A Peoria County, Ill., jury signed a verdict for more than $1.6 million for injuries caused to a young woman, Peyton Heathcoat caused by a chiropractor’s negligence. Heathcoat underwent manipulation to her back, spine, ribs, scapula and shoulder in 2012 and 2013. Treatment started when she was just 17 years…
Chicago Medical Malpractice Attorney Blog
$3.5 Million Jury Verdict for Patient Death Where Medical Center Failed to Notify Patient’s Emergency Contact Before Discharge
David Scheer, the father of Matthew Scheer, drove his son to the emergency room at Grand Strand Regional Medical Center because David noticed that his son had added some disturbing posts on social media. Matthew was 26 at the time. He was also suffering from auditory and visual hallucinations. Matthew…
Parents Awarded $2.68 Million in Son’s Death Following Misdiagnosis
The parents of a 22-year-old man were awarded $2.68 million by a jury after their son died when a hospitalist at Columbia Medical Center of Arlington, Texas, failed to order a CT scan and surgery to repair a hole in his liver. The case was reported in the American Association…
State Supreme Court Affirms Jury Verdict for Defendants Where the Issue is Lawyer’s Failure to Ask “Insurance Question” in Voir Dire
In a medical malpractice lawsuit, the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the judgment against the plaintiffs following a jury verdict in favor of the defendants. The state’s high court held that the circuit court did not commit reversible error when it refused to allow the plaintiffs’ attorney additional voir dire time…
U.S. Court of Appeals Confirms Dismissal of Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Brought for Failure to Diagnose and Treat Stroke Symptoms
Dennis Davis, an Illinois prisoner suffering from kidney disease, received dialysis on a Saturday. He later told the prison nurse that his mind was fuzzy and his body was weak. Both of these complaints were similar to other side effects he had experienced in the past after dialysis treatment. The…
Kane County Jury Verdict for Paraplegia — $4.752M
T.S., a 55-year-old male, was hospitalized at Provena St. Joseph Hospital from April 9 to April 15, 2005, and received outpatient care from April 18 to April 28, 2005. He complained of back pain to nurses, but it was claimed that this information was not communicated to the attending doctors.…
St. Jude Heart Device Maker Fights Back Against Reports Linked to Deaths and Injuries
A problem has developed with the St. Jude implanted heart device: A wire or lead that connects a defibrillator to a patient’s heart has been failing, often with fatal results. The lead, a model called Riata, has been used by more than 128,000 patients worldwide. The electrical wires within the…
$300,000 Settlement for Wrongful Death of Patient Who Died from the Failure to Monitor Respiratory Status
Michelle Phibbs, 29, had a history of mental illness. She was admitted to Heartland Behavioral Healthcare, a state-run psychiatric hospital, for an inpatient stay after experiencing difficulty following the death of a close family friend. A psychiatrist diagnosed bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, and alcohol abuse, among other problems, and…
$2.35 Million Settlement for the Death Caused by Failure to Diagnose and Treat Aortic Dissection
Jonathan Rabkin, 53, went to a hospital emergency room complaining of the sudden onset of upper abdominal pain radiating to his back. The attending emergency room physician, Dr. Vikram Varma, ordered a chest x-ray and chest CT scan without contrast. Radiologist Dr. Paul Shieh interpreted the CT scan as showing…
Illinois House Bill Fails to Gain Traction as to Nurse-Staffing Ratios in Hospitals
A proposed Illinois law would limit the number of patients each hospital nurse would be allowed to care for at one time. The proposed legislation was based on a national survey, which suggested that such a rule would lead to better working conditions for nurses and would benefit patient care.…