Posts Tagged ‘medical malpractice’

Experimental Botox Treatment Results In Suit

Monday, February 1st, 2010

While Botox is best known for its use in treating wrinkles, it is also used for a number of medical purposes, many of which are not officially endorsed by the FDA. Migraines and cerebral palsy are some of the many conditions that can be improved with regular injections of Botox, but these treatments, unfortunately, are not completely without consequence.

Kristen Spears was a seven year old girl with cerebral palsy. Botox shots were intended to help calm the spasms in her legs and allowed her to walk without surgery. Instead, Botox may have killed her.

The family is now working with an Orange County personal injury lawyer to file suit against the manufacturer. It is one of many upcoming cosmetic and non-cosmetic suits regarding the drug. The corporation says their is no proof the drug caused Kristen’s death, and the deaths of other victims, though. A spokeswoman said the drug’s safety record has been “remarkable” so far, she claimed that any deaths that seemed to be caused by the drug were actually caused by underlying health conditions.

Over a year after Kristen’s death though, Botox was ordered to start warning doctors and consumers of potentially life-threatening side effects and may be dangerous for use in children. The girl’s family claims that the company was aware of the dangers prior to her death though.

To read more about the suit, see the article in the L.A. Times. Image via Sarah G… [Flickr].

Blood Donation Infection Leads to Lawsuit

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

Christopher Bui thought he was doing a good deed when he went to the Stanford Hospital to donate blood. Unfortunately, by the end of his ordeal, he ended up not being a hero, but a victim.

Bui had donated at the hospital yearly for over ten years before the fateful incident that led him to develop a debilitating infection. The expenses related to treating the infection at the hospital quickly added up and soon, he could no longer afford to pay. At this point, the hospital refused to provide him with further treatment. He is now suing the hospital for medical malpractice.

According to an Orange County personal injury lawyer, hospitals promise to take care of blood donors if any ill arises as a result of their donations. By refusing to treat Bui, they broke this promise to the donor and may have cost themselves additional donations from those who now fear the potential repercussions will not be covered by the hospital.

To read more about this suit, see the article in Justice News Flash. Image via Thirteen of Clubs [Flickr].

Malpractice Suit Claims Delayed Care Caused Death

Monday, January 4th, 2010

The entire point of emergency care is to treat patients in critical condition in a timely manner. Unfortunately for Nicole Blincoe, her mother, Penny Louise Prevezich, was not afforded this consideration when she came to an emergency room in San Mateo County. Mrs. Prevezich was left waiting in the waiting room of the county hospital’s emergency care unit, while she died of a drug overdose. She was transferred from a veteran’s mental health facility to the hospital, where she was seated by a nurse and then left unattended for over 90 minutes, at which time she was found deceased.

A recent study has shown that hospital waiting times have been increasing significantly throughout the last year. The University of California San Francisco has found that only 75% of all patients are receiving care in a safe and timely manner. Orange County personal injury attorneys warn that the problem will get worse if left ignored.

To read more about the case, see the article on AboutLawsuits.com. Image Via Reegmo [Flickr].

Patient Suing Over CT Scan Radiation Overdose

Monday, October 26th, 2009

timsamoffA patient who received a CT scan from the Los Angeles Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is suing the hospital and the manufacturer of the device after receiving a radiation overdose. His suit will not only be on his behalf, will be a class action including the 206 other patients that have received radiation overdoses from the machine. The defect has gone undetected for over a year and a half.

The patient, Trevor Rees, and his Orange County personal injury lawyer assert that both the hospital and the maker of the device, General Electric, have been negligent in preforming the scans. The lawsuit is also alleging medical malpractice on the part of the hospital and product liability on the part of GE.

GE says the machine is not defective. Hospital officials claim the mistake occurred when staff reset the machine, but a misunderstanding about a default setting applied by the machine led to patients receiving eight times the normal dose of radiation. 40% of all the patients suffered hair loss as a result.

Rees says he experienced signs of radiation overdose shortly after the exposure, including losing hair on his head and eyebrows, and redness and flakiness of skin on his face and scalp. A while after the scan, hospital officials contacted him, asking him if he experienced any side effects, but they would not tell him why. The hospital did not inform him of the overdose until much later.

To read more about this case, see the article in the Silicone Valley Mercury News. Image Via Timsamoff [Flickr]

Doctor May Have Let Man Die Just To Steal Watch

Monday, October 5th, 2009

jurvetsonA California doctor is accused of letting a patient die, only so he could steal the man’s valuable Rolex watch without anyone noticing. The patient, Jerry Kubena Sr, a retired Manteca police lieutenant, was admitted to the hospital on June 1st for a heart attack. When he entered the medical center, nurses noticed that he was wearing a nice watch. When doctor Cleveland James Enmon pronounced him dead, the staff noticed Kubena’s watch was missing and that their was a noticeable watch-shapped bulge in Enmon’s pocket.

Kubena’s children have filed a wrongful death suit against Enmon, stating that he intentionally let their father die in order to pocket the watch. According to the suit: “Once defendant Enmon formed the intent to steal decedent’s watch, he abandoned his efforts to resuscitate decedent, leaving decedent to die so that he would not be around to reclaim his watch.”

Wrongful death lawsuits are a terrible thing to go through, which is why it is always so important to immediately contact an Orange County personal injury attorney who can help you get through the legal complexities, so you can focus on the grieving process.

To read more about this terrible crime, read the full article in The SF Weekly. Image Via jurvetson [Flickr]