Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis is a surprisingly common theme in medical malpractice litigation. We see this as a central issue in many of our cases. Misdiagnosis, wrong diagnosis or delayed diagnosis accounts for a substantial number of claims and frequently can make a significant difference, between life and death. Just last year I handled a [...]
Ohio Surgical errors occur on a regular basis. Why did the surgery fail? Why did the patient die? Why has recovery following the surgery taken so very long? Why was a foreign object left behind? WHY ISN'T ANYONE EXPLAINING TO ME WHAT WENT WRONG? Behind the wall of silence in healthcare are the unanswered questions [...]
I recently read a great article about surgical errors, 10 Red Flags in General Surgical Malpractice Cases, by another medical malpractice lawyer, Todd Hendrickson. The article lists 10 post-operative developments that can be overlooked by busy surgeons, but should raise concerns. When a surgeon ignores a red flag, there may be grounds for a medical negligence claim [...]
Delayed diagnosis of hospital infections can lead to a progression of disease and an adverse outcome. Left untreated, infections can progress from a local problem to sepsis, a systemic response to the infection. With further progression, sepsis can turn to shock, organ failure and, ultimately, death. Likewise, a delay in treatment can make it necessary to [...]
The New York Times reported yesterday about a 12 year-old who died from infection after abnormal test results were ignored in a New York City hospital. The boy had a known and treatable infection that progressed over a few days to sepsis and shock. Had the boy's test results been heeded, antibiotics would have undoubtedly saved his life. [...]
Medical errors often arise when physicians rule out a condition because a common sign or symptom is not present. For instance, physicians can be quick to dismiss infection when there is no fever or abnormal white blood count (WBC). But those signs of infection are not always present. In fact, these signs or symptoms are frequently absent in certain patient [...]
Recent research has shown that women in certain categories face a higher risk of developing potentially dangerous infections immediately after childbirth. Milder forms of such infections are known as sepsis, while more serious ones are labeled as severe sepsis. Both have become significantly more frequent over the past twenty years. Maternal death is very rare, [...]
Clostridium difficile, or C. Diff., is an intestinal infection that is considered to be nosocomial or hospital-acquired. At Mishkind Kulwicki Law, we are receiving more inquiries regarding cases arising out of healthcare providers' delay in diagnosing and treating this disease, resulting in fatality or loss of bowel. The disease is spread by orofecal transmission facilitated by ineffective hospital or [...]
Hospital-acquired infections happen all too often. There are multiple sources for acquiring infections before, during and after surgery. Poor infection prevention by the healthcare team can lead to the spread of infection from patient to patient. The prevention of infection, sepsis, organ failure and death requires that all member of the hospital staff understand how [...]