Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog

The Illinois medical malpractice lawyers at our firm know that it is old hat to talk about hypocrisy in politics. Sadly, some believe that the culture of saying one thing and doing another is simply part of the system and that it will never change. Of course, this pessimistic view of governance might prove true. But that doesn’t mean those who care about honesty, transparency, and openness in the political process should simply give up. Each Chicago medical malpractice attorney at our firm is reminded of this every day in our work with our clients. These individuals are incredibly strong and courageous community members who deserve equal and fair access to the civil justice system. Fighting to ensure that they maintain the opportunity to seek redress and accountability will always be a battle worth pursuing.

A big component of fighting against misguided tort reform measures is exposing the politicians (and others) who say one thing about the justice system and then do another. In all political issues—including those related to medical malpractice—this hypocrisy is usually a testament to the fact that the political position the wrong one. That is clearly the case when it comes to tort reform. Many of the loudest advocates have been shown to say one thing in public—when they are trying to get the support of deep-pocketed insurance interests—and then do another when their own family is faced with the realities of medical errors or substandard care.

This week the national media picked up on one story of this hypocrisy which we discussed a few weeks ago. A story in the Washington Post explained that Republican Presidential candidate Rick Santorum, who has repeatedly argued that we need medical malpractice caps, testified in his wife’s own medical malpractice lawsuit claiming that the cap should not apply in her case.

His wife’s suit was filed against a chiropractor. She explained that the chiropractor’s mistake led her with a permanent back injury that would lead to a lifetime of pain medication and mobility problems. Mrs. Santorum had visited the chiropractor after childbirth to relieve lower back pain caused by the delivery. The family claimed that the spinal manipulation that the chiropractor performed led to a herniated disk which had to be surgically removed. In the end, the jury awarded his family damages for “pain and suffering” that he had previously argued would be “excessive”—but only if it applied to other families instead of his own.

As one local attorney familiar with the situation summarized, “Politicians complain about these kinds of claims, but when they speak out publicly, they don’t think about the real people affected by these tragic events. When they are the real person affected, suddenly they have a totally different view.”

Every Illinois medical malpractice lawyer—and every local resident—is likely tired of politicians who think the rules do not apply to them. Inequality of opportunity should never be tolerated. However, most so-called “tort reform” efforts seek only to insulate some companies from being held accountability. These special rules rigged in favor of the biggest companies should never be tolerated.

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This week an Illinois medical malpractice lawyer at our firm came across a story in the Madison St. Clair Record about a new Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit. According to the story, a father filed the suit on behalf of his son who suffered paralysis due to what the father believes was a medical error. More specifically, the father is alleging that the defendant doctor failed to diagnose his son with the medical condition which led to the paralysis. The delay in diagnosis apparently led to the permanent physical disability.

The son visited the doctor last year to seek treatment for an unknown medical condition. Sadly, the doctor apparently did now know what the problem was either, and his serious medical condition went undiagnosed. It was only later that it was determined that the child had cauda equine syndrome. The ailment is a medical condition that exists when the nerves in the spinal cord are unduly crushed into the bone. It is a very serious problem that requires immediate action. However, because of the failure to diagnose, the child did not receive the treatment he needed. As a result, the child is now permanently paralyzed and incontinent

Each Chicago medical malpractice lawyer at Levin & Perconti is intimately familiar with the various forms of missed diagnosis and failure to diagnose. As we have consistently noted on this blog, especially recently, diagnosis problems are some of the most common—and ultimately harmful—medical errors that can affect patients. These mistakes represent problems of the most basic variety, because figuring out what is wrong with a patient is the first step in any doctor-patient relationship. If a medical professional gets the diagnosis wrong, then everything that comes afterwards is often for naught. In addition, correcting this error usually takes time. Other doctors are often influenced by the assessment of previous medical professionals and so the problem is rarely corrected until further complications develop and it becomes blindly clear that a former diagnosis was incorrect.

Our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers also know that it is frequently difficult for patients to determine conclusively if they have been hurt by a missed or delayed diagnosis. Some medical errors are obvious, like surgery being performed on the wrong body part or a lethal dose of medication erroneously been administered. Yet, these problems are different, because patients are naturally inclined to trust the decision and assessments made by their medical professionals in diagnosis matters. Failure to diagnose cases are all about timing—time lost to receive treatment before it gets worse. Patients do not have the expertise to know if certain delays actually lead to decreased chance of survival. Similarly, patients do not know for sure if the previous incorrect diagnoses were reasonable to make or if medical carelessness contributed to the problem. That is why if you find yourself in this situation it is always prudent to at least talk with a legal professional to share your story and learn how the law applies. There is no harm is learning more, but there is harm in keeping your consternation silent and allowing things to progress without redress or accountability.

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Each Chicago medical malpractice attorney at our firm is used to defending our work against tort reform efforts. We continue to strongly believe that these efforts are universally misguided and are lead by a few small corporate interests that have much to gain by limiting the rights of everyday community members. It is not often than a single resident—no matter how rich or famous—can demand fairness and redress from even the largest corporate interests. In fact, it is only in the courtroom where the scales are equal and there is no benefit to being well-known or having deep-pockets. It is absolutely vital that this level playing field not be tampered with, no matter what the costs.

However, insurance companies in particular are on a continued crusade to take away the rights of so many Illinois medical malpractice victims. It is led by a drive to increase profits. As most blog leaders likely know from personal experience, many insurance companies do everything they can to avoid making payouts. This is true no matter how legitimate the claim might be. In fact, sometimes the companies are held to task for their stalling efforts and decisions which seek to unfairly hurt those who have come to count on them.

For example new allegations toward that end were recently discussed in last month’s edition of “Justice For All”—the newsletter published by the Illinois Trial Lawyer’s Association. Many people are never made aware of the fact that law requires insurance companies to act in good-faith with regard to their customers. In the past, these companies were deemed “semi-pubic trusts.” This meant that they were under certain obligations to serve their clients to a high level. This allowed claims managers to have wide latitude to serve customers in a fair way based on what they saw in person.

However, that has changed over the last twenty years. Now, these companies have switched from being service-oriented to profit-oriented. Instead of giving actual employees discretion in claims based on the reality of the situation, claims are now completely computer-driven. Our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers are aware of the effect this shift has had on basic fairness for consumers. Now, these companies purposefully offer the lowest possible offers to those in need. Those customers who accepted these low claims—often having no idea that they were getting low-balled—would have their claims processed quickly. Conversely, those who did some investigating and realized that their payout would be far less than needed or fair had their claims slow-walked. Those who demanded more were forced to wait.

A former Allstate agent interviewed for a Huffington Post story on the subject explained that “the strategy was to ‘make claims so expensive and so time consuming that lawyers would start refusing to help clients.’” Injury lawyers are likely not surprised by these revelations. We have often explained how the tactics used by so many insurance companies are such that they artificially drive up costs and make the process more complicated than necessary simply to improve their bottom line. More and more community members need to be made aware of this reality. The tort reform debate is simply another part of the plan to increase the power of the insurance companies while shifting the blame to others.

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An Illinois medical malpractice verdict was recently discussed in the latest edition of “Justice For All”—the monthly newsletter from the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association. The case is a tragic one, involving medical errors that left the local man a paraplegic. According to a report in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, the 55-year old victim’s paralysis was caused by a failure to diagnose a dangerous spinal infection.

Apparently the man was seen by a variety of doctors at the hospital. He had gone to the facility to get help after experiencing constant back pain. The patient had been playing golf and felt sharp pain between his shoulder blades. The pain only grew worse and then began radiating into his chest. The preliminary diagnosis upon his being admitted to the hospital was chest pain. Then, awhile later, he was diagnosed as having pneumonia. The errors only continued. A doctor ordered a CT scan for the man’s thorax and abdomen. However, for unknown reasons, the nurse actually wrote down a test for chest pain. That triggered the order for a radiology technician.

Amazingly, it wasn’t for another twenty days (and six doctors) later that the man was correctly diagnosed with having a spinal infection. However, by that time serious damage had already been done, because the infection had gone untreated for nearly three weeks. The man was soon permanently paralyzed.

After the ordeal the man met with an Illinois medical malpractice lawyer to share his story. After learning more about the situation and exactly what happened, an Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit was then filed to hold the negligent parties accountable and provide redress. Late last year the case finally went to trial. After hearing the evidence the jury ruled in favor of the plaintiff. They found the hospital and a group of doctors involved liable for the series of errors committed during the man’s ordeal. He was awarded $4.75 million. It remains unclear if an appeal is pending.

This case demonstrates something that our Illinois medical malpractice attorneys have seen time and again through the years. Once an incorrect diagnosis is made originally, it is often difficult for subsequent medical professionals to correct the error. Ensuring proper steps are taken to identify a medical problem initially is crucial. Treatments are based off an initial diagnosis, and so that treatment process often muddies the water, making it difficult to see that the diagnosis was incorrect. Usually it is only after one’s condition gets worse that doctors step back and determine if the initial diagnosis was incorrect. Unfortunately, by that time, severe, permanent damage may already have been done.

When the initial misdiagnosis is caused by doctors who do not act according to reasonable standards of care, then it is often appropriate for the victim to receive redress for the complications that resulted from the error. There are always times when a failed diagnosis is a genuine mistake that even prudent doctors would have made. However, at other times, the involved professional breaches the acceptable level of care and provides aid less than what the patient is legally entitled to expect.

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Each Chicago medical malpractice attorney at our firm has worked on cases that tug at the heartstrings. Some of the most tragic are those involving patients that go in for elective surgery—something that is not medically necessary—and end up permanently scarred, or worse. That appears to be what happened in a case that took the life of a mother of three. The 39-year old woman went in to a clinic near her home for breast implant surgery—she would die the very next day.

According to a comprehensive story on the case in the Milford Daily News, the mother visited this particularly facility to have implants likely because it offered lower rates than other nearby providers. In addition, this particular clinic was popular among many of her friends who, like her, had emigrated to the U.S. from Brazil. At first it seemed like the procedure went well. The woman left the clinic and was sent home after the operation. However, it wasn’t long before her family knew that something was wrong. The day after the surgery her family called 911 after she fell in her house. When emergency responders arrived, they found the woman in the bathroom, unconscious, with irregular breathing and a very weak pulse. They did everything they could to save her, but she was pronounced dead shortly after she arrived at a nearby medical clinic. The family was devastated by the loss and is in the middle of preparing to file a medical malpractice lawsuit against the involved facility.

A few weeks after the death a medical examiner ruled that the woman’s death was the result of “therapeutic complications” from the breast implant surgery. A blood clot was found, and it apparently broke off and traveled to the victim’s lungs as an embolism. It remains unclear exactly how the surgery may have led to this problems. There is a risk that the implant may press up against a vein which could lead to this sort of accident. Surgeons are required to make sure that the implants are positioned to avoid this possibility. Failing to do otherwise is likely medical malpractice.

This particular tragedy is leading those in the area to make renewed warnings about the dangers of doctors performing these operations that are not board-certified. As our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers have explained in previous posts, the experience level of many plastic surgeons can vary wildly. Some states do not require much extra training, and so doctors with little familiarity with these procedures are allowed to switch practice areas and take these cases as a way to increase revenue. However, with less experience and more cost-cutting efforts, the risk of harm to the patient increases.

As always it is absolutely vital that patients learn about the experience level and training of those doing the surgery. As medical experts in the area have warned, there is a big difference between doctors who are performing plastic surgery. The best surgeons are always the ones who are actually licensed by The American Board of Plastic Surgery. As one doctor explained, “I don’t think the public knows the difference [between the different types of certification], and that’s very dangerous.”

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Each Chicago medical malpractice lawyer at our firm appreciates that failure to diagnose is one of the single most common errors committed by medical professionals day in and day out. The potential harm from such mistakes runs the gamut, depending on the type of problem faced by the patient. For example, earlier this month WWLP News reported on a new medical malpractice lawsuit that was filed by a mother and father claiming that their son was blinded by a failure to diagnose.

According to the suit, the seven-year old boy was active, energetic, and had no noticeable health problem. However, a few years ago, on Halloween night, the boy’s mother noticed that her son was noticeably lethargic. Sensing something was wrong, she took him to the family pediatrician. The doctor gave a quick inspection, diagnosed him with an ear infection, and then sent them on their way. Unfortunately, the child did not get better. He went back to the doctor on several occasions with noticeably worse symptoms. However, the doctor did not properly act in the face of the worsening conditions.

After repeated visits, the doctor still did not diagnose him with anything other than an ear infection. What she missed what that he was suffered from potentially deadly bacterial meningitis—an inflammation of the brain lining. As a result of the misdiagnosis, the boy fell into a coma for months. When he finally awoke the child was blind and was unable to eat or walk. He has been able to slowly learn how to walk and feed himself. However, he will never be able to see again and will need around the clock medical care for the rest of his life.

Every Illinois medical malpractice attorney at our firm appreciates that cases resulting from failure to diagnose presents one common legal hurdle—proving causation. All negligence cases—of which Illinois medical malpractice lawsuits are included—require proof that the claimed negligent conduct actually caused the harm complained of. At times the cause is clear—like when a doctor operates on the wrong body part. However, there are other cases, like failure to diagnose or delayed diagnosis, when the cause is not immediately apparent. In these cases, the medical professional does not directly make the harm occur but instead does not do what should have been done to fight the harm.

In these situations defense attorneys always argue that the harm would have occurred regardless of what the doctor did or did not do in any individual case. For example, if a doctor fails to diagnose cancer quickly, then the defense is likely to suggest that the doctor obviously didn’t give the patient cancer and that the consequences of the cancer were therefore not caused by the doctor. However, the law rightly understands that inaction can be just as harmful as inappropriate action. This is especially true in situations of progressive problems, like cancer. Even a short delay in diagnosis of the condition can result in significant deterioration in ones prognosis.

Proving these issues is often tricky in court. After all, there is no way to show exactly what “would have” happened—there is inherently some speculation. Yet, the fact that there is some speculation does not mean that one cannot use expert testimony and past situations to explain how one’s chances of avoiding harm would have been significantly higher had action been taken earlier. If your case involves these types of issues it is important to seek out legal help from those with experience in failure to diagnose cases.

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Each individual case of Illinois medical malpractice leaves a trail of victims far beyond the one actually hurt by the medical negligence. Every Chicago medical malpractice lawyer at our firm is aware of the most recent Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics which show that as many as 90,000 patients die each year because of various forms of medical errors. Many more are severely injured. Those statistics alone are quite shocking. However, even they do not do justice to the true scope of the problem. To fully understand the effect that these incidents have one must remember those whom the victim leaves behind. The mother who never thought she would outlive her son; a daughter who has to grow up knowing that her father will not be able to walk her down the aisle; or a husband who provides around-the-clock care to a wife who was permanently injured by a preventable medical error. For every single error there are dozens of people affected.

North Jersey News recently published a story that touches on the ripples that affect virtually all of us in one way or another because of preventable medical mistakes. The article shares the story of one mother who lost her daughter because of medical malpractice. The mother explained that she had just recently enjoyed a wedding with her 23-year old daughter. A few days later the daughter was scheduled to go in for what was supposed to be routine gallbladder surgery.

The surgery first became an option after the mother drove her daughter to the emergency room after she was complaining of abdominal pain. However, after being sent home the woman fell ill in the bathroom as was rushed based to the emergency room. It was there that the doctor recommended gallbladder surgery. The mother explained that the doctor told her that the procedure was supposed to take only 45 minutes. When talking with the daughter about whether the operation should be performed, the doctor noted that the procedure was simple, didn’t involve many risks, and that it was logical to have it performed. On that advice, the daughter went in for the operation.

She would not make it out of the hospital alive.

As the hours ticked by with the girl’s parents waiting, they soon began to get worried. Eventually, five hours later a doctor come out and told the parents that her daughter had been injured and lost blood but that she was young and would likely be able to produce her own blood. The mother was able to see her daughter who at first seemed fine. However, her condition soon grew worse. The mother explained that as she was holding her daughter’s hand she called for a nurse when she noticed that something looked wrong. A nurse came, no pulse was found, and the mother was asked to step out of the room. The professionals were unable to revive the daughter, and she died shortly after.

According to arguments made by the medical malpractice attorney in a subsequent legal case, the lead surgeon mistakenly caused an injury to the vessels supplying blood to the woman’s liver during the procedure. Post-operative tests revealed the blood problem. Had doctors attempted to tackle the issue as soon as the results were revealed, then the woman could have been saved. However, the results of the post-operative test were not revealed to anyone in time.

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TC Palm News reported this week on the end of a medical malpractice trial in which a plaintiff-victim was ultimately awarded $257,000. The case involved a broke needle being left inside the woman during an operation. Surprisingly, each Chicago medical malpractice attorney at our firm can attest that these sorts of glaring mistakes—including objects being left in the body or surgery being performed on the wrong part of the body—occur at hospitals and medical facilities much more frequently than most would suspect.

In this particular case the plaintiff went to the hospital to correct urinary incontinence. The procedure went fine except that a part of a suturing needle broke off during the procedure. The involved doctor apparently stitched the woman up while the needle was inside—knowing full well that it was still in there. There remains disagreement about whether the doctor informed the woman that the needle had been left inside her stomach. However, it is clear that the woman began experiencing sharp pain in her abdomen. She returned to the doctor, this time her family physician, only to find that there was a half-inch needle inside of her. Fortunately, the needle was able to be removed, which relieved the pain.

According to documents that were released during the course of the medical malpractice trial, hospital records indicate that the woman did have a needle buried in her internal tissue but that the hospital left it up to the doctor to tell the patient. The victim explains that she was never shown the hospital records. In addition, the doctors own records (distinct from hospital records) did not indicate that there was a needle left in the body. The medical malpractice lawyer leading the case explained to the jury that “there was a significant failure of checks and balances.”

Both sides also disagreed during the trial on whether the needle posed danger to the woman when it was left in her body. The doctor claims that he left it there because opening up the body to get it out might have harmed nearby organs. Conversely, the plaintiff’s attorney explained that the needle was left in a dangerous location, near vital organs, which at the very least merited a real discussion about the possible risks.

In the end the jury agreed that the doctor and medical facility did not act appropriately when they left the needle inside the body and did not properly inform the patient of the situation. As a result they returned a verdict for the woman in the amount of $257,000. This includes medical expenses, other economic losses, and some damages for the pain that she was forced to go through as a result of the traumatizing abdominal pain.

It remains surprising that these sorts of cases still occur. Perhaps most shocking about this situation is that the patient left the hospital with a half-inch needle inside of her without any idea that it was there. Of course hospitals and medical providers should always fix errors that they make. But , even more than that, it is absolutely essential that patients at least be made aware of the situation with real discussions had about potential complications.

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A Hospital’s First Priority: Do No Harm

The Louisiana Record reported this week on a new medical malpractice lawsuit stemming from negligent care provided to a vulnerable patient at a medical facility. The incident occurred a few years ago. The plaintiff in the case was first admitted to the facility because she was suffering from a high fever and was experiencing severe gastrointestinal problems. Her condition made her very dependent on care workers, because her mobility, strength, and overall cognition were affected by her fragile condition.

The documents filed to initiate the medical malpractice lawsuit state that at one point during her stay the woman was helped to the toilet by a caregiver. However, the caregiver left the woman unattended. For quite some time the woman tried to signal for help leaving the toilet. Eventually, with no other options, the woman attempted to get off of the toilet herself. She fell while doing so and suffered significant injuries. Her neck, back, head, and right leg were all damaged in various ways in the fall.

She ultimately sought legal help and filed suit. The lawsuit claim accuses the involved medical facility of negligence for not taking proper fall precautions. The fact that certain medical patients might need help in this way and are at risk of falls is not anything new. It is common practice for these facilities to be prepared for these sorts of situations and to act accordingly to protect the safety of the patients. The medical facility should have had a coordinated, consistent, multi-disciplinary fall prevention plan. In addition staff members should have properly monitored this individual patient’s situation much more closely.

Our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers know that this case highlights a legal principle that separates different types of legal actions. Medical malpractice is alleged when negligent care is provided to medical patients. However, there is a distinction depending on the specific care that is provided. Not helping a resident with mobility problems is a different kind of negligence than that implicated when a caregiver makes a mistake that is directly related to providing the expert medical care. Medical negligence exists in the latter while the former usually only implicates ordinary negligence.

The distinction between each type of negligence is crucial in a legal case, because there are different requirements about what must be proven in each case. Most notably, when actual medical negligence is at issue there is a requirement that expert testimony be presented. The logic is that community members on the jury do not have the experience to make judgments about whether or not a doctor prudently followed existing medical standards in any given situation. Experts might help explain to the jury what those standards are and whether they believe they were followed in each individual case. Jury members are capable of gauging the reliability of experts but not the underlying expert knowledge itself.

Conversely, in ordinary negligence cases, expert testimony is usually not needed. For example, car accident cases are classic ordinary negligence cases. Jury members are capable of listening to testimony about what happened and determining who failed to act appropriately. The basic rules of the road are common knowledge unlike appropriate medical actions.

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The Illinois Times reported last week on a few concerns that are being raised about a sheriff’s decision to continue using the services of a local doctor even after more than $1 million in Illinois medical malpractice payouts have been made following allegations of inadequate care being provided by the physician. According to the story the doctor and his company have faced literally dozens of Illinois medical malpractice lawsuits where he was named as defendant based on substandard care that he provided in jails throughout the area.

Yet, despite these lawsuits and settlements, which should likely raise alarm bells about the services being offered, sheriffs in communities across our state still sign contracts with the doctor and the company he owns to provide medical services to inmates. The most recent Illinois medical malpractice settlement payout came late last year, when $737,500 was paid to an inmate’s family. There is no specific information listed on the Department of Professional regulation website about the case. However, the timing coincides with a lawsuit filed by the family of an inmate who died after the perforated ulcer that he suffered went untreated.

In a different care of apparently troubling medical care being provided, an inmate was found sitting in a cell with a compound fracture to his lower leg. A pool of blood had built up on the floor and the injury appeared to be gangrenous. The man had previously suffered a broken ankle and head injury following a seizure in his cell. Instead of sending the man to an orthopedic surgeon—as recommend by the emergency room physician—caregivers instead sent him back to his cell. It was there that he became delusional and took off his splint without knowing what he was doing. This led to the aggravation of the injury which ultimately required that his leg be amputated below the knee.

The company is defending itself in another Illinois case this year. That situation involves an inmate who died while having a seizure in his cell. The man had previously been denied his seizure medication for unknown reasons.

A few are questioning whether campaign contributions have factored into the decisions to keep using this company. Sheriffs are elected positions in our state. Therefore, like other officials, sheriffs and candidates often raise large sums of money in order to engage in competitive campaigns. This presents the possibility that those who have a stake in the sheriff’s decision will seek to influence the decision with campaign contributions. The medical firm in question here has made campaign contributions to many different sheriff races.

Of course, our Chicago medical malpractice lawyers are not accusing anyone involved of specifically trading funds for these medical contracts. However, it is always important for local community members to be aware of the potential conflict so as to ensure that a spotlight is shone on the issue. Sunshine is often the best policy in these cases. There will always be some additional issues involved in the medical care of jailed inmates. However, we do not live in a society where our inmates are denied basic medical care and left to languish in horrid circumstances. Instead, inmates must be allowed to serve their time without fear of making it out of the facility alive.

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