A South Carolina appellate court has found that a hospital was not responsible to injured patients for choosing not to make sure that a physician had a valid medical malpractice insurance policy in place. Two former surgery patients sued the Laurens County Healthcare System alleging that the hospital was liable…
Articles Posted in Medical Malpractice
$4 Million Jury Verdict in Urethral Dilation Injury that Lacked Informed Consent
Jeanette Olken underwent successful self-catheterization procedures fter undergoing implantation of a sling to treat urinary incontinence. When she later experienced difficulty self-catheterizing, she went to a hospital emergency room. Olken, 55, saw an emergency department physician and nurse who unsuccessfully attempted to catheterize her. Dr. Joseph Zajac, a urologist, attempted…
Court Enters Judgment in Failure to Warn Patient of Abdominal Kidney Test Results
Mildred Vick, 65, underwent a Salpingo-oophorectomy performed by gynecologist Dr. Lawrence Bandy. Salpingo-oophorectomy is the surgery to remove the ovary fallopian tubes. This procedure is used to treat a variety of conditions, usually ovarian cancer. Following this procedure, metabolic testing showed an abnormal glomerular filtration rate and creatinine level. The…
$2.5 Million Jury Verdict in Wrongful Death, Hospital Negligence Case for Early Discharge of Disabled Patient
William Pratt, 75, a bilateral leg amputee, went to the Wills Eye Hospital emergency room at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. He complained of eye pain and tearing. During his medical workup, Pratt’s eyes were dilated. He was then treated with an antibiotic eye ointment. The attending physician discharged Pratt with…
$1 Million Jury Verdict in Failure to Diagnose Rib Fractures in Cancer Patient
William Pratt, 67, was diagnosed with Stage IV liver cancer. He fell down a flight of stairs and was transferred to a hospital emergency room where he was examined and sent for radiological scans. A preliminary reading of the scans concluded that he had not broken any bones during the…
State Supreme Court Affirms Exclusion of Expert Testimony in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit, Failing Under Rules of Evidence
In this medical malpractice lawsuit, the state supreme court of Utah affirmed the decision of the court of appeals, which affirmed the judgment of the district court excluding the plaintiff’s proximate cause expert’s testimony. The state high court held that the district court did not err. Richard and Deanne Taylor’s…
State Supreme Court Affirms $2.3 Million Jury Verdict for Delay in Sending Patient to Hospital Following Knee Replacement Surgery
At issue in this case, which ended in the Idaho Supreme Court, was whether the jury’s verdict would stand. A medical malpractice lawsuit was brought by Leila Brauner against AHC of Boise d/b/a Aspen Transitional Rehab (Aspen). The lawsuit arose out of Aspen’s delay in sending Brauner to the hospital…
State Appellate Court Reverses Dismissal of Misdiagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis Lawsuit
A Mississippi State Appellate Court has reversed a dismissal of a lawsuit that claimed the defendant physician, Dr. Terry Millette, misdiagnosed Debra Green as having multiple sclerosis (MS). As the lawsuit was filed after the applicable state’s one-year limitation, the defendant moved to dismiss, which was granted by the trial…
$1.25 Million Jury Verdict for Negligence in Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
Ms. Doe, 52, went to a hospital emergency room complaining of abdominal pain. She underwent an ultrasound and was diagnosed as having gallstones. Dr. Roe, a general surgeon, performed a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, during which the doctor encountered an unusual amount of bleeding. The surgeon converted to an open procedure where…
$14.24 Million Jury Verdict Affirmed, Finding Expert Testimony on Life Care Planning Was Admissible
Vincent Lowe brought this medical malpractice lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Franklin County, Mo., against Bryan J. Menges, D.O. and James D. Cassat, M.D. and their employers, Mercy Hospital East Communities (“Mercy Hospital”) and Mercy Clinic East Community (“Mercy Clinic”). In the lawsuit, they alleged that as a result…