Blog: Medical Malpractice

Former prison inmate wins medical malpractice case

Mar 16, 2012

A former Albion Prison inmate recently won a lawsuit alleging that he received "negligent care" for a broken ankle while a resident of the institution. The Pennsylvania state prison used a for-profit firm, Prison Health Services, Inc. (PHS), to provide health care. The jury decided that medical malpractice was the culprit. The inmate apparently leapt from his cell bunk and damaged his ankle. The injury was then misdiagnosed as a sprain. For unspecified reasons, medical...

Toddler’s death inspires new law

Mar 16, 2012

The two-year-old Ohio girl's parents were ecstatic that their toddler was finally diagnosed as cancer free. To celebrate with their daughter, the parents decided they would get out of Ohio and out of doctor's offices and go on a trip to Disney World. Before they left doctors wanted to administer one more chemo treatment just to ensure they killed all the cancer. That last treatment would prove fatal in an egregious doctor error. For the...

Does your favorite surgeon have a drinking problem?

Mar 9, 2012

Probably not, however, a recent study indicated that around 15 percent of surgeons responding had met the criteria for alcohol abuse or dependency per the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Since the majority (around 18,000) of the surgeons included in the survey (25,000) did not respond, it is impossible to verify whether this condition is worse or better than these results indicate. These admissions did not offer any links to increased surgical error in Pennsylvania...

Medical malpractice lawsuits usually filed by those with money

Mar 7, 2012

It is a sad reality that each day people throughout the state of Pennsylvania sustain injuries while in the care of the very people who are supposed to be looking out for their health. Those people injured due to the negligence of doctors, nurses, and others working at health care facilities can seek to hold those responsible for their injuries via a medical malpractice lawsuit. A study recently published in the online edition of Clinical...

Medical malpractice lawsuit filed after man sustained burns at facility

Mar 2, 2012

A medical malpractice lawsuit was recently filed against an Aliquippa rehabilitation center. The plaintiff in the suit is the son of a now deceased former resident. The man's father died in March 2011, allegedly due to negligent care. In addition to the rehabilitation center, the lawsuit also named an occupational therapist as a defendant. According to the lawsuit, for several weeks in the summer of 2010, the man underwent treatment for a condition known as...

Ohio Supreme Court: medical malpractice suits can be bifurcated

Feb 24, 2012

When the medical malpractice of a doctor or nursing home caretaker causes harm to or even the death of a patient, the victim of the negligence or the victim's surviving family can seek compensation for their loss. Damages in a medical malpractice suit fall into two categories: compensatory damages and punitive damages. Up until Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012, there was some inconsistency in Ohio medical malpractice suits over whether, when requested by a defendant, the...

Unnecessary tests protect doctors, not necessarily patients

Feb 23, 2012

A recent survey of orthopedic surgeons reinforced a reality known to health care observers for years. As a perceived protection against medical malpractice lawsuits, doctors order numerous superfluous medical tests. Commonly called "defensive medicine," this practice is estimated to cost around $2 billion in extra orthopedic health care expenses. Vanderbilt University Medical Center surveyed over 1,200 orthopedic surgeons from Pennsylvania and around the U.S. Almost all respondents (96 percent) admitted to ordering X-rays and other...

4 Ohio hospital patients contract Legionnaire’s Disease

Feb 22, 2012

When patients seeks treatment at a hospital, they are putting their trust not only in the doctors and the nurses but in the hands of the entire staff. A patient trusts that each person will act in their best interests and with safe standards to ensure that the patient receives the care that he or she deserves. Hospital negligence can occur at any level of the operation when even one person fails to pay attention or makes a careless error...

Drug addiction among anesthetists hinders patient safety

Feb 18, 2012

Anesthetists in Pennsylvania have a very important job: these doctors are responsible for keeping you and your loved ones alive during surgery. Too much anesthesia causes the patient to slip away. Too little, and anesthesiologists condemn a patient to awareness during excruciatingly painful surgery – in addition to extreme anguish, this anesthesia error can cause shock and other serious complications. Anesthetists are masters of powerful drugs that hold sway over life and death. But, sometimes...

Pennsylvania ethicist says it is okay for doctors to lie to patients

Feb 16, 2012

In a recent study, over 2000 doctors were asked whether they ever lie to patients. Many member of the public were shocked by doctors' self-reported rates of untruthfulness. Some 20 percent of doctors admitted they had not told patients the truth when a medical mistake occurred. Over 10 percent of doctors failed to disclose their own financial conflicts of interest. And, 15 percent had downplayed the seriousness of a patient's prognosis. Is this indifference to...