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Archive for the ‘Connecticut Medical Malpractice’ Category

Connecticut Doctor/Legislator Skuttles Claimant-Helpful Medical Malpractice Reform Measure

Wednesday, May 9th, 2012

On May 3, 2012, a Connecticut legislator who is also a medical doctor headed an effort to stop a medical malpractice reform measure that had already passed in the Connecticut Senate by an overwhelming vote of 32 to 3. The proposed measure would have made it easier for victims of medical malpractice to file medical malpractice claims against their negligent health care providers. With the lead of the doctor in the Connecticut House, the measure was defeated on a vote of 74 to 69 after several hours of debate.

The medical  malpractice reform measure would have softened the requirement regarding certifying medical experts in medical malpractice cases filed in Connecticut to allow a ”qualified” medical expert as an alternative to a medical expert in a “similar” health care field to provide the necessary written report regarding the medical malpractice defendant’s deviation from the standard of care. Under the current Connecticut medical malpractice law, the requirement for a certifying medical expert is higher than for a medical expert who testifies during a medical malpractice trial. For a more detailed explanation of Connecticut’s current law and the proposed changes to the medical malpractice law that failed on May 3, 2012, see our blog for April 29, 2012.

The doctor/legislator was successful in employing scare and fear tactics to defeat the medical malpractice amendment that would benefit all victims of medical malpractice in Connecticut. The doctor/legislator told his colleagues that the flow of medical specialists into Connecticut would slow and that current Connecticut medical professionals would either retire or move away from Connecticut if the amendment was passed. Instead of demanding that the issue of threatened harm to the medical profession in  Connecticut be studied to determine if there was any basis for the concern, enough of the Connecticut House members caved in to “the sky is falling” argument and threw medical malpractice claimants’ interests “under the bus.”

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When will ordinary citizens in communities throughout our country finally rise up and demand that their elected representatives represent them and everyone equally, without granting special rights and special benefits to powerful special interest groups such as doctors, which result in harm to everyone else? When will our elected officials stop pandering to special interest groups that heavily lobby them for unjustified special treatment? When will medical professionals realize that they and their interests are not above or superior to the interests of all others and that they are not entitled to special treatment not available to others? What will it take (and from whom) to lower medical professionals from their self-installed pedestals and relieve them from their self-indulgent, high-and-mighty, better-than-thou egos and attitudes that harm their communities?

Do not let your state’s elected representatives legislate away your legal rights and your family’s financial interests when health care providers push for medical malpractice “reform” under the threat that they will give up their medical practices if they do not receive the special treatment they demand. Call their bluff — they will not sacrifice their own financial interests by abandoning their lucrative medical businesses.

Stand up for your rights before medical malpractice lays you down!

If you or a family member have become a medical malpractice victim in Connecticut or in another state in the U.S., the prompt advice from a medical malpractice attorney in your state is important to learn about and protect your legal rights.

Click here to visit our website or call us toll free at 800-295-3959 to be connected with local medical malpractice lawyers who may be able to help you with your medical malpractice claim.

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Posted in Client Updates, Connecticut Medical Malpractice, Lawyer Updates, Medical Malpractice Facts, Medical Malpractice Lawyers, Medical Malpractice Victim, Medical News | No Comments »

Connecticut Senate Passes Medical Malpractice Bill To Reform Prior Reforms

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

On April 27, 2012, the Connecticut Senate passed by a margin of 32 to 3 a medical malpractice bill that would reform Connecticut’s medical malpractice reforms enacted in 2005. In particular, the proposed bill would revise the requirement that medical malpractice plaintiffs obtain a written report called a certificate of merit from a “similar” health care provider that sets forth how the medical malpractice defendant deviated from the standard of care, adding an alternate method to comply with the law by obtaining a written report from a ”qualified” health care provider.

The stated purpose behind the 2005 reforms as well as this most recent reform attempt is to prevent frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits from being filed that result in increasing medical malpractice insurance costs. It is thought that by requiring a sufficient written report that sets forth the alleged medical negligence and the alleged breaches of the standard of care, frivolous medical malpractice claims will not be filed.

The reason for the proposed change is that the “similar” health care provider requirement resulted in harsh consequences in some cases such as the dismissal of a medical malpractice lawsuit filed against an emergency room physician because the certifying expert was a practicing trauma surgeon and even though he spent most of his professional time in the emergency room, he was not a “similar” health care provider as to the defendant.

A “qualified” expert is a health care provider who the court determines to be an appropriate certifying expert based on the court’s review of the contents of the written report that details the expert’s sufficient training, knowledge, and experience in the specific care, treatment or diagnosis at issue in the medical malpractice complaint within the five-year period before the incident giving rise in the complaint so as to be able to testify as an expert as to the standard of care as to each defendant to whom the expert has issued an opinion.

The original Senate bill would have completely replaced the “similar” health care provider requirement with the less restrictive “qualified” health care provider provision but the strong opposition from medical providers resulted in a compromise.

The amended Senate bill now goes to the Connecticut House for its consideration.

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If you may be the victim of medical malpractice in Connecticut or in another state in the United States, you may wish to consult with a local medical malpractice attorney to investigate your possible medical malpractice case for you.

Click here to visit our website to be connected with medical malpractice lawyers in your state who may be able to represent you in a medical malpractice case against the negligent medical providers. If you prefer, you may also reach us toll free at 800-295-3959.

Turn to us when you don’t know where to turn.

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Posted in Client Updates, Connecticut Medical Malpractice, Lawyer Updates, Medical Malpractice Claims, Medical Malpractice Facts, Medical Malpractice Lawyers, Medical Malpractice Reforms, Medical News | No Comments »

Connecticut Nursing Home Fined $510 For Resident’s Choking Death

Wednesday, April 11th, 2012

Just how much is a Connecticut nursing home resident’s life worth? The answer may be $510, according to the fine imposed on a nursing home by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) that could have imposed a maximum fine in the amount of $3,000.00, for the choking death of a resident. The DPH also required that the offending nursing home submit a corrective-action plan to address the choking death incident.

According to state investigators, the elderly Connecticut nursing home resident suffered from pulmonary disease and mental illness. The nursing home care plan for the resident required the nursing home staff to cut up the resident’s food in small pieces and to closely monitor the resident to make sure that he ate slowly and took small bites. The staff were also required to cue the resident to chew and swallow his food. The goal of the care plan was to insure that the resident received the proper nutrition while at the same time insuring that he safely chewed and swallowed his food.

On the day of the choking incident in February, 2012, the nursing home staff left the resident unattended as he ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. When the staff returned to the resident, he was found unresponsive in a seated position. An ambulance was called and the ambulance report stated that the resident’s airway was completely blocked with peanut butter. The resident choked to death and was declared dead at the hospital from cardiac and respiratory arrest.

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It appears that the nursing home resident had been identified as someone who had a swallowing disorder and/or was at risk for choking while eating that required that close and proper supervision be provided at all times during meals. It is common for some elderly people, people who have dementia, and people with certain physical conditions to require assistance with meals, such as special food preparation (for example, pureeing of food), restrictions on certain foods (such as meats and other foods that may be difficult to chew and/or swallow), and thickening of fluids to help with swallowing. It is quite obvious that people with swallowing disorders may suffer dire consequences, including choking to death, if  there is a lapse in following the required swallowing protocols.

It appears from the investigative report from the Connecticut DPH that the nursing home had identified and addressed the resident’s swallowing/eating issues in his care plan that required close observation, supervision, and cuing while the patient was eating. It is foreseeable that if the care plan requirements are not followed with regard to eating, then the patient can choke to death on the simplest food item in a very short period of time. Choking is a very painful process that takes enough time that most residents would be aware of their dire situation and would suffer severe pain and mental anguish before death.

The Connecticut man’s death is a clear example of the gravest consequences that may result if the simplest but most critical efforts are not consistently made to protect the safety of nursing home residents.

If you or a loved one suffered injuries or death due to nursing home negligence, nursing home neglect, nursing home abuse, nursing home mistakes, or nursing home errors, you may be entitled to compensation for your losses and injuries. The prompt investigation by a medical malpractice attorney may help determine if medical malpractice has occurred.

Click here to visit our website or call us toll free at 800-295-3959 to be connected with local medical malpractice lawyers who may be able to investigate your possible medical malpractice claim against the nursing home and represent you in a medical malpractice case, if appropriate.

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Posted in Client Updates, Connecticut Medical Malpractice, Lawyer Updates, Medical Malpractice Case, Medical Malpractice Claims, Medical Malpractice Damages Cap, Medical Malpractice Lawyers, Medical Malpractice Verdict, Medical Malpractice Victim, Medical Negligence, Medical News, Nursing Home Medical Malpractice, Nursing Medical Malpractice | No Comments »

Connecticut Medical Malpractice Claim For Young Boy’s Blindness

Friday, January 20th, 2012

The parents of a 7-year-old boy filed a medical malpractice claim earlier this month against the boy’s pediatrician and others claiming that the boy suffered blindness due to the alleged failure to timely and properly diagnose the boy’s bacterial meningitis. The now 9-year-old boy was brought to his pediatrician’s office in late October, 2009, complaining of a severe headache. The pediatrician diagnosed an ear infection.

As the boy’s condition deteriorated over the next several days, the boy was brought back to his pediatrician’s office. On the third day after the initial visit, the medical malpractice claim alleges that the pediatrician was unable to perform a neurological examination of the boy because of the severity of his headache. The medical malpractice claim further alleges that a telephone call to the pediatrician’s office the day prior resulted in the receptionist stating that there was nothing else the pediatrician could do for the boy since he had just been in the pediatrician’s office the day before.

The pediatrician allegedly referred the boy for a brain CT scan that resulted in the diagnosis of migraine. Instead, the pediatrician should have immediately sent the boy to a hospital emergency room for a spinal tap that would have led to the diagnosis of bacteria meningitis that would have been treated with intravenous antibiotics that would have saved the boy’s eyesight, according to the medical malpractice lawsuit.

Later on the same day that the pediatrician was unable to perform a neurological exam due to severe headache, the boy was found unresponsive at home and was rushed to a local hospital emergency room from where he was promptly airlifted to a regional children’s specialty hospital where he was finally diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. The boy was in a coma for three weeks after which he awoke to blindness in both eyes.

He suffered from systemic bacterial infection, respiratory failure, impaired hearing and speech, seizures, and brain damage, all as a result of the late diagnosis of bacterial meningitis, according to the medical malpractice claim. He had to re-learn basic functions, including eating, talking, and walking, due to his severe injuries. He continues to receive rehabilitation at home.

The defendant pediatrician’s lawyer denied the claims against her and vowed to defend the medical malpractice case vigorously.

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If timely and promptly diagnosed, bacterial meningitis can be treated and resolved without permanent injury — the keys are prompt diagnosis and timely treatment. A delay of mere hours in diagnosis and treatment can result in permanent injuries.

The catastrophic injuries allegedly suffered by the Connecticut boy may have been timely and effectively treated if treatment began immediately. Now, the boy’s future looks bleak.

If you or a family member have suffered injuries due to a late or mis-diagnosed medical condition, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Obtaining the prompt legal advice from a medical malpractice attorney is critical to protecting your legal rights.

Visit our website  to be connected with medical malpractice lawyers in your state who may be willing and able to investigate your possible medical malpractice claim and file a medical malpractice case on your behalf, if appropriate. You may also reach us toll free at 800-295-3959.

Turn to us when you don’t know where to turn.

You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn as well!

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Posted in Client Updates, Connecticut Medical Malpractice, Lawyer Updates, Medical Malpractice Case, Medical Malpractice Claims, Medical Malpractice Lawyers, Medical Malpractice Victim, Medical Negligence, Medical Testing | No Comments »

Connecticut Medical Malpractice Verdict More Than Doubles After Re-Trial

Thursday, January 5th, 2012

A 49-year-old man went to his primary care physician with complaints of chest pain. The doctor diagnosed gastrointestinal problems without taking a full and complete medical history from the patient that would have discovered prior complaints of chest pain that should have led to further inquiry and cardiac testing that would have disclosed an underlying serious heart condition. The patient died a few weeks later from a massive heart attack while undergoing hip surgery that his primary care physician would have recommended against had the heart problem been properly and timely diagnosed.

The resulting medical malpractice case against the hospital, primary care physician, and surgeon alleged that the primary care physician and surgeon were negligent and that their negligence led to the man’s death. The medical malpractice case was tried before a jury twice. The first medical malpractice trial resulted in a $10 million verdict in favor of the plaintiffs. As a result of a successful appeal filed by the medical malpractice defendants, the case had to be re-tried before another jury. (The hospital and the surgeon settled with the plaintiffs before the trial.)

The second medical malpractice jury again found in favor of the plaintiffs and this time awarded damages in the amount of $22.5 million against the primary care physician (75% at fault) and the surgeon (25% at fault), which was reduced due to the surgeon’s prior out-of-court settlement with the plaintiffs. The primary care physician blamed the surgeon during the trial for the surgeon’s failure to perform pre-operative testing that would have discovered the man’s heart condition that would have led to the surgery being canceled and also blamed the surgeon for the surgeon’s failure to respond appropriately to the patient’s complaints of chest pain and nausea post-operatively.

When a patient complains of chest pain, the physician should undertake an adequate and detailed inquiry about the symptoms including prior episodes of chest pain and the nature, extent, and duration of the chest pain before diagnosing gastrointestinal problems (patients can suffer from both cardiac problems and gastrointestinal problems at the same time).

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It appears that the Connecticut man did what he was supposed to do — he sought the medical advice of his primary care physician when he experienced chest pain. He must have felt great relief when his doctor told him that he had a relatively minor gastrointestinal problem. Patients reasonably rely on the professional opinions of their medical care providers because they are the experts with the knowledge, education, and training to make medical diagnoses and decisions that affect their patients’ health. When medical professionals are negligent in their care and treatment of their patients, the law holds them responsible for the foreseeable results caused by their substandard care.

When the medical malpractice committed by medical providers causes injuries to their patients, the victims of the medical malpractice should seek legal advice from medical malpractice attorneys concerning their right to file medical malpractice cases.

Click here to visit our website  or telephone us toll free at 800-295-3959 to be connected with medical malpractice lawyers in your state who may be able to assist you with your medical malpractice claim.

Turn to us when you don’t know where to turn.

You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn as well!

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Posted in Client Updates, Connecticut Medical Malpractice, Lawyer Updates, Medical Malpractice Case, Medical Malpractice Claims, Medical Malpractice Facts, Medical Malpractice Lawyers, Medical Malpractice Verdict, Medical Malpractice Victim, Medical Negligence, Medical Testing | No Comments »