Oct 13, 2025 in News --> Legal Representation

Medical Malpractice and Psychiatric Harm: Emerging Legal Considerations

Most people think of medical malpractice as something that leaves a visible mark—a surgical mistake, a missed diagnosis, or a birth injury. Those cases are still the backbone of malpractice law in Ontario. But in recent years, another type of harm has started to move into the spotlight: the damage you can’t see.

Psychiatric harm, sometimes called psychological injury, is becoming harder for the courts to ignore. It’s the depression that follows a traumatic surgery, the anxiety that lingers after a medical privacy breach, or the post-traumatic stress a parent develops after a preventable birth injury. These injuries can be every bit as devastating as physical harm, even though they don’t show up on an X-ray.

Why Psychiatric Harm Deserves Attention

A medical mistake doesn’t just break bodies. It can break confidence, trust, and peace of mind. Patients who suffer through a frightening or negligent experience in the healthcare system may find themselves struggling long after the physical wounds heal.

Consider a parent whose baby is injured because of improper use of a labour-inducing drug. The child’s needs are obvious, but the parent may quietly develop panic attacks or depression in the months that follow. This guide on birth injuries caused by labour inducers sheds light on how widespread these situations can be.

These psychiatric effects ripple outward. Families may suffer sleepless nights, strained relationships, or even job loss because of the emotional toll of medical negligence. None of it is visible, but all of it is real.

How Ontario Law is Shifting

Historically, Ontario courts were skeptical about psychiatric harm unless it came packaged with a physical injury. That mindset is softening. A few legal developments stand out:

• Recognition of stand-alone psychiatric harm: The Supreme Court of Canada in Saadati v. Moorhead (2017) confirmed that a claimant doesn’t need a physical injury to succeed in a negligence claim for mental harm. This has opened the door for patients whose harm is entirely psychological.
• The Mustapha case: In Mustapha v. Culligan of Canada Ltd. (2008), the Supreme Court recognized that psychiatric injury can ground liability, even if damages depend on whether the reaction was reasonably foreseeable. That case, though about contaminated water, remains a cornerstone for psychiatric injury law.
• The Laferrière case: These developments are further illustrated in Laferrière v. Lawson, a case prompting renewed judicial reflection on how psychiatric harm arising from medical negligence should be assessed. As discussed in Lexpert’s analysis, Lessons from Laferrière v. Lawson: Reconsidering What the SCC Says About Medical Harm, courts are increasingly grappling with when emotional injuries can stand alone. The article underscores how evolving jurisprudence is shaping legal standards for psychiatric claims in medical malpractice.
• Medical privacy breaches: Ontario courts have acknowledged that emotional harm can follow from data breaches in healthcare. This article on malpractice and data breaches shows how the law is catching up with the digital realities of medicine.
  
  

These decisions matter. They show a growing willingness to take psychological injuries seriously and to compensate patients accordingly.

Psychiatric Harm in Long-Term Care

Long-term care is another area where psychiatric harm shows up often. Families who discover neglect or abuse in a nursing home may feel guilt, anger, or lasting distress. These aren’t minor inconveniences; they can rise to the level of recognizable injuries.

A medical malpractice lawyer Toronto handling long-term care negligence cases will often weave psychiatric harm into the claim, ensuring families aren’t limited to the physical injuries alone.

Why These Cases Are So Complex

Proving psychiatric harm isn’t straightforward.

• Diagnosis matters: Courts rely heavily on medical and psychiatric experts to confirm the condition.
• Causation is tricky: Life is stressful. Lawyers need to show that the harm flows directly from the negligence, not from unrelated pressures.
• Subjectivity: Some people cope differently than others. One patient may shrug off a frightening event; another may develop PTSD.
• Skepticism remains: Despite progress, insurers and defendants sometimes downplay psychiatric injuries as “less serious.”
  
  

This is where an experienced medical malpractice lawyer becomes essential. They know how to gather the right records, call the right experts, and present psychiatric injuries in a way that judges and juries will take seriously.

What Patients and Families Can Do

If you believe you’ve suffered psychiatric harm from medical negligence, here are some steps that can strengthen your position:

1. Seek treatment quickly. A formal diagnosis is vital. Without it, courts are unlikely to recognize the injury.
2. Keep records. Journals, workplace notes, and family observations all help illustrate how daily life has changed.
3. Document medical history. Hold onto prescriptions, therapy records, and any referrals.
4. Act within limitation periods. In Ontario, missing a deadline could bar your claim.
   
   

The Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General provides additional guidance on civil claims and time limits.

The Bigger Picture

The law around psychiatric harm is still evolving, but the direction is clear: mental health matters. Courts are increasingly willing to see psychological injuries as legitimate and compensable.

For patients, this shift means recognition. It means that the sleepless nights, the fear of returning to a hospital, or the depression following a loved one’s negligent care may finally be acknowledged in a courtroom.

Final Thoughts

Medical malpractice doesn’t always leave visible scars. Sometimes, the deepest injuries are the ones you carry in your mind. Ontario’s legal system is beginning to reflect that reality.

If you or your family are struggling with psychiatric harm after a medical mistake, speaking to a medical malpractice lawyer in Toronto could be the first step toward justice. With the help of a skilled medical malpractice attorney, patients and families can pursue compensation that recognizes the full scope of their suffering, both physical and psychological.