Medical Malpractice in Taiwan

Hello,

I had a knee surgery in December of last year in one of Taiwan’s major hospitals.
They told me that an MRI showed that I had a torn meniscus and, due to the pain I was experiencing, it needed to be repaired or the torn edge needed to be removed. Trusting the doctors I went along with the proposed surgery. I was not visited by the doctor to go over care until 9 hours post surgery, around midnight. He was very vague about the details of said surgery. He said “We repaired the meniscus, put 2 stitches in, stay off it for 3 days.”. The next day another doctor said i needed 8 weeks on crutches (what I was expecting from reading about meniscus repairs).
After 8 weeks, I stopped using crutches and the doctors assured me everything was fine.

But it wasn’t. The amount of pain in my knee only increased. It is now 8 months later and I can still not fully bend my knee, squat, or run. My knee is in constant pain. I had another MRI and they suggested another surgery. I said no way and went for a second opinion.
I recently went to another doctor in Taipei to do just that and go over my MRI’s (something the original doctors failed to do with me). My new doctor is saying there are no signs of either a repair or removal on the MRI’s. He says my meniscus is perfectly healthy and intact and the problem is in my Patella Tendon.
So what it boils down to is- either the first doctors lied about the surgery and instead cut me open to look around or to make me believe I had surgery or my new doctor can not read an MRI (something I highly doubt.)

Has anyone had any experience with filing a medical malpractice case?
Are they as hard to file as the internet makes them out to be?
Does anyone have any advice about where or how to begin?

Thanks!

I’m sorry to read about your trouble - just one of those things that get my blood pressure up. Just another of the many examples that show it’s not a good idea to trust a doctor and if you have no choice get 3 opinions (they are rarely the same).

I had another more complex case of medical malpractice in the family a while ago. The scene was also in a large and “reputable” hospital in Taipei. It was (still is) simply unbelievable: the involved doctors seemed to have not even basic knowledge in their field of expertise and communication skills of a 12 year-old. When confronted with evidence of their “work” they just sticked their head in the ground and pretended not see or hear anything - Like most Taiwanese do if there is a conflict to resolve.

Insurance is heavily subsidized by the government here and therefore each patient is an open cheque for the hospitals with “doctors” as sales agents. A similar picture exists beyond Taiwan.

Because of the wish of the family member concerned (traumatic) we did not follow the case to the end, although we had 100% chance to end that idiots career for good. What you need for a start is an expert report from another doctor, preferably a well established specialist in that area. You also need an equally established lawyer / law firm here in Taiwan who is rolling the case up. PM me if you need more specific information.