Medical Malpractice

Maryland injury law: Court of Appeals will review noneconomic damages cap

October 19, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Maryland’s highest court is going to review the constitutionality of the state’s personal injury noneconomic damages cap. This court hasn’t done this since 1995. Currently, the cap for a plaintiff’s pain and suffering is $725,000.

The Maryland wrongful death case that brings the noneconomic damages cap issue to the state’s highest court is the one involving the parents of 5-year-old Connor Freed. The young boy drowned in 2006 in a country club swimming pool in Anne Arundel County in 2006.

A jury awarded his parents, Debra Neagle Webber and Thomas Freed, over $2 million for his drowning death. Because of the Maryland personal injury cap, which was $665,000 when their son died, their wrongful death award would go down to $1.3 million.

Deceased Westminster Man’s Family Sues University of Maryland Medical Center for Wrongful Death

August 12, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of a 51-year-old patient who died after undergoing lung transplant surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center is suing the hospital and subcontractor Coalition of Perfusion Services for his wrongful death.

Bryan Harris’s family claims that he died because a contract worker at UM Medical Center made a mistake when taking a clamp off after his June 2008 surgery. As a result, they contend that his blood had to be drained into a bucket.

Harris’s family says they were at first told that he died of natural causes and that the hospital told the medical examiner’s office that the patient died because of “multiple system organ failure.”

Catastrophic Medical Mistakes: Laws Now Requires District and Maryland Hospitals to Report Errors that Result in Serious Injuries

July 21, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In the last year, hospitals in Maryland, the District, and Virginia have reported hundreds of medical incidents that have resulted in serious medical harm or death. That’s because new laws that went into effect in 2008 require these hospitals to notify health regulators about serious injuries sustained by patient during treatments. Health experts call these incidents “never events” that never should have happened.

Examples of some of the hospital errors that have been reported include medication mistakes, fall accidents, operations on the wrong body parts, and leaving surgical tools inside patients.

According to Maryland health regulators, insurers paid $522 million in 2008 for preventable complications in 55,000 of 800,000 inpatient cases that took place in hospitals. Now, some insurers are refusing to pay for a hospital’s mistakes.

$3,991,000 Million Maryland Cerebral Palsy Verdict Awarded to Family

June 3, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, a jury awarded the family of Ryan Dineen $3,991,000 for their cerebral palsy lawsuit. Ryan is now 9.

His family’s Maryland cerebral palsy lawsuit accuses medical staff members at Frederick Memorial Hospital of medical malpractice related to Ryan’s birth in May 2000. Named as defendants in the civil complaint were the hospital, three nurses, and three doctors. However, the jury found only two doctors, Dr. Brian Raider and Dr. Edward Chen, negligent for Ryan’s birth injury.

According to the Maryland birthing malpractice lawsuit, Suzette Dineen, an Adamstown resident, was 36 weeks pregnant with Ryan when she was admitted to the Maryland hospital for vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. She claims that after she arrived at the hospital, staff members failed to properly monitor her baby’s fetal heartbeat.

Maryland Wrongful Death Settlement Reached in Case of Pregnant Mother and Unborn Son Who Were Allegedly Refused Ambulance Help Because of Feud

May 7, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A Maryland wrongful death settlement has been reached between the mother and fiancé of a pregnant woman and her unborn son that died and Smithsburg Emergency Services Inc, medics James Ulrich and Karin Nichol, and former ambulance chief Jason Tracey. The terms of the agreement are confidential. Also previously named among the Maryland wrongful death defendants were Washington County, the Washington County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association Inc., and dispatcher Robert Myerly.

20-year-old Christina Lynn Hess and her unborn son died in March 2004. The Maryland wrongful death complaint against the defendants contends that a feud between the Smithsburg Volunteer Fire Co. and the ambulance company caused the deaths of Hess and her son. Hess and fiancé Danny Gibson were volunteers at the fire company. Gibson and Hess’s mother, Tammy Reed, had sought $4 million for the wrongful deaths.

According to their Maryland wrongful death complaint, Ulrich and Nichol responded to an emergency call from Gibson, who said that Hess was having seizures. The medics arrived at the scene and spent at least 14 minutes unsuccessfully attempting to intubate Hess. She was then transported to Washington County Hospital where she and her son were pronounced dead.

Montgomery County, Maryland Judge Refuses to Cap Multimillion-dollar Medical Malpractice Award for Patient’s Skin Cancer Death Caused by Delayed Diagnosis

May 5, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

In Maryland, Montgomery County Judge John W Debelius III refused to cap the medical malpractice noneconomic damages received by the surviving family members of attorney Richard H. Semsker who died after a mole that was not treated became skin cancer and spread to his brain. Last year, his wife and two children were awarded $5.8 million for his wrongful death.

The Maryland medical malpractice lawsuit says that in 1998, Dr. Lokshin in Silver Springs examined Semsker’s back. He noticed that there was a 6 millimeter mole and recommended that Dr. Lawrence Marcus, the patient’s primary care physician, remove the mole.

The complaint claims that each doctor thought that the other physician had tended to the mole. In 2004, Semsker underwent another skin checkup. Dr. Michael Albert noted that there was an atypical mole and two cysts. Albert recommended the removal of the atypical mole but didn’t know that the other mole (documented in 1998) had doubled in size because he didn’t have access to Lokshin’s medical report, which under Maryland law could be destroyed after five years.

Parents of Baby who Suffered from Permanent Brain Injury Awarded $4.4 Million for Birthing Malpractice

February 20, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A jury has ordered a US hospital to pay the parents of Sierra Wilson, a baby who sustained permanent brain injuries at birth, $4.4 million for birthing malpractice. According to the family’s medical malpractice lawsuit, Sierra, who was born in 2003, suffered a lack of oxygen during birth that caused her to sustain a permanent birth injury. She died in February 2008.

The complaint also contends that a nurse trainee assigned to her mother’s care at Piedmont Medical Center neglected to correctly monitor the fetal heart strips and, as a result, did not realize that Sierra was in fetal distress and needed to undergo an emergency procedure as soon as possible.

According to Sierra’s family, she was never able to talk, walk, or eat solid food throughout the duration of her short life and spent a great deal of time undergoing occupational therapy, speech therapy, and physical therapy. Her parents and two siblings say they worked hard together to take care of her.

Family Wins $6.5 Million Birthing Malpractice Settlement for Son’s Brain Injury

January 17, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

The family of a 7-year-old boy who suffers from cerebral palsy because of a brain injury he allegedly sustained during his birth will receive a $6.5 million medical malpractice settlement. Roberto Morales Jr. was born at Provena Mercy Medical Center on April 7, 2001.

According to the family’s medical malpractice lawyers, the boy’s attending obstetrician and labor and delivery nurse were negligent when they allegedly failed to respond fast enough to his decreasing heart rate and reduced oxygen flow after his mother was administered the drug Pitocin. Following his birth, Morales was flown to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, where he stayed for a month. The medical malpractice defendants were Provena Medical Center, Dreyer Medical Group Ltd, Dreyer Clinic Inc., Advocate Health Care Network, and obstetrician Judson Jones.

Birthing Malpractice

Study Shows Scheduling Early Caesarean Births for Convenience Can Increase Complication Risks

January 8, 2009 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

A new study sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development reveals that scheduling C-section deliveries for the sake of convenience can increase the risks of babies being born with serious complications. The study, in Thursday’s The New England Journal of Medicine, is the first-large scale examination of the dangers that can arise.

A closer look at over 24,000 full term babies showed that newborns delivered at 37 weeks via elective repeat Caesarean birth were two times more likely as babies born at the recommended 39 weeks of experiencing bloodstream infections, breathing issues, and other complications. Newborns born at 38 weeks had a 50% greater chance of suffering from such complications than babies born at 39 weeks.

Health authorities have expressed concern about the increase in C-section births in the US, which are reportedly at an all-time high. Over 1/3rd of US deliveries are Caesarean births. Different experts have attributed causes for this increase to different reasons. While a C-section birth may be the safest method of delivery for certain newborns and their mothers, there are pregnant women who elect to undergo the procedure for personal reasons. For example, a mother may be ready for the pregnancy to be over or a certain date for delivery may be more convenient than another birth date.

According to the study’s findings:

• Out of the 24,077 repeat Caesarean births between 1999 and 2002, 13,258 of these deliveries were elective, which means there were no medical reason why the C-section deliveries were performed.

• Over 15% of babies that were delivered at 37 weeks experienced health complications, including low blood sugar, breathing difficulties, infections, or other medical issues requiring intensive care.

• 11% of babies delivered at 38 weeks also experienced health complications.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that elective repeat C-sections take place no sooner than when the baby is 39 weeks old to make sure it is fully developed.

Birthing Malpractice

It is the job of your ob/gyn, surgeon, primary care physician or any other medical professional charged with your care during your pregnancy and delivery to make sure that you get the best medical attention and advice possible. When failure to provide these duties of care leads to birthing injuries or other complications, you may have grounds to fie a Maryland malpractice malpractice lawsuit.

Study: Early Caesarean Sections Raise Risk of Complications, Washington Post, January 7, 2009
Study: Elective C-section babies born before 39th week face risks, CNN, January 27, 2008

Related Web Resources:

The New England Journal of Medicine

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Maryland Receives B- Rating for Medical Emergency Care and is Ranked #4 Nationally

December 29, 2008 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

American College of Emergency Physicians has issued a report ranking Maryland #4 in the US for emergency care. While the state was awarded points for injury prevention and disaster preparedness, as well as an A for quality and providing a safe environment for patients and a B for injury prevention and public health, Maryland received a D – for its medical liability environment and a C- for emergency care access. The state’s average grade for medical emergency services was a B -, the same grade it received in 2006.

Grades were calculated based on data provided by each state. Washington DC, which also received a B-, was ranked second. Overall, the US received a C-. 90% of US states received failing or mediocre grades.

In Maryland, the ACEP found that crowded hospitals, coupled with not enough inpatient beds, was a problem. Also, there are not enough medical specialists in the state who can offer on-call emergency care. The report also found that Maryland did not enact adequate medical liability reform and that liability premiums and average malpractice damage amounts are above average.

The ACEP lauded Maryland for its emergency preparedness and its outreach to special needs groups. Another report by Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation gave Maryland a 5 out of 10 for its emergency preparedness during a disaster. Their report found that Maryland had failed to limit the liability of emergency health workers or maintain funding.

US Emergency Rooms

According to a recent USA Today article, not enough specialists, long waits, and overcrowding are some of the problems affecting emergency rooms in the United States. Recent emergency room facts:

– 56 minutes is the average wait time.
– There were 119 million hospital visits in 2006.

– 1 out of 5 Americans visited an emergency room in 2005.

US states, as well as medical facilities, hospitals, ER’s, doctors, nurses, medical specialists, and other providers of emergency care are supposed to provide the proper care to all patients. When failure to provide that care results in injuries or deaths, the responsible parties can be held liable for medical malpractice, personal injury, or wrongful death.

Md. Emergency Care Ranks Fourth in National Study, Southern Maryland Online, December 9, 2008
U.S. emergency rooms find ways to fix what ails them, USA Today, December 14, 2008

Related Web Resources:

American College of Emergency Physicians

Trust for America’s Health