Adding Insult to Injury: More on the Medical Malpractice Myth

"Justice," as Thomas Jefferson said, "is the fundamental law of society."  Every election cycle, politicians and insurance lobbyists pepper the newspapers with calls for lawsuit "reform."  Invariably, these so-called reforms have one objective: to deprive individuals of the right to obtain justice.

The American legal tradition holds that justice involves a system of consequences that naturally derive from any action or choice.  When someone acts unreasonably, or negligently fails to act appropriately under the circumstances, the civil justice system ensures that there will be appropriate consequences.  These consequences accomplish the goal of compensating injured parties, as well as deterring wrongful conduct.  When these consequences are avoided, innocent parties are forced to bear the burden of the wrongdoer, and there is no incentive to refrain from future wrongful conduct.

In simpler terms, justice requires that we all follow the rules.  When we break the rules, we are accountable to those who have been harmed.

Election season is upon us, and so it is no surprise that the corporate interests behind the health care industry is calling for "more tort reform."  The reasoning behind this effort is that medical malpractice claims are expected to rise; thus, the industry will suffer an economic consequence.

But this begs an important question: Why minimize the consequences for negligent health care providers instead of minimizing the negligence itself?

Indeed, the real "crisis" isn't medical malpractice lawsuits, it is the increasing incidence of medical malpractice.  According to a recent report, "[s]erious medical mistakes...continue to occur despite recently implemented preventive measures."  And in another article, Dr. Martin Makaray, M.D. admits that "[c]atastrophic surgical errors are 'a lot more common than the public thinks.'"

Startingly, despite the increase of actual malpractice, patients only bring claims 22 percent of the time.  That means that nearly 80 percent of the time, health care providers who have negligently harmed their patients are not held accountable. In other words, eight out of ten times, a bad doctor breaks the rules and gets away with it.

The insurance industry and health care corporations aren't doing enough to minimize negligence, and that is why they are fighting for politicians to eliminate the consequences.  The Utah medical malpractice attorneys at G. Eric Nielson & Associates will fight to protect your rights, and fight to obtain justice for you.  We understand the medicine, and we know the law, and we will work diligently to hold negligent health care providers accountable when the break the rules.

And next time you hear about proposals to "reform" the civil justice system to benefit negligent health care professionals, consider another quote from Thomas Jefferson: "Law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of an individual."

Undiagnosed Postoperative Infections - A Fatal Mistake

Infections are a relatively common complication associated with almost any surgical procedure.  Sometimes infections can occur even despite the best efforts of doctors and hospital staff.  If a postoperative infection does occur, however, it is necessary for health care providers to recognize the signs of infection, and to act promptly to prevent disaster.

One of the earliest signs of infection is accelerated breathing, which is a result of the body's efforts to fight the infection.  The patient's temperature will increase as the infection worsens.  If the infection moves into the abdomen, the bowel can become toxic and distended.  If not diagnosed, the infection can cause paralytic ileus of the intestinal musculature, which disrupts the normal activity of the gastrointestinal track.  This inhibits transport of the contents of the intestine, resulting in worsening distension of the abdomen.  This condition is obvious and painful, and can be fatal if not promptly treated.

In a recent case we resolved for a Utah family, however, hospital nurses were inattentive and ignored the patient's complaints and overlooked these symptoms.  Had they been properly monitoring this patient, they would have noticed the clear signs of postoperative infection and notified a doctor.  Finally, after a shift change brought new nurses, they called the wrong doctor and simply left a message, all while the patient's condition was rapidly deteriorating.

When a physician finally arrived, there were no intestinal sounds cannot be detected by auscultation (deathly silence) and the patient had begun to vomit bile and gastric contents.  Despite surgical intervention, the infection had been allowed to persist too long, and it killed a husband and father.

Obviously, there was no way to replace this man, who was beloved by his family and friends.  But through vigorous legal representation and affiliating with some of the country's best medical experts, we were able to prove the negligence of the health care providers and recover money to help the family pay medical bills and funeral expenses, and to compensate them for the lost income of the head of their household. 

Infections are an undesirable outcome of many surgical procedures.  Even if the infection is not the result of negligent treatment, the failure to promptly diagnose a postoperative infection is a form of medical malpractice.  Unnecessary delays in diagnosis result in prolonged hospital stays, missed work, and extraordinary medical bills.  Worse, if an infection is untreated for too long, it can result in the wrongful death of the patient.

As Utah Medical Malpractice attorneys, we have helped many families of people injured by failure to diagnose postoperative infections.  If you have questions about postoperative infections, we have answers.  You can call and speak with attorney for a free, no obligation consultation today.

801-424-9088

Breast Cancer Awareness

For the past twenty five years, October has been recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Efforts to increase awareness and raise funds for research include everything from Facebook memes to athletic events (shameless plug: join me for the Trek Bikes Breast Cancer Awareness Ride on October 9).  Although early detection has reduced mortality rates, data suggest that at least 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer.  Mothers, wives, sisters and daughters are all at risk.

Since there is no cure, successful treatment depends on early detection and prompt medical intervention.  Women should regularly perform self-examinations and get regular medical check-ups.  Most physicians are attentive, especially if there are attendant risk factors such as age or family history.  Some doctors, however, will rely solely on preliminary studies or dismiss complaints--especially among young women.  If this happens, breast cancer diagnosis can be missed, and the results of the delay can be devastating.

There are a number of circumstances where breast cancer can be missed.  For instance, when a woman discovers a lump on examination, reports it to her doctor, who then orders a mammogram that comes back negative.  Some doctors will incorrectly advise their patient that all is well.  But not all breast cancers are detected on mammography.  The standard of care for medical professionals requires additional clinical follow-up where there is a palpable mass and a negative mammogram.  The standard of care requires an ultrasound, and if that mass still persists, a biopsy.

Another scenario was discussed recently in the New York Times, where doctors regularly misdiagnose a type of breast cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ, or D.C.I.S., particularly in its earliest stages. According to the article, "17 percent of D.C.I.S. cases identified by a commonly used needle biopsy may be misdiagnosed."  Recent research reveals that women with dense breast tissue are at higher risk for D.C.I.S., requiring further vigilance.

Patients and their families must be their own advocates.  The stakes are too high, and women deserve to have their health carefully addressed.  As a medical malpractice attorney, I've seen far too many cases where women have presented to their physicians with complaints of breast lumps, only to have these concerns dismissed because they're "too young" to get cancer or because of a negative mammogram.  These cases have resulted in women having to undergo radical treatment that could have been avoided if the cancer had been detected sooner.  Most tragically, in some cases, the cancer wins and families lose their wives and mothers to the devastating disease.

During this month of increased awareness, take control of your health care.  Recommendations for getting good professional care are available HERE.  They include talking candidly with your doctor; following up with any recommended testing, and if necessary, getting a second opinion.

If you reported your concerns to a doctor, and he or she ignored them until it was too late, you may have a claim for medical malpractice.  You should contact a lawyer that will hold the doctor accountable.

Gentamicin Toxicity is a Preventable Medical Error

Antibiotics are frequently used to treat a variety of bacterial infections. There are a number of different kinds of antibiotics, and they are used to treat specific kinds of bacteria. Although all medications have risks, most antibiotics are relatively safe.

Aminoglycoside antibiotics are a potent class of antibiotics, and include such drugs as tobramycin, neomycin, vancomycin and gentamicin. All aminoglycosides are toxic to the sensory cells of the ear. Gentamicin is a vestibulotoxin, because it can damage the eighth cranial nerve. This results in the patient experiencing loss of balance and vertigo.

Because of the high risks associated with gentamicin, it should only be selected as a last resort. When a doctor prescribes gentamicin, he or she should closely monitor the levels of the drug, as well as the patient's kidney function.

Unfortunately, many doctors prescribe gentamicin without carefully considering what is best for the patient. Additionally, they fail to order periodic testing of serum gentamicin levels and basic renal function tests.

This can be catastrophic for patients, who are suddenly forced into a world of perpetual dizziness and imbalance. They can no longer operate vehicles, go out on boats, be in crowds, swim, or carry on many of the daily activities we take for granted. In some cases, patients suffer deafness and severe kidney damage as well.

There is a group called "Wobblers Anonymous" that offers support for those that have been injured by negligent gentamicin prescriptions. The group offers encouragement and advice for people learning to adapt to these difficult new conditions.

Often, treatment requires regular visits with specialists and physical therapists that help injured patients to compensate. But these therapies can be expensive, and it isn't the patient's fault that the doctor was negligent in prescribing gentamicin therapy. If you or someone you know has been injured by gentamicin poisoning, there is help. The Utah medical malpractice attorneys at G. Eric Nielson & Associates are experienced gentamicin lawyers, and have recovered millions of dollars for patients to help them pay for treatment, and to compensate them for the loss of quality of their lives. If you have questions, you can contact us for a free, no obligation consultation today.

801-424-9088

Medical Malpractice Increases While Payments Decrease

Insurance companies and their lobbyists have made much over the supposed "malpractice crisis." They have used this mantra, along with unfounded threats of rising costs and doctor desertion, to enact legislative restrictions on the rights of injured citizens to recover. I recently wrote about Utah's newest tort reform proposals in the Salt Lake Tribune, but to no avail. Although the bill was modified, it still imposes economic restrictions on the rights of recovery, and makes the process longer and more expensive for malpractice victims.

Of course, tort reform is nothing new in Utah. Utah has had some of the most aggressive tort reform laws in the nation for over thirty years. Ironically, while the legislature is busy passing even more pro-insurance, anti-victim laws, reports are coming out that medical errors are increasing. Today, the Deseret News reported that MEDICAL ERRORS ARE INCREASING IN UTAH. This should come as no surprise. Thanks to the legislature's special favors to the health care industry, there is no longer much accountability for medical errors.

So we're all at greater risk when we go into a hospital. At least this will lower doctors' malpractice rates, which will in turn save money in health care costs, right?

Wrong.

As reported in Healthcare Finance News on March 10, 2010, medical malpractice payments are steadily on the decline. Indeed, this simply continues a a five year trend.

The facts show that malpractice payments have been dropping for years. Why haven't malpractice premiums gone down, and taken health care costs with them?

Maybe the Utah State Legislature should ask the insurance lobby these questions before passing more laws reducing accountability for medical errors....

Study Shows that Some Heart Doctors Put Profits Before Patients

Today a report was released that showed that many heart doctors, or cardiologists, are not following the treatment guidelines recommended for treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD). The guidelines, published by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, recommend that in some cases, coronary artery bypass surgery should be done instead of angioplasty.



Bypass surgery, however, is a time intensive and complicated process. Some procedures can take all day. Angioplasty, on the other hand, is a relatively minor procedure, so cardiologists can perform--and bill for--multiple procedures in a single day.

It is much more lucrative for a cardiologist to do six or seven angioplasties in one day than it is to do a surgical bypass. This decision is made purely out of profit, and is contrary to professional medical standards.

To be fair, the demand for profits may not come from the doctors themselves. Rather, it may be that the corporations that run the hospitals where the procedures are performed are placing higher volume demands upon the physicians, in exchange for granting doctors hospital privileges.

Either way, however, cardiologists may be rendering substandard care to patients in order to make money, rather than to make quality health care decisions.

Injured by Medical Malpractice: Now What?

In most cases, a visit to the hospital or doctor's office is a routine event. Usually, everything goes the way it is supposed to.

Sometimes, however, things don't go right. Doctors and nurses are good people, but even good people make mistakes. When professionals make mistakes, the consequences can be disastrous. Not only will you have to endure additional pain and suffering, but you'll be facing expensive medical bills, costs of future treatments, and possibly the loss of your ability to work. It is not your fault that a health care professional committed malpractice. But you will need help to hold them accountable.

If you or someone you know has been injured by medical malpractice, here are somethings you can expect:

• You won't get answers. Medicine is not an exact science, and sometimes, complications can cause bad outcomes. If this happens, then your doctor will sit down with you and explain the complication, as well as how and why it happened. If a bad outcome is caused by negligence or other medical mistake, however, you won't get answers. Your doctor will suddenly be evasive about your questions, or may even transfer your care to another physician. If the doctors and other professionals aren't giving you answers, give us a call. Our experienced medical malpractice attorneys work with a team of nationally recognized medical experts, and together, we can get the answers for you.
  
  
• Risk Managers and Insurance Adjusters Will Try to Convince You to Settle On Your Own. If you're lucky enough to get a meeting with a Risk Manager or other hospital administrator, the first thing they will tell you is that you don't need a lawyer. Your first question should be, "Does the negligent doctor or hospital have a lawyer?" If they answer honestly, they will tell you that they have a team of high-paid lawyers working on their side. "But," they'll say, "if you hire a lawyer, they'll get all the money, and you won't get anything."
  
  This is absolutely not true. By hiring a lawyer, you will recover far more than the hospital will be willing to pay if you settle on your own, even after fees and expenses. Hiring a lawyer will get the negligent doctor or hospital to pay full value on your claim; otherwise, they will offer you pennies on the dollar. At G. Eric Nielson & Associates, we pride ourselves on maximizing recoveries for our clients, and working conservatively to ensure that the injured patient receives as much of the award as possible.
  
  
• Hospital Administrators Will Delay Your Case. We have seen a troubling practice a lot lately. A patient will be injured, and for two years, the negligent hospital or doctor will pay for minor medical expenses--maybe a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. The injured malpractice victim will assume that these payments will continue, but as soon as the statute of limitations runs (usually two years, but in some cases, as little as one year), the payments stop. At that point, the patient cannot bring a legal action. The negligent doctors or hospital administrators will lead you to believe that they're taking accountability for their mistakes, but as soon as they can cut you off without being sued, they will do it. You will be left with a lifetime of medical bills.
  
  
• You Won't Be Given Your Medical Records. The government has passed laws that provide patients with access to their medical records--it is a legal right. When you've been injured as a result of medical malpractice, however, negligent hospitals and doctors will try to stop you from finding out what happened. Your records may get "lost," or you may be asked to fill out complex forms and wait weeks--even months--to get your medical records. Once you receive those records, they may be incomplete, or inaccurate. The medical malpractice lawyers at G. Eric Nielson & Associates use all of our resources to ensure that we get a full, complete set of your medical records, and can give you the answers you deserve.

Medical malpractice cases are complex, and you need an experienced team of legal professionals on your side.

The Utah malpractice attorneys at G. Eric Nielson & Associates have the experience to give your attention the case it deserves, and the expertise to give you the answers you've been looking for.

When you call our offices, you'll speak to an attorney who can discuss your case with you. We will set up a free, no-obligation consultation where you can meet face to face with a lawyer to discuss what happened. If you have been injured by medical malpractice, we can tell you your options and discuss your legal rights.

Call today: (801) 424-9088.