A man alleges a hospital was negligent when it allowed his wife to bring a gun into a locked facility and kill herself. The woman belonged to the mental health unit and was out on visitation when she obtained the gun. The man brings a wrongful death suit against the hospital for their alleged negligence in failing to search his wife after re-entering the facility.
Read more about the medical malpractice suit here.
The son of a deceased man claims doctors failed to diagnose his father for prostate cancer, although they had been seeing the man up until his death. The son is now filing a medical malpractice suit against the doctors for failure to diagnose. However, the deceased man’s death certificate lists several causes of death.
Read more about the alleged failure to diagnose medical malpractice suit here.
A deceased woman’s estate has filed a medical malpractice suit after the woman died of cancer. The estate alleges her physicians failed to diagnose a lesion on her scalp as cancerous in a timely fashion. The doctors did not diagnose the woman’s lesion as cancer until the lesion had returned and two different tests were sent to labs. The woman underwent four different surgeries to remove cancer that had spread to other parts of her body by the time she was diagnosed. The estate now amends is medical malpractice complaint to include a wrongful death action.
Read more about the medical malpractice suit here.
According to ABC 7, a medical malpractice settlement over a woman who died in a hospital waiting room has finally been reached for $2 million. The woman’s family filed a wrongful death suit against the city hospital. The woman, a psychiatric patient, had been in the waiting for 24 hours, eventually landing on the floor struggling to get up. The entire ordeal was caught on video camera showing security guards and staff looking into the waiting room but not helping the woman. Six hospital employees lost their jobs over the incident, the article claims. The medical malpractice case has invoked public outrage.
Read more about the medical malpractice settlement here.
A woman died after giving birth to her first born on a military base. Her parents thought they may have a medical malpractice case because during surgery a uterine artery was cut causing massive internal bleeding and two surgical sponges were left in her abdomen afterwards. Unfortunately for the family, a legal precedent prohibits medical malpractice lawsuits when military service members are killed or injured by negligence, according to the article. The parents say the hospital claimed their daughter bled to death.
Read more about the military medical malpractice precedent here.
A hospital agreed to settle with a former and now deceased patient for $2 million for medical malpractice after receiving surgery for a lesion on her kidney. The woman died after the hospital surgeons had perforated the woman’s stomach which later became infected, according to the woman’s attorneys. The attorney claims the hospital was negligent in credentialing the surgeons. Neither surgeon had ever performed the surgery before they performed it on the woman. One of the surgeons involved had nine previous medical malpractice suits against him, according to the article.
Read more about the malpractice suit here.
The family of a boy who committed suicide in 2007 is now filing a medical malpractice suit against the boy’s psychiatrist for “over-medicating” him. The family alleges the boy was on a psychiatric drug cocktail that led to serotonin syndrome, the cause of his death. The boy was originally diagnosed with autism which led to his medical treatment in the first place. The mother also brings a wrongful death claim against the doctor for the same reasons.
Read more about the medical malpractice suit here.
A man won $4 million from a jury in a medical malpractice suit against his orthopedic surgeon. The jury concluded that the orthopedic surgeon was negligent during surgery. The doctor performed surgery on the man’s right arm and in the process removed a benign tumor after the man complained of pain in that arm. Afterwards the man was diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome in his right hand. This disorder causes severe pain. This, claims the patient, is the result from the surgeon’s malpractice.
Read more about the surgical malpractice here.
A man died from a bowel obstruction after a hospital sent him home days earlier when he reported abdominal pain. The family claims the hospital was negligent and thus decided to file a medical malpractice claim against the hospital. X-rays show that the emergency room doctor failed to recognize a bowel obstruction in the man’s stomach, according to the deceased’s family.
Read more about the hospital malpractice here.
A jury awarded a man’s widow after deciding that a man had died due to medical malpractice. A hospital failed to read a man’s x-ray which would have allegedly prevented him from having an aortic aneurysm. The widow won $2.185 million for the medical malpractice. Protocol at the hospital was for the emergency room physician to review the x-rays before sending them to a radiologist. According to the complaint, this never happened which led to medical malpractice.
Read more about the medical malpractice case here.
According to a news article, nurses should check IVs every four hours to avoid medical malpractice litigation. The article says, “lawsuits involving intravenous lines are the third most common cause of medical malpractice litigation in the United States.” The article further states that most IV problems are thought to be preventative. The nurse must check the IV often to avoid medical problems, resulting in medical malpractice.
Read more about medical malpractice prevention here.
An 18 month old girl died after having an allergic reaction to penicillin given to her by her hospital. The penicillin was supposed to cure an eye infection. The girl’s family filed a Chicago lawsuit against St. Francis Hospital and Health Center in Blue Island for her death in which they claim the hospital also destroyed material evidence to their lawsuit. The hospitals settled with the family for $3 million dollars.
Read more about this large medical malpractice settlement here.
According to a recent study, men and women are increasingly seeking the physician profession despite concerns that medical malpractice suits will send physicians “fleeing the profession.” The only states where physician growth did not outpace the population were states that have medical malpractice caps on jury awards. The article also found that “health-care quality and patient safety are far worse in states that have eliminated accountability through tort reform measures.”
Read more about medical malpractice litigation effects on the medical profession here.
A woman found out she was pregnant after having an abortion procedure by a military hospital who told the woman she had a miscarriage. The woman claims in her medical malpractice suit that due to the failed abortion her baby has suffered from severe lung damage and brain injury from remaining in the womb with inadequate amounts of amniotic fluid. The woman has filed a medical malpractice suit against the hospital for the pain and suffering she and her daughter have undergone.
Read more about the failed abortion medical malpractice claim here.
A medical malpractice attorney has filed a motion for a new trial after blaming a local paper for jury tampering. According to the plaintiff’s medical negligence attorney, agents associated with the newspaper handed out copies of the publication near the courthouse while the trial was taking place. The paper allegedly was covering the trial as it happened and that lead the plaintiff’s attorney to accuse the paper of jury tampering. The client sued her physicians for their delayed diagnosis of breast cancer. To read more about the medical malpractice attorneys’ allegations, follow the link.
Recently, an oral surgeon at a Children’s Hospital in the northeast began surgery, only to realize a short time later that he was performing surgery on the wrong side of the patient’s mouth. The surgeon and his team were able to fix their surgical mistake with little harm done to the patient, but in many cases, surgical mistakes lead to further complications and can result in medical malpractice claims. Along with wrong-site surgery, some examples of surgical errors include: performing the wrong surgical procedure, surgical instruments left behind in the patient’s body, and even performing a procedure on the wrong patient. In order to avoid surgical errors, it is important for the surgical team to communicate with each other as well as the patient to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Read more about this recent surgical error.
Ed McMahon settled a medical malpractice lawsuit against the hospital for an alleged failed diagnosis, botched operations, and other claims. The settlement has not been confirmed as of yet. McMahon’s attorney in the malpractice settlement is the only one to confirm. No details have been released as to how much the parties settled on.
Read more about the hospital malpractice settlement here.
Wallace v. Alexain Brothers Medical Center, No. 1-08-2852 (4-24-09) affirmed that the mother of a deceased child who died after receiving emergency and surgical care at defendant hospital, failed to present sufficient evidence of apparent authority to withstand hospital's motion for summary judgment. Even though it was after emergency treatment of her daughter had already commenced, she signed consent acknowledging that physicians were independent contractors; and had previously signed several other of the same form consents at that hospital, as recently as a few months earlier. This case will greatly impact medical malpractice cases.
An orthopedist’s medical insurance company has settled 9 out of 27 medical malpractice claims brought against him. The patients are forbidden to reveal details about the settlements. According to the article, “most of the 27 cases, filed from 2002 through last month, involve operations to replace knees or hips.” Also, the article alleges that although he has had the most medical malpractice claims in their county alone, his license was renewed and is valid until 2010.
Read more detailed accounts of the medical malpractice claims against the orthopedist here.
A young girl in a hospital for mental illnesses took her life while on suicide watch. According to her family, she was supposed to be on suicide watch where she would be checked every five minutes. The girl killed herself, a clear case of medical negligence according to investigators. The medical staff did not come in five minute increments to check on her. The counselors were fired. The family is now filing a medical malpractice suit against the hospital.
Read more about this outrageous medical malpractice case here.
A mother of a stillborn baby sues a hospital after learning they disposed of the baby in the trash. The woman had made arrangements for funeral directors to pick the remains of the baby up several days after the birth, but the baby was no where to be found. The mother feels the disposal of her baby’s body is to conceal medical malpractice evidence.
Read more about the hospital negligence suit here.
Recently, a jury awarded a 20-year-old woman $872,000 in a medical malpractice case for the severe burns she suffered on her face and neck during surgery. The woman was having a mole removed from her eyebrow and was anesthetized during the procedure. The plastic surgeon was found negligent when he failed to communicate to the anesthesia assistant that he was using a device that could cause an operating room fire when administered near oxygen. Due to this failure to communicate, the device ignited a fire that severely burned the patient. The jury also learned that the negligent doctor did not reveal the cause of the fire to the patient’s family. Read more about this successful medical malpractice case.
Medical malpractice lawyers recently argued their client’s case in front of a judge and jury and received a reward of $12 million for the 33-year-old woman who suffered disability and brain damage during a routine colonoscopy and endoscopy. During the procedure, the doctor perforated her small intestine. After the procedure, the plaintiff developed common symptoms of a perforated small intestine, including severe pain and vomiting. When she contacted the doctor, he prescribed her anti-vomiting medications. The next day, her pain continued and she was taken to the emergency room where they diagnosed her condition. Because of this delayed diagnosis, she went into cardiac arrest, leading to brain damage and permanent disability. Follow the link to read the full article about this medical negligence case.
A medical malpractice lawsuit was recently filed on behalf of a family who lost their 22-month old daughter as a result of medical negligence. In May 2007, the child was taken to a hospital’s emergency room with a fever. Within an hour of being at the hospital, her temperature rose to 105.7 degrees. Despite this rise, the attending doctor in the emergency room sent her home. The family returned to the emergency room where the child died less than an hour after arriving at the hospital. The lawsuit alleges that the attending physician was negligent because he deviated from the standard of care by sending the family home. Instead, tests should have been run to measure her blood counts. To read more about this medical malpractice lawsuit, follow the link.
A surgeon has a 15th medical negligence complaint filed against him after international exposure for allegedly leaving a Russian teen brain dead. This last complaint was filed in civil court and the attorney was mum to details. Among the complaints, the surgeon is a defendant in a wrongful death suit.
Read more about the medical malpractice complaints here.
A woman was awarded $400,000 for allegedly poor care she received after surgery in a hospital. After surgery, the woman’s bowel perforated. According to her attorney, nurses failed to follow hospital procedures. The woman alleges that due to the delay in medical care, she went into a coma for about a month. According to the article, in 2000, medical error was the eighth leading cause of deaths. Medical error leads to many medical malpractice suits.
Read more about the lack of surgical care here.
According to an article, medication errors account for 78% of serious medical errors in the intensive care unit.” There are strategies to prevent such medical errors including: eliminating extended physician work schedules, computerizing orders and intravenous devices, having pharmacists participate in the ICU, reconciling medications upon admission to or discharge from the ICU, and maintaining detailed up-to-date medication lists. Preventing these medication errors would also lead to less medical malpractice litigation.
Read more about medical error prevention here.
A jury issued a woman $12 million after she brought a lawsuit for medical malpractice against her doctor. She was had standard procedures done to diagnose a bowel problem when the doctor allegedly left her brain damaged. According to the doctor, the woman started experiencing vomiting and chest pain after the medical procedure error. The doctor was found 51% at fault so must pay the woman $6.12 million of the jury award.
Read more about the medical malpractice suit here.
A mother of two was paralyzed from the waist down during cervical discectomy surgery from her surgeon’s error, the article alleges. While the surgeon performed the surgery, he tamped with a hammer too hard and hit her spinal cord. The woman travels by wheelchair and is unable to move from the chest down. A jury awarded her and her husband $10.6 million for her medical malpractice suit.
Read more about the medical malpractice jury award here.
The purpose of this blog is to deliver news and information that is relevant to our areas of practice. The news and information reported on this blog represent the legal actions of attorneys throughout the United States. Our firm does not claim to represent plaintiffs in all of the lawsuits, settlements, and jury verdicts reported, only those noted as Levin & Perconti cases.
