Archive for malpractice

As Doctors Start Getting Sued for COVID-19, Which Professionals Are At Risk?

Lawsuits against doctors have been on the rise for many years. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, lawsuits are only going to become more common. Now, particularly since the nation is recovering from the pandemic, it appears that lawsuits stemming from COVID-19 are on the rise.

Recently, a lawsuit was filed by a patient who arrived at the hospital while pregnant. This patient had respiratory problems, meaning that she had a hard time breathing, caused by the virus. Ultimately, doctors decided it was appropriate to perform an emergency delivery of her baby, which was close to being full term.

Even though her child survived, the woman lost oxygen during the medical situation. As a result, she suffered brain damage. Now, she is suing a number of professionals at the hospital, including her OBGYN, a pulmonologist, and the ICU unit for medical malpractice.

In the lawsuit, the woman claims that there was a failure to adequately recognized her condition, which led to a delay in receiving appropriate treatment. As expected, the physicians disagree. They say that they treated her appropriately. They even go so far as to say that the physicians were heroes in this situation, saving the life of a woman and her unborn child.

Without a doubt, the vast majority of doctors are intelligent, compassionate professionals who would do just about anything for their patients. Unfortunately, not all cases will have a positive outcome, and just because the ideal outcome is not the reality doesn’t necessarily mean that the case was medical malpractice. So, was this case medical malpractice?

To prove medical malpractice, the lawsuit will have to show that the woman suffered damage that was the direct cause of her doctors deviating from the readily accepted standard of care. As lawsuits stemming from the coronavirus pandemic continue to go up, it will be interesting to see which specialties are at risk. It could vary from place to place, depending on the country’s statute of limitations, laws, and standards. It will be important for everyone to keep an eye on this case to see how it plays out, as it could set a precedent for the rest of the country.

Doctors Should be Punished for Neglect in Hospitals

Is it justifiable to put a price tag on life? This question can have different answers all depending on the situation. When it comes to religion, people believe one moves on to a peaceful afterlife. In some cases, people believe reincarnation takes place. The following is a story about a child who lost her life and the parents are suing the hospital for wrongful death.

Who Was Stella Miles?
Stella Miles was a young girl with two parents, Michael Miles and Susanne Michels, who unfortunately died at 13 months of age in September 2016. She had been suffering from a life threatening condition known as hyperamonemia which in simple terms is high ammonia levels.

Stella’s parents decided to sue the doctors in-charge ( Dr. Amanda Kopydlowski, Dr. Vanessa Mondestin and Dr. Cori DeSanto) of Stella’s care in St. Louis Circuit Court House together with Washington university and the hospital for wrongful death.

According to lawyer Burton Greenberg, Stella had a seizure and fell unconscious while at home. Her parents immediately rushed her to a medical facility in Lake Saint Louis. She was later transferred on September 1, 2016 to St. Louis Children’s. Reason for doing this not stated.

The lawsuit alleges two main things. First, failure to treat Stella’ s worsened ammonia condition and secondly, neglecting to do an ammonia retest and genetic consultation before being abruptly discharged. Also, the lawsuit still claims the discharge summary was written three months later to hide the medical details of Stella.

On September 4 when Stella was discharged, she passed on five days later. The ammonia levels found in her was a shocking 1242 micro-gram per deciliter of blood. A child should have 11-35 micro-gram per deciliter of blood in normal circumstances. The two autopsies done later on confirmed that Stella died of high ammonia levels.

Another fact is that Nicole Miles, Stella’s 2-year-old sister, suffered from the similar medical condition and later died three months on December 2016. The parents are hoping to reach a settlement soon for $25000 in damages, although investigation is still ongoing.

This story has two sides of it and an investigation will at least bring out some clear answers. The parents are hoping to win this case before a trial date is set. Will winning such a case lessen their grief on loosing their daughter ? They are the only ones who know the feeling of loosing a child in such circumstances.