Hospital negligence is an overall term for any type of medical negligence that has been caused by an employee of a hospital. It can come from an accidental injury caused by an errant doctor, mid-level staff, nurse, technician, physician, nurse aid, pharmacist, or even a lab technician. Hospital negligence can also happen from some of the following cases: not checking for signs of an illness early enough, failure to provide proper treatment or appropriate care, failing to follow standard protocol for an activity, treating patients without proper training, or the use of inappropriate equipment or procedures.
Hospital negligence cases are all about the legal consequences of an individual’s negligence in a specific case. These consequences include medical costs and other issues. No matter what type of hospital negligence a person is involved with at the time, it is important to know what you need to do if you feel you were the victim of a medical negligence case.
It is important to know what to do in order to file a claim in hospital negligence cases. In most cases the only real option available to you is to seek out legal assistance. There are attorneys that specialize in handling these cases. They are there to make sure that your case gets the right attention so that it is resolved in the shortest amount of time possible. Hospital negligence happens more often than you think – there are even many celebrities that have been victims. Here are a few of them and their stories.
- Julie Andrews
Actor Julie Andrews, famous for her role as the beloved Mary Poppins character, settled her personal injury lawsuit filed against a New York City Hospital for a throat surgery she says left her unable to voice her own talent. Andrews, a seasoned actress who received an Academy Award for her work in the 1963 musical Mary Poppins, was diagnosed with a life-threatening condition following the surgery, but claims that a New York City doctor and his staff at the Mount Sinai Hospital refused to refer her to a specialist. The lawsuit was filed against Dr. Robert Pelham, director of Mount Sinai Medical Center and two members of his medical staff, as well as the hospital’s own internal review board.
Julie Andrews, whose legal team claims the doctor and staff failed to treat her appropriately and adequately, will now receive compensatory and punitive damages for the emotional and physical pain and suffering caused by her experience at the New York City hospital. She told reporters that she had tried to remain upbeat, even seeking the services of a therapist to help her through the trauma she had experienced. Her lawyers said that she was not able to return to work, as she still has physical and emotional symptoms from her surgery.
When the lawsuit was first filed against Mount Sinai, Andrews said that the doctor was well aware of her condition and had previously warned her of the risks associated with his procedure. She added that he had also told her that a specialist in New York would not have approved of the surgery and that her life expectancy might have been decreased by a year or more. A New York Times editorial stated that it was “remarkable that a doctor who works in a facility that is so well known for its expertise in reconstructive surgery and its commitment to patient safety would allow a minor operation to go wrong.”
- Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan is suing his local hospital, claiming that he suffered permanent injuries as a result of improper care he received at the facility. The wrestler, whose full name is Terry Bollea, is filing a lawsuit against the hospital, claiming the hospital performed unnecessary surgeries on his body. During his stay at the hospital, his lawsuit says, the staff failed to offer him any explanation for the procedures being done. He also claims that, during the stay, his kidneys were damaged so much that his life expectancy was cut by one year. A wrongful death lawsuit might be appropriate if Hogan’s allegations are true.
According to Hogan’s suit, this policy violated his civil rights and caused his injuries. The suit is currently seeking monetary compensation for the injuries and says the hospital failed to provide necessary medical care.
In recent years, a number of athletes have filed lawsuits over the effects of concussions and the effects of the long-term use of illegal drugs. Still, none of these cases has ever gone all the way before the courts, and the defendants in them often get thrown out of court because the plaintiffs’ claims were too subjective or too technical.
- Ed McMahon
In a lawsuit filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, McMahon claims that he was left with severe neck pain and neck stiffness after undergoing back surgery at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills. The plaintiff had been admitted to the medical facility last year for treatment of a herniated disc and was told by a nurse that the back surgery would not result in relief. A few days later, however, he noticed severe pain and swelling on his neck and asked his doctor what to do about it. The patient was subsequently referred to a neurological specialist who recommended that he undergo further medical treatment.
When he returned to the medical facility for a follow-up visit to discuss his condition, the same nurse who had told him that the back surgery would not relieve his neck pain refused to release him from his reclining chair. According to McMahon’s lawsuit, this nurse claimed that the patient was too ill and could not be moved until the next day. After asking a third nurse for advice, McMahon was given a list of things that he could do to help himself. He asked for pain medication and then tried to sit up but had difficulty. He was offered anti-inflammatory medications but again had difficulty walking. Eventually, a doctor suggested that McMahon return to the medical center for a second opinion and that he be taken to a rehabilitation center where he could work on his strength and mobility.
The plaintiff returned home one day to find out that he had received a notice of a malpractice suit. According to the lawsuit, the nurses, doctors and the owner of the rehab center all told him that his neck pain had been caused by an improper surgical procedure. The plaintiff was diagnosed with cervical spondylosis, a common condition that causes the spine to curve forward. His suit says that he was not aware of this condition before undergoing the back surgery, and is seeking compensation for the pain and other expenses that have resulted from being forced to undergo a second medical procedure and not fully understand the diagnosis he received.
Conclusion:
It is important to seek out medical care after a hospital negligence. After being injured or killed in a hospital, a loved one may need to undergo an investigation to determine the cause of death. This can take several months to complete. It is also important to keep track of family members who visit the hospital after being in the emergency room or suffering a similar medical condition. The more time that is spent tracking down the source of illness or injury, the better chance of finding a reason for death or harm in the first place. It is important to document every incident that may relate to hospital negligence.