Can You Sue for Pressure Sores or Bedsores?
According to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, there were more than 455,000 cases of pressure sores among hospital patients in 2003. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2004, 159,000 nursing home residents in the United States suffered from pressure sores.
The Damage Caused by what Surgeons Leave Behind
According to research from Johns Hopkins University, “never events”, or events that should never happen in surgery, occur at least 4,000 times annually in the United States. It also revealed that “never events” occurred more than 80,000 times between 1990 and 2010.
Patient claims doctors attempted to cover up surgery error
New York patients may be interested to learn that a 60-year-old claimed in a lawsuit that a Connecticut hospital removed the wrong body part during a surgical procedure. She claimed that the doctors then attempted to cover up the mistake.
Cataract Surgery Complications and Medical Malpractice
According to statistics, there are over 24.4 million people in the United States over the age of 40 who are affected by cataracts. 50% of people over the age of 80 have cataracts. The federal government spends $3.4 billion annually for the treatment of this condition through Medicare.
5 Important Pros and Cons of Tort Reform
Tort reform is a controversial subject that raises a lot of questions. This issue has two sides and both sides are very adamant about their position. Before deciding for yourself if tort reform is required, it is important to understand what it is intended to achieve and what it would entail.
Pursuing a Psychiatric Malpractice Claim
Like anywhere else, America has its fair share of people who seek mental medical help. Thousands and thousands of people across the nation seek treatment each year.
Nursing Home Neglect and Medical Malpractice
According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, a study found that 44% of nursing home residents report abuse and 95% report neglect of themselves or other residents within the past year. Of the abuse that is being reported in nursing homes – 29% is physical abuse; 21% is psychological abuse; 14% is gross neglect; 7% is sexual abuse; 7% is financial exploitation; and 22% is resident-to-resident abuse. Another study found that more than 50% of nursing home staff report mistreating residents within the past year.
Medical errors, IT problems and the role of apologies
While New York is not one of the states that gives protection to medical professionals who apologize for a medical error, some facilities and practitioners around the country have noted that saying “I’m sorry” often reduces the risk of a lawsuit. In the past, the more common practice has been denial, but apologizing is becoming more common.
Hospital operator pays out millions for malpractice
NYC Health + Hospitals, a public benefit corporation that operates several clinics and public hospitals in New York City, paid out $124 million to plaintiffs in medical malpractice complaints in 2015. The total amount that it paid was a drop from the $133 million that it paid to injured patients in 2014. However, medical malpractice claims against the organization rose from 536 to 552 in 2015.
Failure to Diagnose Cancer and Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
Cancer is one of the major causes of death in the United States as well as across the globe. In 2012, there were 14 million new cancer cases and 8.2 million cancer-related deaths worldwide. Statistics reveal that there will be an estimated 1,685,210 new cases of cancer in the United States and 595,690 deaths caused by the disease in 2016. Within the next two decades, the number of new cancer cases will rise to 22 million.