I recently published an article entitled "Think Before You Sue" It was published in a local monthly magazine called the Beachwood Buzz, a monthly magazine circulated to all homes and businesses in the eastside suburb where my office is located. In that article I addressed some of the topics and concerns that many people have [...]
Add to the obvious tragedy of medical negligence -- death, injury, disability, lost independence, lost dignity, financial ruin, etc., etc. -- another torment: guilt. Virtually every client that I have had goes through an endless round of "if only I had ...." In truth, this guilt is misplaced. No matter who you are, how smart [...]
The FDA expanded a recall for the SIGMA Spectrum Infusion Pump Model 35700, since additional pumps have proven defective. These pumps are used for infusion of fluids, drugs and other solutions. The defect causes the pump to "fail suddenly causing inaccurate flow conditions during use, ranging from back flow to over-infusion, including free flow." Further, "[t]he pump does not issue an alarm when [...]
For consumers who have suffered injury or wrongful death of a loved one due to medical malpractice, often an apology isn't enough. As medical expenses and other bills mount, and disability or death prevents a return to work, an apology cannot make up for the devastating economic consequences of a healthcare catastrophe. Even worse, apologies by healthcare providers [...]
For consumers with multiple sclerosis (MS), the so-called "liberation therapy" seemed like a magic bullet. Not so fast, says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA recently issued an alert warning about injuries and deaths associated with the use of the liberation procedure to treat MS. Liberation therapy was developed to treat chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI). [...]
As a patient, can you secretly use your smart phone or other recording device to record a conversation on the phone or in person that you have with a doctor? Is it ethical and/or legal to record a conversation of this nature without advising the doctor in advance? If you requested permission to record the [...]
For healthcare consumers, initiating disciplinary action against healthcare providers is relatively simple. For example, filing a complaint against a physician with the Ohio State Medical Board (OSMB) can be done online. Ohio healthcare consumers file complaints with the OSMB for various reasons, including physician incompetence, unauthorized practice of medicine, drug or alcohol abuse, patient neglect or abuse, and other violations of the [...]
Since the Institute of Medicine reported in 1999 that over 100,000 Americans die from medical mistakes every year, no major initiative has been undertaken to reduce the mounting healthcare costs and huge emotional toll caused by these epidemic rates of medical negligence. Rather than identifying and addressing root causes of this national embarrassment, doctors and their organizations have [...]
As a medical negligence lawyer and healthcare advocate, I am frequently critical of healthcare providers for medical errors that have caused grievous harm or wrongful death to my clients. Recently, my father was hospitalized at a large Ohio hospital and, sadly, passed away during the hospitalization. The experience afforded me a rare opportunity to watch physicians, nurses [...]
A recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association reveals startlingly widespread physician misuse of the internet, including writing prescriptions for patients that have never been seen. Most of the State Medical Boards surveyed revealed that they had received complaints about physicians prescribing medicines over the internet and/or misrepresenting credentials. Other violations included revealing confidential patient [...]