Articles Posted in In The News

VA hospitals around the country have been letting unqualified professionals determine if veterans had brain damage. Now, some vets are getting the chance at a second opinion and one vet in Missouri is suing the VA.

Rick Radford came home a different person than he was when he went to Iraq. A car bomb went off near the soldier and the blast caused him to hit his head. Redford was knocked unconscious and awoke bleeding. Today, he experiences chronic headaches, memory loss and insomnia.

Redford turned to the VA for help when he got home and, during an initial exam, it was noted that his symptoms were likely the cause of a traumatic brain injury. Because TBI is difficult to diagnose correctly, Redford needed a specialized exam. He was given that exam by an intern.

A jury determined that infant Olivia Coats died as the result of head injuries caused by the forceps used to aid in her delivery. The men and women on the jury found Dr. George Backardjiev and The Medical Center of Southeast Texas to be culpable for the baby girl’s death. As a result of their verdict, Rachel Melancon, Olivia’s mother, was awarded more than $10 million. She will not see the majority of it.

According to reports, politicians in Texas signed off on a cap for malpractice claims. The cap is set at $250,000 per claim for non-economic damages like pain and suffering. As a result of that cap, Melancon will only receive $750,000, or $250,000 for each of her three claims.

The cap was set in 2003 as a way to protect doctors and patients. Because of it, many attorneys in the state of Texas no longer fight for people who have lost loved ones. Lawyers do not want to spend time or their clients money when awards will barely cover the costs of a lengthy trial.

Cheyenne Regional Medical Center in Wyoming has been sued over what is alleged to be the wrongful death of a teenager. Attorneys have not disclosed the exact amount they are seeking in the suit. Doctor B. Douglas Harris has been named in the suit alongside the hospital.

According to documents, Isaac Salas, a student at South High School, had been injured during a wrestling practice in 2010. The teenager broke two vertebrae in his back and was paralyzed as a result. Salas was admitted to the emergency room at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center in 2011 because he was having issues with a catheter.

Salas underwent surgery the day after he arrived at the emergency room. He was released from the hospital and died. His mother, Melissa Plumley, says that the teen’s death was caused by fluid build up in his lungs due to pain medication. She is also claiming that her son never should have been released from the hospital because he was having trouble breathing.

The State Department of Public Health in California cited Clovis Community Medical Center after the death of Clarissa Ardern two years ago. An investigation found wrongdoing in the events surrounding her death. Now, her daughter is suing the hospital for medical malpractice.

According to reports, Clarissa Ardern went to the medical center complaining of a stomach ache. She was admitted and given treatment. Ardern ultimately died of respiratory failure. It is alleged that a nurse involved in the woman’s case delivered a strong narcotic and then failed to monitor Ardern properly.

The suit alleges that the nurse did not assess Ardern’s pain level correctly or document it. The nurse also did not tell her relieving nurse that she had delivered the narcotic. The hospital released a statement to news reporters that said, “Although it is still in litigation, the incident was clearly unfortunate and we worked with the state when it occurred more than a year ago. It was investigated and we completed corrective steps that were approved by the state and included a thorough investigation of our policies, adjustments in our procedures and appropriate training of our staff.”

Earlier in the month, a Jefferson County Jury ruled in favor of a Mountain Brook couple. The pair sued Brookwood Women’s Medical Center for reckless fraud and medical negligence over an advertising campaign. The jury awarded the couple $16 million.

According to reports, the lawsuit was filed by attorneys on behalf of Caroline and J.T. Malatesta. The couple became pregnant with their fourth child in 2011. Caroline’s interest in natural childbirth was peaked after seeing a television ad from the medical center. The center emphasized individual birthing plans, water births, and mother’s choice. The couple met with a doctor from the center for more information before deciding on having their child naturally.

The Malatestas alleged that there was no freedom of movement during birth and that it was the “nurse’s way or no way.” While the child was not injured during the birth, Caroline has been dealing with chronic pelvic pain due to a nerve injury she incurred during the birthing process. She now has to undergo nerve block treatments and take medication to help control her condition.

There is a little girl in Florida who will never get to meet her mother. Abigail Belzi, a toddler, was born in 2014 after her mother was declared brain dead.

According to court documents, Patricia Belzi went to Plantation General Hospital complaining of shortness of breath. Just eight hours later she was in a vegetative state that she would last in for three months. Doctors at the hospital failed to recognize that Belzi was suffering with a lack of oxygen for such a long period of time that the woman’s brain ceased to function properly. Abigail was born via emergency c-section.

Belzi died three months after she went to the hospital for help.

When you go to the hospital in pain, you have a reasonable expectation that you will be examined, diagnosed and treated. Any person has a right to believe that this is exactly what will happen. Unfortunately, misdiagnosis occurs at an alarming rate in the United States and doctors do not always own their mistakes.

Recently, defendants in a medical malpractice case in Illinois have denied that they were negligent in correctly diagnosing a patient who entered the E.R.

According to court documents, Deron Gatling went to the Anderson Hospital emergency room in Madison County, Illinois, complaining of leg pain. He was seen by doctors Price Omondi and Stephen Coulson. Gatling believed that he had been injured after playing basketball for several hours.

Steve Kenan was laid to rest after his unexpected death. The man died in 2013, but one piece of his body was not buried with him. Kenan’s heart has traveled more than 1,000 miles as pathologists struggle to determine if the man died of medical negligence or natural causes.

It may seem strange to some, but Kenan’s heart could be the key needed for his family to file a successful medical malpractice lawsuit. Kenan died at St. Anthony’s Hospital in Florida just three hours after a surgeon drained liquid from his chest. Roland Lamb, the hospital’s lawyer, has been driving Kenan’s heart from pathologist to pathologist because he cannot take formaldehyde on a plane.

What is known for certain is that Kenan suffered with cardiomyopathy. His heart was enlarged and unable to pump blood through his body in a normal capacity. According to his family’s lawyer, Kenan was in no medical distress when doctors decided to perform a pericardiocentesis to drain liquid from his chest.

A new study has shown that doctors who spend more on their patients, in the forms of tests and services, are less likely to be sued for medical malpractice.

No matter the specialty, doctors who ordered more tests, regardless of patient need, were at a reduced risk of being taken to court for medical malpractice. These doctors practice what is known as defensive medicine, or medicine that is more about reducing claims than providing further diagnosis or treatment options.

Researchers did point out that although each specialty saw a drop in medical malpractice claims when doctors ordered more tests and ultimately charged the patient’s more money, the study had limitations. For example, the study used hospital admissions data only and ignored outpatient and private practice data. The study also focused on Florida. Researchers are unsure if the same trend is present in other states.

Close to 10 years ago, a man in Indiana became paralyzed from his waist down because doctors failed to diagnose an infection. On July 15, he and his wife were awarded $4.25 million in a medical malpractice case.

In 2005, Robert Lehman went to a now-closed medical clinic, Dunlap Urgent Care Center. He had gone to the hospital to seek treatment for an injury sustained at work. The medical professionals who treated Lehman at the clinic gave him an injection and a prescription for medication and sent him back to work.

Lehman’s condition worsened despite the treatment. By the time he went back to the clinic, he was having difficulty walking. He was sent back to work again, this time with more pain medication. Lehman ultimately sought treatment at IU Health Goshen Hospital. It was there that he was diagnosed with Cauda Equina Syndrome. Left untreated for too long, the condition can cause paralysis.