Typical examples of medical malpractice and common cases that medical malpractice lawyers take in the United States are:
Determining whether or not a case of medical malpractice claim is meritorious requires breaking down the details of the case to find out if certain required elements are present. Generally speaking, it must be shown that:
Without question, the most difficult and complicated question for a medical malpractice attorney to answer is whether or not the medical profession was negligent.
Of course, in the real world, proving that all these elements are present is a difficult proposition. In order to get a better understanding of what is needed to bring a medical malpractice lawsuit, we have gathered three of the most famous medical malpractice lawsuits in history to serve as examples. You can see that you and your loved ones are not alone when facing issues of medical negligence. And that it sometimes goes beyond just getting proper medical treatment and covering medical bills. Law firms need to step in and advocate for clients all the time.
Donald Church, 49, was lucky enough to have had the anesthesia correctly administered during his June 2000 surgery at Washington Medical Center in 2000. The surgery was intended to have removed a tumor located in his abdomen. The tumor was removed. In its stead was left another souvenir, a 13-inch long metal retractor. Doctors at the hospital admitted to accidentally leaving the retractor inside of Mr. Church. It was not the first time that such an "accident" had occurred in the hospital. Four other documented incidences had happened at the hospital between the years of 1997 and 2000. The retractor was removed shortly after its discovery, and Mr. Church did not suffer any long term health effects from the mistake. A settlement was reached between the two parties for the amount of $97,000.
The Story: UW settles suit over tool left in
patient, by Warren King, of the Seattle Times.
At times, Donald Church's post-surgery pain was almost unbearable. It hurt when he walked, when he bent over, when he tried to go to the bathroom. It's just part of recovery, his surgeons said.
But the pain that lasted for more than two months stemmed from a good bit more than Church's surgical wound:
University of Washington Medical Center surgeons accidentally left a 13-inch surgical instrument inside his body after an operation to remove a large malignant tumor in June 2000.
Two weeks ago, Church, 49, was awarded $97,000 in a settlement from the UW Medical Center. He apparently has not suffered permanent damage but still is filled with anger over the incident.
"We're not talking about leaving a wrench on somebody's car engine. We're talking about top surgeons at a major hospital doing this; this is somebody's life," said Church, a Lynnwood resident and a technician for a pest-control agency.
One of the surgeons in the case, Dr. David Byrd, associate professor of surgery, could not be reached for comment yesterday. Dr. Shyamali Mallick, a surgery resident, referred questions to medical-center officials.
UW Medical Center spokesman L.G. Blanchard said, "This was an unfortunate mistake for which we accept full responsibility. We are deeply sorry that this gentleman had this experience while entrusting his health care to us."
The medical center is "determined to learn as much from this as possible," Blanchard added.
A representative of the American College of Surgeons said no one keeps tabs on the number of incidents in which foreign objects are accidentally left inside surgery patients. Dr. Eric Larson, medical director of UW Medical Center, said that according to his reading about cases nationwide, the incidents — usually involving sponges or suturing needles — occur in from 1 in 5,000 surgeries to 1 in 20,000.
Ralph Brindley, Church's attorney, said his client has a slightly increased chance of bowel obstruction stemming from possible additional scarring from the surgery to remove the instrument. But Dr. Patchen Dellinger, chief of surgery at the medical center, said removal of the instrument didn't really add to the risk of obstruction, which occurs in less than 5 percent of patients.
Dellinger said Byrd, a respected surgeon, left the instrument inside Church. Called a "malleable retractor," the thin, 2-inch-wide, ruler-sized metal device is placed beneath the wound being closed at the end of the operation to protect underlying organs from the long suturing needle.
"It is meant to be held partly out of the opening. If it slipped inside, it would not be easy to see it. ... We don't know exactly how it happened," Dellinger said.
Standard operating-room procedure is to count surgical sponges and suturing needles both entering and leaving the surgical opening. But only since the accident with Church has it been UW policy also to count surgical instruments.
"Instruments rarely leave the surgeon's hands," Dellinger said.
Barbara Zuelzke, UW director of surgical services, said hospitals nationwide are now moving toward counting instruments in an effort to improve patient safety.
Church said the pain never went away after the operation that removed his tumor, his appendix and part of his large intestine. As soon as he got home after a week in the hospital, the instrument began causing problems.
Moving around in general caused Church pain. He could not have a bowel movement for days at a time. The retractor pushed and poked at his insides. He sometimes felt a bulge in his abdomen.
"It was like a weekly cycle," he said. "I would have pain first in my abdomen, then in my chest because this thing was moving up and down. There were times when I would just lie on my bathroom floor sobbing. I thought I must be dying."
Church returned to the job he had at the time, doing building maintenance. But he couldn't do any heavy work, and the pain continued. When he returned to the UW for a 30-day checkup, he said, the surgeons said the pain was normal because of his extensive surgery.
Finally, at the urging of his wife and mother, he went to his family physician at a UW clinic about three weeks later. The doctor referred him for a CAT scan a few days later, and the image of the retractor showed up.
"I was kind of in shock" at the discovery, he said. "At the time, I wasn't so much angry as I was relieved to know I wasn't dying after all."
A few days later, or more than two months after the initial surgery, Church had the instrument removed at Swedish Medical Center — Providence.
But not before once again showing his metal.
When he went to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to pick up his daughter, metal detectors sounded the alarm as he tried to pass through security.
Dressed in jeans and T-shirt, he told the guards he had no weapons, just the retractor inside his body. "They just brushed me right through," he said.
In 2001, USA Today reported one of the more well-known cases of medical malpractice happened to Saturday Night Live alumni, Dana Carvey. Roughly two months after the double bypass operation that was supposed to preserve his life, Mr. Carvey received the news that the surgeon had bypassed one of the wrong arteries. The surgeon, who performed the surgery, stated that it was an honest mistake that occurred due to the unusual positioning of Mr. Carvey's artery in his heart. Dana Carvey felt quite differently, and subsequently, he filed a $7.5 million lawsuit against the surgeon and the hospital.
The Story, by Mike Falcon, of Spotlight Health, assisted by medical adviser Stephen A. Shoop, M.D.
Comedian Dana Carvey's heart condition was anything but funny. Several years ago, the former Saturday Night Live star had recurring chest pain from angina, or restricted blood flow to the heart. He underwent three angioplasties to unblock a coronary artery and keep it open. But each operation failed.
Desperate for relief, he underwent a double bypass operation in 1998.
"I kind of thought of it as an advanced plumbing problem," quips Carvey. "They bypass a bad section of rotted out pipe and reconnect using just the good sections."
But the chest pains continued without improvement.
So Carvey went in for another angiogram to find the source of recurring angina. And that's when the problem was discovered. Carvey's surgeon, who had reportedly performed thousands of the operations, had bypassed the wrong artery.
"It was like being in a Ripley's Believe It or Not column," says Carvey. "And finally it struck me, and I was scared and worried — mostly for my family."
He then went through a fourth angioplasty — this time with Dr. P.K. Shah, head of cardiology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The procedure was a success.
"Dana was very fortunate despite all he has gone through," says Shah. "Unlike many others with heart episodes, he has absolutely no damage to the heart muscle itself. He can do just about anything he wishes."
"Except eat double cheeseburgers with mayonnaise," says Carvey.
After appearing with Adam Sandler in Little Nicky, Carvey is co-writing and co-starring in Master of Disguise, due out next year. He's also a principal character voice — along with Jodie Foster, Morgan Freeman, and Garry Shandling — in the animated feature Tusker, due out in 2003.
Carvey feels he has yet another job. Although his malpractice suit for $7.5 million against the San Francisco-area surgeon was settled, Carvey is determined that others learn from his experience.
"So much of heart disease is preventable if only people knew the facts," says Carvey. "Couple awareness with preventive measures and lives are saved."
Hosting the El Corazon de Havana benefit at the Beverly Hills Hotel last Saturday for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Heart Fund, Carvey shared some prevention facts and his prescription for recovery.
"Coronary heart disease is the No. 1 killer of men and women," notes Carvey. Coronary heart disease (CHD) was responsible for almost 460,000 deaths in 1998.
Sadly, heart disease is routinely overlooked. "Often the first manifestation of heart disease is a heart attack or sudden death," says Carvey.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), this year an estimated 1.1 million people in the USA will have a coronary attack. Approximately 450,000 of these will be a recurrence.
About 220,000 people a year die of CHD without making it to a hospital. Most of these sudden deaths are caused by cardiac arrest. Overall, more than 40% of people who have a coronary attack will die from it within a year, says the AHA.
Stop it before it starts
"But is doesn't have to be that way," says Carvey. "Heart disease is largely preventable and treatable."
The first step in prevention, says Dr. P.K. Shah, is to know your risk factors:
Family history — "Genetics is the gasoline for heart disease and lifestyle is the match," says Carvey. "I meet so many guys in their 40s who say something to me like, 'My dad died from a heart attack and I think I have high
cholesterol — but I'm eating low-fat cheese — so do you think I'm OK?'"
"After I recover from shock, I tell them to find out what their cholesterol levels are by going to a doctor rather than to a comedian."
Cholesterol levels — Shah suggests that, "in general LDL cholesterol levels over the 120-130 range deserve further evaluation. Not everyone with those levels has a problem, but many do — so investigating further is simply prudent.
"High blood pressure — Elevated blood pressure indicates that the heart is working harder than it might have to. Normal blood pressure is roughly 130/80, while 140/85 is considered the start of high blood pressure, notes Shah.
Smoking — "This event may be called El Corazon de Havana," quipped Carvey, "but if anyone smokes a cigar here we'll have to arrest them." Tobacco smoking and secondhand smoke are directly linked to increased incidence of heart disease and stroke.
Diabetes — The blood sugar disorder not only increases the risk of heart disease but also makes treatment more challenging.
Obesity — According to the AHA, new studies indicate that obesity is both related to, and a predictor for, coronary atherosclerosis.
Stress —"The interplay between stress and high blood pressure can be dangerous," says Shah, "so reducing stress levels is essential."The combination of a person's risk factors may prompt further testing. These can include a variety of non-invasive tests, including electrocardiograms, chest X-rays, heart scans, exercise stress tests, magnetic resonance imaging or angiography, and echocardiograms.
Carvey is a big advocate of the EBCT test, which measures blood calcium levels. This is considered to be about 70% specific for detecting blocked arteries, according to a study published the journal Circulation.
There are also surgical interventions, but in many cases lifestyle changes alone can decrease risk factors, heading off the need for surgery, says Shah. The same is true in preventing a recurrence of heart disease.
Preventive factors include:
Diet — Shah's diet plan for Carvey includes a reduction in red meats and animal fats, and a big increase in fish, fresh fruits, and vegetables. Carvey says it's been an easy adjustment — "except for an occasional involuntary quiver when I pass an aquarium."Exercise — Carvey uses a treadmill for 30-40 minutes of daily walking and running. Regular exercise can help lower blood pressure, reduce cholesterol and weight, and increases the heart's ability to pump oxygenated blood.
Stress reduction — For a comedian, a certain amount of stress can be performance-enhancing. "But in general, Dana avoids reacting excessively to stressful circumstances," says Shah. Yoga, deep breathing, and other stress reduction techniques help keep Carvey grounded and calm.
Medication — Shah notes that because Carvey has a common genetic cholesterol problem, he uses a statin drug to help lower his cholesterol. His levels have come down from the alarming 380-400+ range to between 120-140.
This reduction is impressive, but statins alone rarely produce more than a 20-40% LDL reduction. "It's an integrated system that can work but you have to follow the plan," says Carvey. But not all patients can take this class of medications.
Which leads directly back to prevention.
"Do an accurate risk assessment by being honest with your doctor and getting in for a checkup," says Carvey. "I was very lucky in that I didn't sustain heart muscle damage. But knowing what I do now, I would never take a gamble like that again."
Another case, involving a teenager named Sycloria Williams, occurred in Florida, according to sources presented by CNN. Ms. Williams sought to have an abortion, which was to be performed at the A Gyn Diagnostic Center. Rather than having the prescribed abortion, an unlicensed doctor was permitted to give Ms. Williams a medication that caused her to deliver a baby girl, who was extremely preterm. According to the patient, her child was born alive. Although the child died shortly thereafter, it took detectives quite awhile to find her remains. The man who performed the medical procedure was charged with tampering with evidence, practicing medicine without a license, and several other various charges.
MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- A doctor's license was revoked Friday in the case of a teenager who planned to have an abortion but instead gave birth to a baby she says was killed when clinic staffers put it into a plastic bag and threw it in the trash.
The doctor, Pierre Jean-Jacques Renelique, was not present when the baby was born, but the Florida Medical Board upheld Department of Health allegations that he falsified medical records, inappropriately delegated tasks to unlicensed personnel and committed malpractice.
Joseph Harrison, the attorney representing Renelique at the license revocation hearing in Tampa, said Renelique has not decided whether to appeal.
The state attorney's office, meanwhile, said its criminal investigation into the incident is ongoing and no charges have been filed. A fetus born alive cannot be put to death even if its mother intended to have an abortion, police said when the incident occurred in 2006.
The baby's mother, Sycloria Williams, sued Renelique, the clinic and its staff in January, seeking damages.
She alleges in her suit that "she witnessed the murder of her daughter" and said she "sustained severe emotional distress, shock and psychic trauma which have resulted in discernible bodily injury."
"This is not about a pot of gold," said Tom Pennekamp, her attorney. "What this is about is right and wrong and making a statement, making sure it doesn't happen to other young women."
According to the suit, Williams, then 18, discovered while being treated for a fall that she was 23 weeks pregnant. She went to a clinic to get an abortion on the morning of July 20, 2006, after receiving medication and instructions the previous day.
Renelique was not at the clinic, however, and Williams was told to wait for him. She was given two pills and told they would make her ill. When she complained of feeling ill, clinic staff members gave her a robe and told her to lie down in a patient room, the suit says.
Renelique was still not present when Williams "felt a large pain" and delivered a baby girl, according to the suit.
"The staff began screaming and pandemonium ensued. Sycloria watched in horror and shock as her baby writhed with her chest rising and falling as she breathed."
A clinic co-owner entered the room and used a pair of shears to cut the baby's umbilical cord, the suit said. She "then scooped up the baby and placed the live baby, placenta and afterbirth in a red plastic biohazard bag, which she sealed, and then threw bag and the baby in a trash can."
Staff at the clinic did not call 911 or seek medical assistance for Williams or the baby, the suit said.
Renelique arrived at the clinic about an hour later and gave Williams a shot to put her to sleep. "She awoke after the procedure and was sent home still in complete shock," the suit said.
Police were notified of the incident by an anonymous caller who told them the baby was born alive and disposed of.
"The complainant [Williams] observed the baby moving and gasping for air for approximately five minutes," according to a police affidavit requesting a search warrant for the clinic.
Two search warrants found nothing, but officers executing a third warrant "found the decomposing body of a baby in a cardboard box in a closet," the suit said.
The baby was linked to Williams through DNA testing, the lawsuit said. An autopsy showed it had filled its lungs with air prior to death. Documents from the state Department of Health said its cause of death was determined to be "extreme prematurity."
Fewer than 1 percent of babies are born at less than 28 weeks, according to the March of Dimes, a nonprofit organization aimed at reducing premature births, birth defects, and infant mortality.
Infants born at that stage may survive, but require treatment with oxygen, other medical help and mechanical assistance to help them breathe. They are too immature to suck or swallow and so must be fed intravenously.
Babies born before about 32 weeks of gestation face the highest risk of health problems, the March of Dimes said.
Williams' lawsuit seeks damages from Renelique, the clinic and its staff. It claims that clinic records were falsified to say only that Williams underwent an abortion. Williams filed the suit individually and "as personal representative of the estate of Shanice Denise Osbourne, deceased," the suit said.
The medical board's action Friday came at the request of the Florida Department of Health, which filed an order in February 2007 seeking emergency restrictions on Renelique's license. Department documents list many of the same allegations as Williams' lawsuit.
"Dr. Renelique's failure to practice medicine with that level of care, skill and treatment that is recognized as being acceptable, as well as his willingness to falsify medical records, poses a serious and immediate danger to the public," the health department said.
Renelique did not respond to the health department or dispute the facts it alleged, department spokeswoman Eulinda Jackson said Friday.
Williams has declined to speak publicly about the case, said Pennekamp, her attorney. She suffers from post-traumatic stress because of the experience, he said.
All of these stories are horrific enough themselves; however, they also highlight the imperative need for patients to be vigilant about their healthcare. Furthermore, when it is appropriate, surviving patients or the families of deceased patients need to seek justice where it is due. Alvin F. de Levie and his team of medical malpractice experts have dealt with thousands of medical malpractice cases and helped countless clients receive reparations they deserve.
Doctors, surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses and other medical professionals make mistakes, and when their mistakes are due to negligence, injured parties deserve to recover compensation. However, not all medical mistakes or unfavorable outcomes are actual acts of medical malpractice, so it is important to seek legal advice and evaluation from an experienced personal injury lawyer.
Medical malpractice injuries are often highly consequential, life-changing and sometimes fatal. It is critical that you have trial lawyers capable of understanding highly complex medical procedures and resulting legal issues.
At Alvin F. de Levie & Associates, we regularly handle medical malpractice lawsuits, and we serve people who have suffered from malpractice throughout Pennsylvania. Regarded as a top Pennsylvania lawyer specializing in the practice area of medical malpractice, Alvin serves the entire state with offices in Philadelphia, State College, Clearfield, Lock Haven and Bellefonte, we are able to meet with you at your convenience anywhere in Pennsylvania.
We offer free initial consultations, and we handle all medical malpractice cases on a contingency fee basis. We assume all upfront legal costs, and we get paid only if you recover compensation as a result of our representation.
If you feel you are the victim of medical malpractice call us today at this phone number 844-777-2529 to schedule a free consultation and follow up meeting.
Alvin F. de Levie is a 1973, Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the Pennsylvania State University and a 1976 graduate of the Villanova University School of Law. He is an expert in Pennsylvania Law revolving around medical malpractice and personal injury.
Mr. de Levie has consistently been voted by his peers to receive Martindale-Hubbell's "AV Preeminent" 5.0 out of 5.0 rating. An AV Preeminent rating is the highest possible rating in both legal ability and ethical standards.
