California Medical Malpractice Law Blog

A recent article from the New York Times reported on the reasons behind most medical malpractice lawsuits. Surprisingly, a report compiled using the National Practitioner Data Bank found that the most medical negligence payouts were the result of diagnostic mistakes, not surgical errors, delivery mistakes or prescription overdoses as many might think.

According to the report, a break down in medical malpractice payments found that 28.6% of malpractice payments were attributed to diagnostic errors, with treatment errors and surgical mistakes accounting for the second and third highest payouts. Other types of medical errors resulting in medical malpractice payouts include birth injuries and other obstetrical errors, as well as medication, monitoring and anesthesia mistakes. If you believe that you or a loved one has been injured as the result of any type of medical error, it is important to consult with an experienced San Francisco medical malpractice attorney right away. A skilled California medical negligence lawyer can begin an investigation into the circumstances that caused or contributed to an incident and help you obtain the compensation you deserve.

According to the study published by BMJ Quality and Safety, diagnostic mistakes accounted for 33.8 percent of the disabilities and almost 40 percent of the deaths that resulted in malpractice payments.

One of the authors, Dr. David E. Newman-Toker, an associate professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins, noted that “this is a major health problem,” and that physicians, hospitals and insurers all need to contribute to fixing it. … There’s a lot of room for improvement,” he continued. “You can’t get the treatment right if you don’t get the diagnosis right.”

The study concluded: "Among malpractice claims, diagnostic errors appear to be the most common, most costly and most dangerous of medical mistakes. We found roughly equal numbers of lethal and non-lethal errors in our analysis, suggesting that the public health burden of diagnostic errors could be twice that previously estimated. Healthcare stakeholders should consider diagnostic safety a critical health policy issue."

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A recent tragic birth injury story reported on the life and death of a young boy from Florida. The boy died just days before his 3rd birthday as the result of a brain injury suffered at birth. According to reports, the boy was born at home with a midwife. During the delivery process, the mother began bleeding profusely and suffered a “placental abruption.” The midwife failed to call an ambulance or take the mother to the hospital. The child was born with a permanent brain injury and was unable to crawl, walk or talk during the time he survived.

As with any health care professional, midwives are expected to comply with a particular standard of care for the profession. When the failure to follow these standards results in harm, a midwife or other medical professional may be found responsible for medical malpractice. If you have questions about birth injuries or believe your child may half suffered due to the actions – or inaction – of a midwife it’s a good idea to consult with an experienced California birth injury lawyer right away. A knowledgeable California medical malpractice attorney can begin an investigation into all of the factors that may have caused or contributed to a birth trauma and help ensure your family gets the help it deserves.

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New research reveals that many states around the country still experience high rates of premature births. According to the 2012 March of Dimes’ Premature Birth Rate Report Card states such as Florida received “D” ratings as the result of close to 90,000 pre-term births occurring from 2009-2011. This makes up nearly 13% of the births in that state. California received a “B” rating, with 9.8% of all infants born before 37 weeks of gestation.

A premature birth can result in serious infections, jaundice, meningitis and pneumonia. It can cause brachial plexus injury, injuries to the brain, cerebral palsy, respiratory distress, and other cognitive delays.

Although in many instances, a pre-term birth may not be preventable, other times warning signs exist and a skilled physician or other health care professional can take steps to prevent this potentially dangerous situation from occurring. Failure to diagnose and resolve these factors through preventative actions, or misdiagnosing the symptoms, can both lead to an unnecessary premature birth.

Further, it is important to provide immediate specific attention and medical care after your baby is born to ensure you infant doesn’t suffer due to his or her early delivery. The failure to take the appropriate actions in either of these instances can have disastrous results and your physician may be found liable for medical malpractice.

If you believe your child may have been born prematurely unnecessarily or that your doctor or other health care professional failed to take the proper steps after your child was born to reduce the possibility of injury from premature birth, it is important to speak to a California premature delivery attorney right away. In many instances, you may be able to recover compensation that can help pay for a lifetime of medical care and therapy.

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Brachial plexus injuries are lesser known, yet fairly common birth injuries. Also known as Erb's Palsy, brachial plexus injuries are generally the result of the stretching of the nerves around the shoulder during birth, leading to paralysis or weakness in the arm. In these types of injuries, the bundle of nerves that travel from the spine through the shoulder are damaged, either by being stretched or severed. Brachial plexus injuries can be caused by extreme force being applied through the pulling of a newborn's arm or head during birth. In the case of a breech delivery, pressure on raised shoulders can also bring about this birth injury.

There are a number of risk factors linked to brachial plexus injuries including having a large baby, previous births where a brachial plexus injury occurred, slow dilation and gestational diabetes. While not all instances of brachial plexus injuries result from a medical error, many times this type of injury is preventable and is caused by excessive force used by the health care provider who delivered the baby.

Where the injury occurs as the result of medical malpractice, it may be possible to file a personal injury lawsuit. By filing a birth injury or medical malpractice lawsuit, you may be able to recover compensation to pay for medical expenses, including therapy, as well as other damages. For more information or if you believe your infant may have suffered a birth injury as the result of a medical error at birth, it’s a good idea to speak to a knowledgeable California birth injury lawyer right away.

Continue reading "University Researching New Ways To Help Infants Who Suffer Brachial Plexus Injuries " »

Exposure to certain chemicals can increase your child’s risk of being born with a chemical birth defect.

Chemical birth defects include such things as cleft lip or palate, missing or not fully developed organs, leukemia, limbs that are deformed or missing, cancer of the eye and an abnormal brain or spine.

Further, being exposed to certain chemicals while pregnant can bring about such defects in your newborn. Both men and women working in many high-risk occupations that are surrounded by dangerous chemicals may have an increased risk of having a child with such a defect. These professions include such things as dry cleaners, florists, mechanics, beauticians, x-ray technicians, printers and painters, as well as those that work around gasoline or electronic chip manufacturing plants.If you have questions about chemical birth defects or believe that your child may have been born with a birth defect as the result of exposure to a toxic substance, it is important to speak with an experienced California birth injury lawyer.

California’s environmental science agency has just announced that one chemical previously left off the list of dangerous chemicals - bisphenol A (BPA) - will now be added. BPA, a plastics softening chemical will now be characterized as a chemical that is highly risky and likely to cause birth defects. Several reports have linked BPA to reproductive toxicity. BPA has been found in common items such as water bottles and is linked to serious health conditions such as birth defects, cancer, behavioral changes, altered brain development and cardiovascular disease.

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Cerebral palsy is one of the more serious conditions related to difficulties at birth. It is often linked to oxygen deprivation before or during the birth process. Brain cooling – a technique where an infant’s body is cooled in a controlled environment – has been showed to lessen the severity of brain damage. When there are indications that a brain has occurred during the birth process, a special water-cooled cap or blanket is placed on the newborn to reduce the body temperature by a few degrees. It is critical that brain cooling begins within 6 hours of birth. Medical malpractice can not only cause your child to suffer a birth injury, but may also be implicated where doctors or other health professionals fail to use all available treatments where the need arises.

Methods such as cooling therapy have been introduced in many California hospitals and have become a widely accepted method of treating infants who have suffered a brain injury. If you have questions about cooling therapy or believe your child may have been harmed as the result of medical malpractice, it’s a good idea to consult with an experienced California birth injury attorney right away.

Due to the success of cooling therapies at hospitals and the increasing awareness that timely brain cooling can reduce the severity of brain damage, students at John Hopkins University have devised a “low-tech $40 unit" to provide protective cooling to hospitals that lack the resources to purchase the expensive equipment that can cost thousands of dollars.

The device, called the Cooling Cure, was created to lower a newborn's temperature by about 6 degrees Fahrenheit for three days, a treatment that has been shown to protect the child from brain damage, or lessen the severity of damage, if administered shortly after a loss of oxygen has occurred.

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Many California parents choose to stagger the timing and number of vaccines given to their children, often citing concerns about the risk of developing autism. In fact, according to a recent birth injury study, about one-third of parents are concerned about unsubstantiated claims that vaccines can cause autism. However, a recent study performed by the Institute of Medicine has found no causal relationship between vaccines and this developmental disorder.

The study published in the Journal of Pediatrics found no link between the typically recommended vaccine schedule and autism, and that spreading out vaccinations rather than immunizing infants at 2, 4 and 6 months visits doesn’t provide any benefit in preventing this disorder.

However, while research hasn’t found a link between immunizations and autism, other birth injuries and developmental disorders – such as cerebral palsy - have been linked to actions taken by physicians or other medical staff near or at the time of birth. If your child has suffered a birth injury and you have questions, it is important to consult with an experienced California birth injury attorney right away. A skilled San Francisco birth injury lawyer can begin an investigation into the circumstances surrounding a birth injury and help your family through this difficult time.

While by no means are all birth injuries and developmental delays caused by medical malpractice or negligence, many conditions and injuries can be avoided. The failure to follow the standard of care and take the necessary actions to avoid preventable birth injuries may be considered medical malpractice. Where medical malpractice leads to a birth injury, it may be possible to recover the compensation necessary to pay for a lifetime of care.

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Doctors have long known that various risk factors may increase a woman’s chances of having serious labor and delivery complications. A recent study out of Canada has now linked obesity with a greater risk for pregnancy induced hypertension, gestational diabetes and emergency c-sections. Infants are also more prone to fetal growth restrictions and premature birth. Mothers may face additional risks including a heightened risk of preeclampsia, with the potential for kidney or liver failure, brain swelling, seizures and death.

Obesity is also linked to mother’s giving birth to abnormally large babies, which increases the risk of a particularly serious birth injury – shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia is a type of birth trauma that occurs when a baby’s shoulder becomes stuck in the birth canal. The longer it takes for medical personnel to free the baby from this position, the higher the risk of a long lasting birth injury such as nerve damage, permanent arm paralysis, decreased oxygen leading to cerebral palsy and in the worst case scenario, death.

Although in some situations a birth injury may be unavoidable, other times the health care professionals involved in the labor and delivery process may be able to take steps to prevent a birth injury from occurring. Where the failure to take these steps leads to harm, it may be possible to bring a medical malpractice lawsuit. If you believe your child has suffered a birth injury as the result of medical malpractice, it’s a good idea to consult with a dedicated California birth injury law firm right away.

Continue reading "Study Finds Connection Between Obesity And Shoulder Dystocia" »

The month of March is dedicated to brain injury awareness. While most people are aware of the effects of brain injuries, often the causes, treatment options and severity of impact over a lifetime are not fully appreciated.

The type of brain injury an individual receives significantly impacts all of these factors. Two broad categories of brain injuries exist: 1) Those that occur before or during birth and 2) those that occur later on (such as the result of a car accident, sports injury (concussion) or other blunt types of force.

Brain injuries that occur at the time of birth often significantly affect the cognitive, developmental and emotional development of an individual for his or her entire life. Examples of these types of brain injuries include oxygen deprivation (hypoxic ischemic events (HIE’s)). When a baby’s brain is deprived of oxygen before or during the birthing process, serious delays may result. Often, children who experience HIE’s develop cerebral palsy, a lifelong condition requiring a lifetime of care. Where the brain injury is the result of medical malpractice, it may be possible to file a California birth injury lawsuit and recover damages to help pay for often insurmountable medical bills. If you believe your child may have suffered a brain injury at birth, it is important to consult with an experienced California birth injury attorney right away.

Other types of brain injuries include those that occur as the result of an injury accident. It may be difficult to discern just how serious a blow to the head is initially. TBI are notoriously hard to detect – individuals injured may not realize they have suffered a brain injury until days or even weeks after a hit occurs. Symptoms include dizziness, blurred vision, headaches and mood changes. Left untreated, the effect and For example, birth trauma that results in a brain injury can have a lasting and severe impact on the individual.

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The number of preventable medical mistakes occurring at hospitals in California and throughout the country remains high. The types of medical mistakes are widespread and may include anything from prescription errors to surgical errors to delivery mistakes. When a medical mistake causes harm, such as a birth injury, its important to consult with a knowledgeable California birth injury lawyer right away. A skilled birth injury attorney can begin an investigation into what factors were involved in a medical error and may be able to recover compensation for your injuries.

In order to help prevent medical errors, the University of California San Francisco’s Benioff Children’s Hospital has introduced several measures aimed at improving the quality of care received at that institution. These safety measures include:

• Ensuring proper hand hygiene. Every health care worker must clean their hands every time they enter or leave a patient’s exam room. In order to make sure the workers are following directions, cameras are used to help collect evidence showing compliance.

• Use of An Electronic Health Record System. Using electronic health record systems has also been shown to reduce the number of medical mistakes. UCSF has implemented such a system that allows physicians and other health care personnel to enter medical orders on-line and provides templates for use in treating complex and common problems. By standardizing the process, the hospital hopes to eliminate inadvertent errors.

• Using an interdisciplinary approach to evaluate medical errors. The hospital has also established a team approach that includes pharmacists, doctors and other health care staff to meet to evaluate just what factors allowed a preventable medical mistake to occur and to figure out ways to prevent them from happening in the future.

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A recent study has determined that a new drug has the potential for improving the lives of children born with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy is a permanent disorder that affects about one in 300 children in the United States. It is characterized by difficulty with movement, often causing jerking and stiff movements. Cerebral palsy may also cause cognitive difficulties, in some cases requiring people to be completely dependent on others for care.

While not all of the causes of cerebral palsy are known, it is often associated with birth trauma, and brain damage caused before or during birth. In some instances oxygen deprivation and decreased blood flow may lead to a brain injury linked to cerebral palsy. Brain cells require constant oxygen and begin to die minutes after the oxygen supply suddenly disappears or is severely lessened. When the entire body or a portion of it is deprived of sufficient oxygen, it is often referred to as “hypoxia.” Hypoxia can lead to many types of birth injuries including cerebral palsy. Although in some instances, a birth injury leading to cerebral palsy may not be preventable, other times the failure of a physician, nurse or other medical personnel to take certain actions may lead to this birth injury. For example, in some instances medical personnel may be able to take quick actions – such as performing an immediate c-section - to avoid brain damage caused by a hypoxic event.

If you believe your child may have suffered a brain injury as the result of the actions inaction of medical personnel during the birth of your child, it is important to consult with a California birth injury lawyer right away.

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News reports that a couple has just filed a birth injury lawsuit as the result of alleged medical malpractice. According to the personal injury case, the mother and child suffered injuries during a difficult labor and delivery. The suit alleges that two individual doctors made a series of medical mistakes during a C-section that led to the injuries.

If you believe that your child may have suffered a birth injury as the result of medical malpractice, it is critical that you contact a California birth injury attorney right away. An experienced personal injury attorney can begin an investigation into the circumstances surrounding an incident. Where it is determined that medical negligence led to harm, it may be possible to recover compensation for your injures.

In this instance, it is alleged that the baby’s head was cut while the physicians were performing the C-Section. These type of injuries may occur when physicians fail to follow the appropriate protocols, such as when they are in a hurry or under emergency conditions. Although hospitals try to prevent these mistakes from occurring, doctors still make errors, leading to injuries. In fact, fetal lacerations are not uncommon during C-sections.

Here, the family asserts that the baby’s face suffered a 1.5 cm cut to his temple, requiring stitches.

Studies have shown that cuts such as these may have long term-consequences, including bone fractures and facial nerve palsy. Scars that begin small, may grow significantly.

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