Articles Tagged With:
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$21.9 M award in elective steroid injection procedure
A 54-year-old woman suffered from chronic and severe back pain, and she underwent an elective epidural steroid injection. While sedated, the patient’s airway became blocked, which resulted in oxygen deprivation for as long as 10 minutes. Multiple electronic monitors indicated that the patient was not breathing properly, but the physician continued the procedure. Emergency assistance was not called for more than an hour, and the physician failed to report to a subsequent treating hospital that the patient was deprived of oxygen for several minutes. The patient suffered severe brain damage, and she died six years after the procedure from complications related to the brain injury. The jury awarded the widower and estate $21.9 million in damages.
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Failure to diagnose infection causes toddler death and yields verdict of $1.72 million
Plaintiffs’ 3-month-old daughter was taken to the hospital with a high fever and elevated pulse rate. The ED physician diagnosed an ear infection and discharged the infant with a prescription for antibiotics. Days later she was diagnosed with pneumococcal meningitis, hypoxic brain injury, and hydrocephalus. She lived for 20 more months. Plaintiffs sued the hospital and the ED physician, and they won a verdict of joint and several liability for $1.7 million.
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Urinary Tract Infection
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common in the emergency department. In fact, UTIs were the most common bacterial infection encountered in ambulatory settings in 2007 and the most common primary diagnosis for women visiting the emergency department.
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ED Push - March 2015 Second Issue
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State Medical Board Complaint Can Fuel ED Med/Mal Suit, and Vice Versa: Don’t “Go It Alone”
It’s difficult to imagine most emergency physicians (EPs) choosing to defend themselves in a malpractice lawsuit. However, many respond to state medical board investigations without legal representation. “Many medical board complaints end up being more serious than medical malpractice lawsuits,” says Ellen M. Voss, JD, a medical malpractice defense attorney at Williams Kastner in Portland, OR.
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EPs Seeing Many More Incidental Findings: Take Steps to Reduce Liability
Failure to notify patients and their primary care providers of incidental radiology findings “definitely poses significant medicolegal liability for the emergency physician (EP),” according to Sayon Dutta, MD, an attending physician in the emergency department (ED) at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
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Will EPs Be Dismissed — or Get ‘Stuck’ in the Claim? These Are Determining Factors
Understandably, emergency physicians (EPs) who believe that allegations of malpractice are unfounded don’t want to suffer through litigation one minute longer than necessary. However, getting “out” of a claim, regardless of the merits of the case against the EP, is often no easy task.
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Peer Review: How Protected Are You?
While it has definite advantages, peer review presents unique and significant challenges, particularly for the individual provider.
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Death Toll Grows from Hospital-Related C. Difficile Infections
What’s the answer? Better antibiotic stewardship, according to public health officials.
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Despite Critics, Interstate Medical Licensure Compact Gains Approval
A new compact to expedite multi-state licensing for qualified physicians is gaining traction.