A recent article in the AARP Bulletin, summarized what many of us have known for a long time. Hospitals are not safe, especially when you are sick! While we know about the world class care that certain hospitals advertise you will receive, what we don't hear about enough is how the healthcare system is broken. As [...]
A recent study showed that pediatricians and family practice doctors are frequently failing to advise their pediatric patients to obtain important vaccinations against a number of preventable diseases. Sadly, the study shows that the young patients and their parents would readily agree to the vaccine, if only they are told. You can read more here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22265117?dopt=Abstract. An important [...]
Several years ago, the Office of Management and Budget published data showing that the costs associated with medical negligence litigation are shrinking, not growing, and constitute a negligible portion of the total healthcare budget. Nonetheless, insurers, whose out-of-control profit margins are the main contributor to runaway healthcare costs, continue to beat this drum. It may [...]
The Cleveland Medical Malpractice Attorneys at Mishkind Kulwicki Law are frequently asked, "do I have a case"? Whenever a bad outcome occurs or someone has acted in a negligent manner, we are asked whether the victim of the bad outcome or the negligent care has a case. In order to determine if you have a case, it [...]
Patient safety involves asking questions. It is important that you have a clear understanding of your medical condition and what you need to do to treat the condition. The National Patient Safety Foundation has prepared a video that encourages you to ask questions early and often. At Mishkind Kulwicki Law, we know that medical mistakes [...]
In an earlier Mishkind Kulwicki Law blog post, I spoke about new guidelines for the prevention of pulmonary embolism published by the American College of Physicians (ACP). Here are new, more detailed guidelines published by the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP). The ACCP includes those physicians, pulmonologists and critical care specialists, who specializes in caring [...]
A recent study showed that the number of breast cancers detected by mammography doubled between 1990 and 2008 in women ages 40-49. Moreover, the study, Malmberg JA, et al "Impact of mammography detection on the course of breast cancer in women aged 40 to 49 years" Radiology 2012; 262: 797-806., showed that mammography-detected breast cancer in this [...]
Recent medical studies show that spinal cord monitoring during spinal surgery and aorta repair surgery can prevent some avoidable spinal cord injuries from those surgeries, such as paraplegia and quadriplegia. Monitoring is done using equipment, similar to an EEG, that monitors changes in sensory and electrical impulses that herald spinal cord compromise. Once alerted to impending problems, physicians can take [...]
The American Cancer Society has long recognized that colonoscopy is an important tool for screening patients for colorectal cancer and also a treatment tool when precancerous polyps are detected. A recent study confirms the effectiveness of colonoscopy for treatment: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1100370. This study shows that polypectomy (removal of precancerous polyps using a colonoscope) prevents polyps from progressing [...]
The use of dirty surgical tools -- scalpels, trocars and other instruments contaminated with bodily fluids or tissues -- is an obvious source of hospital infection. A new study suggests that this problem is more widespread than previously thought. Read more here: http://todayhealth.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/22/10471434-today-investigates-dirty-surgical-instruments-a-problem-in-the-or. Worse yet, surgeons and hospitals are essentially unregulated when it comes to these foul [...]
