In NC does anyone know what statute of limitations are for medical negligence?

Look at the death certificate. Does it show this as the cause of death? Was an autopsy performed? Those things are very important.

It depends on the type of malpractice:

1. 2.5 years from the date of an occurrence, or

2. If it arose from ongoing treatment, the 2.5 years doesn't begin to run until the course of treatment has concluded; or

3. If something was left in a patient's body, it's 1 year from the date of discovery, generally (there's another aspect to this provision but it doesn't seem to apply to your father's situation.)

I think though that if you feel the medical system "doesn't really value the lives of the elderly" and feel that this is a factor contributing to what you feel is malpractice, you might find that that perception isn't shared by medmal attorneys, who might not take the case because your perception isn't as relevant as much as the issue of whether or not another medical professional, who would testify if a case were filed, might find that malpractice did not actually occur.

In Michigan, attorneys find expert witnesses to testify as to that, at least that was the practice a few decades ago. I haven't kept up on the practices, so the criteria might be even stricter now b/c of tort reforms.

And as to your evaluation of the "written documentation", that's an issue to be addressed by a medical professional. Lay opinions aren't used as support for medmal claims.

I think you can honestly ask yourself at this point what you would hope to accomplish if you did sue. It wouldn't bring your father back, and I can pretty much guarantee that the stress of a medmal suit would be hard on you, or anyone in the family.

There would be merit though in pursuing it if the hospital and/or surgeon or other doctors did make mistakes, if for no other reason than to heighten the error and hopefully result in a higher level of practice in the future.