Chicago Tribune Covers the Myths About Opiods
There is no question that the opioid epidemic is one of the greatest public health crises of our lifetimes. The record is deep with stories of tragic overdoses and towns that have been decimated by opioid abuse. In fact, the epidemic has even been blamed for lowering life-expectancy in the United States. This Chicago Tribune…
Read MoreFerguson v. United States Government: A Case Review
The caption of this case was originally Ferguson v. United States Government, Anonymous Hospital and Anonymous Physician. The Hospital and Physician both settled. The Government, however, who was effectively representing the pediatrician, would not engage in meaningful negotiations. The case was tried in the Northern District for West Virginia, “non-jury” because of the Federal Tort Claims…
Read MoreCan Couples Sue Fertility Clinics for Reproductive Negligence?
As technological advances in medicine make it possible for older people and those with fertility challenges to become pregnant and give birth, increasing numbers of people are using fertility clinics. Just as in any other medical field, fertility specialists and their staff make preventable mistakes. However, with reproductive negligence or malpractice, the stakes are incredibly…
Read MoreThe FDA Takes on Pharmacy Errors and Medication Errors by Changing Drug Packaging
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking on medication errors by changing drug packaging and labeling. Medication errors are a massive problem in the healthcare systems of the United States. The Institute of Medicine reports that as many as 98,000 Americans die each year because of medical errors, and up to 7,000 of…
Read MoreMedication Errors Caused by Negligent Bar Code Medication Administration
Medication errors in a health care setting are rampant despite efforts to solve the problem. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality defines an adverse drug event (ADE) as harm experienced by a patient because of exposure to a medication. ADEs account for approximately 700,000 emergency room visits and 100,000 hospitalizations each year. The AHQR…
Read MoreMedical Negligence from the Misinterpretation of Genetic Testing Results
Genetic testing is one of the miracles of modern medicine, but it can also become somewhat of a double-edged sword. That is because the technology is so new and evolving every day. A genetic test can tell you if you are at risk for certain diseases, reveal the disease that is causing your symptoms, and…
Read MoreThousands Die from Medical Negligence Every Year. So Why Aren’t They Filing Lawsuits?
On December 10, 2017, the Center for Justice & Democracy released the “Medical Malpractice: By the Numbers” briefing book. The 178-page document delves deeply into what types of cases are being filed and why, but also addresses the reasons behind why so few victims of medical errors actually file lawsuits. Their information is based on…
Read MoreRemembering Peter
More than thirty years ago, I was asked to become involved in a case in which a husband and father of two small children in his 30’s went to a hospital for a heart attack. He had been mowing his lawn. When he eventually came back to his home, he had lost a portion of…
Read MoreDr. Charles Akoda Is Not a Real Person, But That Didn’t Stop Him from Practicing Medicine
At least 100 women have come forward claiming to be patients of Dr. Charles Akoda at Prince George’s Hospital Center in Maryland. The problem is that Dr. Charles Akoda is not a real person; he’s an identity thief who managed to fool both hospital administrators and patients for eight years, as he practiced as an…
Read MoreThe VA Willingly Hires Doctors with Malpractice Claims Against Them
Back in October, USA TODAY published a piece about their investigation into allegations of medical malpractice at the VA hospital in Togus, Maine. They discovered that a podiatrist named Thomas Franchini was responsible for mistakes that harmed veterans in 88 different cases. Instead of firing Franchini outright, the VA “let him quietly resign and move…
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