks, reasonable alternatives, and who will actually be performing it. In reality, consent is often rushed, and people are not fully informed.
- The right to an emergency medical screening and stabilizing treatment – Hospitals must provide at least a basic emergency screening regardless of a patient’s financial status. When patients are turned away or transfers are refused because of flawed policies, that can become a serious legal issue.
Privacy violations, such as HIPAA issues, are important but rarely create viable malpractice claims in Florida because they usually do not involve physical impact or measurable medical harm.
Talk With a Florida Medical Malpractice Lawyer About Errors, Negligence, and Patient Rights
If you believe something went wrong in your medical care, it is normal to wonder: What’s the difference between error and malpractice? What four elements must a patient prove to win or be successful in a medical malpractice case? What must be present to prove negligence in a medical setting? You do not have to guess.
The next step is getting clear answers from the medical records and, when appropriate, a qualified expert review. Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers can help evaluate whether what happened was a known risk, a preventable error, or negligence that meets the legal elements of malpractice under Florida law, and explain your options during a free consultation.
Contact Our Florida Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers, Boca Raton Office
7000 W Palmetto Park Rd #500
Boca Raton, FL 33433
(561) 510-7892
Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers, Fort Lauderdale Office
200 S.E. 6th Street #203
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
(954) 287-0566
Hollander Law Firm Accident Injury Lawyers, West Palm Beach Office
319 Clematis St #203
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
(561) 556-7873