wrongful death

Negligence Caused Wrong Man To Be Taken Off Life Support

Published on: June 20, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

medical malpractice lawsuit

Hospitalized Man’s Life Support Decision Made by the Wrong Family

On May 13, 2019, a social worker from Mercy Hospital was busy making calls and seeking relatives of a patient identified by Chicago police as Alfonso Bennet. The man had been hospitalized in the ICU after being severely beaten. He required a ventilator to breathe and was nearly unrecognizable to his supposed sisters, who soon came to visit and make critical medical decisions on his behalf, such as removing him from life support.

Soon after family members permitted doctors to perform a tracheotomy, the man did pass away, and his alleged sisters made funeral arrangements. It was then that the real Alfonso Bennet was found still alive and the now deceased man identified by police became a mystery.

4 Types of Pregnancy-Related Hypertension Disorders

Published on: May 31, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

Blood Pressure Disorders in Pregnant and Postpartum Women Should Be Detected and Treated

Emerging data by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention Maternal Mortality Study Group continues to prove that too many mothers are dying or suffering from preventative or treatable pregnancy complications. Specifically, disorders related to hypertension (high blood pressure) in pregnancy and postpartum timeframes remain common and a leading cause of maternal mortality and infant morbidity worldwide.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has identified four major types of hypertensive pregnancy disorders, which can range from less to more severe, and typically occur after 20 weeks gestation.

Pregnancy-Related Deaths In The U.S. Are Not Being Prevented

Published on: May 23, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

medical malpractice

Terrifying Conclusions Stem from U.S. Maternal Mortality Reports & Investigations

Expecting moms are now 50 percent more likely to die in childbirth than their own mothers, according to Harvard Medical School. This staggering realization was proven by more than 50,000 cases of women who have suffered severe complications from childbirth and pregnancy-related illnesses or under-treated diseases and the 700+ more who are dying each year from them, a majority of deaths experts now say could have been avoided. These numbers rank the U.S. as the most dangerous place to give birth in the developed world, positioning health care providers to blame for their failures and carelessness in keeping mothers and babies safe during pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum stages.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Boston University researchers, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the U.S. Public Health Service recently released an outpour of data showing just how scary it is for American women to experience childbirth today. Here is a closer look at three recent reports to show the desperate need for a drastically different approach in providing better care to women before and beyond their pregnancies.

Physician Misuse Of Fentanyl Was Deadly

Published on: May 13, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

medical malpractice

6 Wrongful Death Lawsuits Settled for Ohio Families Impacted in Deadly Pain Medication Scandal

Several news outlets from Columbus, including WBNS-10TV, are reporting two additional families representing Ohio patients who died from fentanyl overdoses at Mount Carmel West have reached separate wrongful death settlement agreements totaling $700,000.

Court records reveal one of the settlements involves patient Peggy Francies who died in October of 2017. Her family will receive $500,000 in compensation.

Brain Injury Caused By Birth Asphyxia

Published on: April 22, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

What to Do If You Suspect Your Baby’s Brain Injury Was Caused by Oxygen Deprivation at Birth

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), sometimes called neonatal asphyxia, is a very serious birth complication created by an obstruction in blood flow in the brain during the prenatal, intrapartum or postnatal period. In shorter words, it happens when the fetus or infant’s brain is injured because of a lack of oxygen-rich blood.

HIE requires immediate medical intervention and can lead to the death of the child. For those that survive, mental disabilities and intellectual impairment, will occur in the first two years of age. These babies are also at greater risk of cerebral palsy, epilepsy, vision and hearing loss. Advanced research on HIE published in the American Journal of Perinatology has tied oxygen deprivation complications at birth to autism spectrum disorders and a range of other neurodevelopmental abnormalities.

FDA Warns Of Surgical Stapler Risks

Published on: April 3, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

FDA Releases Statement on Dangers of Staplers Used in Common Surgeries

Everyday medical devices such as surgical staplers can be beneficial tools and aid procedures in both time and recovery when used correctly. But after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reviewed an increasing number of reports in line with the use of these common devices, the need to update safety recommendations and remind medical providers of the risks associated with the devices’ safety became correspondingly apparent.

“As part of our public health mission, it is important that we communicate with the public when we become aware of issues stemming from the use, or misuse, of medical devices.”

Injured By Electronic Health Record Error

Published on: March 28, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

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Electronic Health Record Issues Serve Important Purpose in Malpractice Cases

An American Journal of Emergency Medicine study found an emergency room doctor will make approximately 4,000 computer clicks related to electronic health or medical records (EHR) over the course of one single shift. Although the evolution of a medical record turned electronic has been positioned to save money, eliminate mistakes in medicine and bring higher-quality and transparent care to patients, the painful truth and untruths of EHRs and related technologies continue to be known as physicians express angst and sometimes fear of using the systems.

Today, 96 percent of hospitals have adopted the patient and medical care tracking technology so there is no doubt room for user error sits ever-so present for billions of Americans, putting them at risk for death and serious injury. Software glitches and other flaws can also go unseen and contribute to disastrous patient safety and privacy issues.

When Pain Medication Turns Fatal

Published on: February 18, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

pain medication overdose

Health System, Intensive Care Doctor, Pharmacist, and Nurse All Sued for Giving Excessive Doses of Powerful Pain Medicine

An Ohio hospital system has been at the center of intense scrutiny after one of its former intensive care doctors is said to have ordered “significantly excessive and potentially fatal” doses of “comfort” pain medicine for at least 27 near-death patients over the course of several years. One family is suing the health system as well as the doctor, pharmacist, and nurse responsible for allegedly giving an improper dose of fentanyl to their 79-year-old family member even though they had asked that lifesaving measures be stopped. Fentanyl, also known as Actiq, Duragesic or Sublimaze, is an especially potent painkiller used to treat extreme pain. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), strains of fentanyl can be up to 50 times more powerful than morphine.

Although the hospital, part of the larger Mount Carmel Health System, has since acknowledged the doses in many similar patient cases were larger than needed. A legal team will now investigate as to whether the acts were intentional, and if the lethal drugs were possibly used improperly to accelerate the patients’ deaths.

Most Common Medical Malpractice Errors

Published on: December 28, 2018 | Levin & Perconti

medical malpractice lawsuit

History of Common Malpractice Errors May Be Unknown to Patients

A recent investigation led by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, USA Today and MedPage Today found that even when surrendering a medical license because of unprofessional conduct such as sexual assault, medical malpractice or prescription abuse, physicians simply leave their bad history in one state and move their practice to another while continuing to make deadly mistakes as risky medical experts. Equally disturbing is that if a physician voluntarily surrenders his license, the public may not ever be able to access or gain knowledge about why the surrender occurred. Although the National Practitioner Data Bank has more than 1.3 million records of “adverse actions” going back to 1990, files can only be accessed by hospitals, insurers, and state medical boards. Individual states can file a complaint, but only if prompted to inquire of a physician offender’s harmful patient history.

Additional investigative findings published in December 2018 from the news organizations included:

Levin & Perconti Helps Family Get $12 Million in Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death Case

Published on: July 23, 2018 | Levin & Perconti

Levin & Perconti Attorneys Assist Family In $12 Million Award for Failure to Diagnose and Treat Lung Cancer

A jury voted to award $12 million to the family of Doris Newberry after her death following a failure to diagnose and treat her lung cancer. Her family, with the help of Levin & Perconti attorneys John Perconti, Michael Bonamarte and Cari Silverman, were able to prove that the defendants — including family practice doctors Dr. Iza, and Dr. Jeffrey Lindahl of Alexian Brothers Medical Group, as well as radiologist Dr. Jeffrey E. Chung, of Radiological Consultants of Woodstock — failed numerous times to appropriately diagnose and care for Newberry’s cancer. As a result, she experienced pain and suffering and disfigurement, and an untimely death, which could have been prevented had her cancer been diagnosed following a 2010 X-ray which revealed a lung abnormality.

Iza saw Newberry several times between June 2008 and August 2010, including an August visit following a July 2010 chest X-ray that showed abnormal findings.