Anthony Bausal was transported by ambulance to the emergency department at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, Ill., on Sept. 20, 2008. Bausal had a cellulitis infection in his left leg, increased pain and shortness of breath. He also had underlying conditions of lupus nephritis, cardiomyopathy and chronic anemia.…
Articles Posted in Surgical Errors
Illinois Jury Finds in Favor of General Surgeon in Perforated Trachea Case
Latasha Randall was admitted on June 1, 2010 to Vista East Medical Center in Waukegan, Ill., and was diagnosed with sepsis. Shortly after her admission, she suffered respiratory failure and was intubated. On June 22, 2010, the defendant general surgeon, Dr. Laurence Gibson, performed an open tracheostomy and was assisted…
$2.35 Million Jury Verdict for Doctor’s Failure to Timely Treat Septic Arthritis
John Antonucci was 52 years old at the time he underwent an MRI with contrast on his right hip. Two days later he was admitted to the hospital complaining of pain in the same hip. An orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Jason Fond, obtained a culture and later discharged Antonucci with a…
$2.13 Million Jury Verdict for Negligent Use of Synthetic Mesh in Hernia Repair Operation
Barbara Watt underwent a hiatal hernia repair surgery. The procedure was carried out by general surgeon Dr. Cimenga Tshibaka, and it was unsuccessful. Dr. Tshibaka performed a second surgery, this time using a synthetic surgical mesh. The second surgery was about 2 weeks after the first. The following month, Watt…
$635,000 Jury Verdict for Injury to Patient for Negligent Removal of a Defibrillator Lead
Shronda Thomason suffered from a cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle, which necessitated the implanting of a defibrillator. The treating cardiologist, Dr. John Gallagher, advised Thomason that she required a new pacemaker battery and the replacement of the defibrillator’s lead. During the surgery, which was done in a hospital…
Jury Verdict of $5.2 Million Reduced by High-Low Agreement to $1.2 Million for Above-the-Knee Amputation Following Artery Injury
Kevin Tolson was 49 years old when he was injured as the collapsible barrier he was walking over suddenly shot upward, entangling him. He was taken to the nearby hospital emergency room where he experienced symptoms, which included a cold left foot that he was unable to move, numbness and…
Cook County Jury Finds for Doctor in Unnecessary Bronchoscopy that Caused Fatal Bleeding
Viola Morrisroe was diagnosed with COPD and emphysema in 1999. She was under the care of Dr. Edward Diamond of Suburban Lung Associates as her primary pulmonologist. In February 2009, a CT scan of her chest revealed a soft tissue density in the right upper lobe of her lung. Dr.…
Fatal Vein Rupture During Cardiac Catherization Medical Malpractice Claim Ends in Verdict for Doctor
A Cook County jury found that no medical negligence that caused the death of Jerome Granat following a cardiac catherization. On June 16, 2010, the defendant cardiologist, Dr. Surendra Avula, performed a cardiac catherization procedure on 64-year-old Granat at Advocate Christ Hospital. The patient’s previous cardiac history included quadruple coronary…
$1 Million Jury Verdict for Death of Patient in Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery
Margaret Brown, a 71-year-old retiree, was admitted to St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Belleville, Ill., in October 2002 to undergo a coronary artery bypass surgery. During the initial stages of the bypass surgery, Brown suffered a pulmonary artery injury. It was claimed in the lawsuit that the artery injury was caused…
Wrong Jury Instruction Given in Medical Malpractice Case But Not Reversible Error
Melvin Jones received a cervical laminectomy on Feb. 6, 2008 by surgeon Dr. Martin Luken. Dr. Charles Beck, an internist at the same hospital, evaluated Jones after the surgery. Jones developed gastrointestinal issues, and Dr. Beck ordered a series of tests. Dr. Beck remained involved with Jones’s care over the…