Medical Malpractice

A new law taking effect next year is targeted at curbing opioid dependence and prescription fraud in the state of Tennessee. This law, stemming from Senate Bill 810, prevents doctors from issuing printed or handwritten prescriptions for controlled substances such as opioids, stimulants, and other potentially habit-forming medications. Instead, licensed physicians must electronically submit prescriptions.…

Communication is essential in a medical environment. Unfortunately, when communication breaks down between physicians, surgeons, and nursing staff, errors can occur, and it is the patient who will suffer from those errors. A 2016 study of cases at Harvard-affiliated hospitals showed that in roughly 30% of all medical malpractice situations, there was some kind of…

 It’s all about what’s called the standard of care. All right: Did the doctor conform with the standard of care? Which is just basically, a rule, what a reasonable doctor would do under the circumstances. Now you and I know things like the standard of care for driving a car. We know that you…

A recent Office of the Inspector General report revealed the poor lack of oversight by Medicare over hospices that participate in the Medicare program. The OIG report recommends much stronger oversight “to protect Medicare hospice beneficiaries from harm.” In one gruesome example, the Washington Post reported that a Missouri state inspector cited Vitas Healthcare, the…

These days, virtually every medical malpractice has electronic health records (EHRs). Electronic health records make it easy to create, find, update, and store patient information. However, according to Medical Economics, EHRs can also be a factor in medical malpractice claims. A 2017 study by the Doctors Company revealed that EHR medical malpractice claims are on…

 That’s a difficult question because we’re lay people. We don’t have medical backgrounds; we don’t know. I would suggest to you that the first focus should be, “How badly am I injured?” Because if you’re not badly injured, then it really doesn’t matter whether you have a malpractice case or not. Let me tell…

You expect the best from doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel when you or a loved one needs help. While the majority of doctors and nurses do their best to provide quality care to their patients, mistakes and sometimes serious errors still occur. In the worst cases, these errors lead to life-changing consequences and even…

 This is absolutely the core of how I feel about the law and why I’m proud of what I do. I remember as a young lawyer, in trying to investigate medical malpractice cases, it didn’t take me long to see that doctors would cover up for each other. Carrying that forward, I found that…

The purpose of an epidural steroid injection (ESI) is to control and minimize severe pain. The injection is performed with the placement of the catheter or needle in a specific location in or around the spinal canal, through which medications, such as steroids are given to the patient. The steroids act to lower nerve inflammation…

People who suffer catastrophic injuries or serious injuries due to medical malpractice often have substantial costs associated with their care. Just a brief stay in a hospital can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars. Full compensation for any type of medical error includes payments for the following: Doctors’ bills and the costs of staying…