My client Mike Wood was a victim of unnecessary surgery and also a lack of proper informed consent. A backhoe operator and outdoorsman in southern Maryland, Wood went to an emergency room one night with chest pain. After it was proven not to be a heart attack, the ER doctors had a surgeon see him,….
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True Stories
In the links below, visitors to our website will find true stories of medical malpractice that happened to our law firm’s clients. Each case is presented because of important lessons it carries for healthy patients who want to avoid tragedies for themselves and their families. We also offer a true history of hospital infections for….
Continue ReadingMalpractice A-Z
Medical errors continue to hurt and kill a staggering number of Americans every year. In this section of our firm’s website, we have put together specific information about some of the most common types of preventable medical error and medical malpractice. We also have information on some of the injuries most commonly suffered as a….
Continue ReadingStudy of Premature Babies Failed to Inform Parents of Risks
Several prestigious universities, including Stanford, Duke and Yale, conducted a research study on behalf of the federal government to examine which of two levels of oxygen given to extremely premature babies was better at preventing blindness without increasing the risk of brain damage or death. The purpose and execution of the study were solid; the….
Continue ReadingCourt OKs Nursing Home Contract Even Though Confused Patient Could Not Have Understood It
Someone old enough to be a consenting adult is also, presumably, someone who understands what he or she is being asked to consent to. But not in one Florida appeals court. A recent court decision in Florida concerning a 92-year-old woman’s signature on her nursing home contract changes the basic premise of what it means….
Continue ReadingSurgery Decisions Shouldn’t Be Larded With Conflicts of Interest
The health and medicine watchdog HealthNewsReview.org recently laid bare how regulatory absence can poison what’s supposed to be an objective, scientific analysis of the suitability of a surgical procedure. In excerpting an article that has been accepted for future publication in Arthritis Care & Research, HealthNewsReview shows the wide cracks in how the FDA approves….
Continue ReadingA Good Conversation between Patient and Doctor Is the Foundation for Better Care
In medicine, there is no one-size-fits-all. Every patient deserves care uniquely tailored to that patient’s needs and wants. But how can this happen when patients are terrified and doctors are awkward in their approach to communication? The New York Times has a Sunday dialogue among readers this week on the important topic of how patients….
Continue ReadingOvereager Surgeon Does His Melanoma Patient No Favor
For many people, the word “melanoma” often prompts the same response as the word “snake”- fear and, if announced as a personal warning, panic. Indeed, the worst form of skin cancer can be deadly if ignored or treated improperly. Several years ago we sued a dermatologist whose dereliction in treating a patient with moles led….
Continue ReadingRisk of Lethal Blood Clots Increases in Same-Day Surgery
Outpatient surgery is an increasingly popular medical option, thanks to the cost of inpatient care and the expanding capability of outpatient facilities. More than 6 in 10 surgical procedures are conducted on a same-day-to-home basis. They include operations for cancer, orthopedic and gastrointestinal problems and plastic surgery. But as we recently wrote in a related….
Continue ReadingPatients Send Mixed Signals About Student Doctors
In theory, people support the presence of trainees for medical procedures. But when it comes to personal practice … not so much. So says a study in the Archives of Surgery, which examined patient perceptions and willingness to participate in resident education. More than 8 in 10 patients consented to having an intern participate in….
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