True Stories

The Patrick Malone firm represented the family of Keren Kipoliongo, a baby girl who died in her mother’s womb just minutes before the successful Cesarean section delivery of her twin sister Gabrielle.

Lyn Gross’s story has important lessons about the importance of teamwork in a hospital where high-risk brain surgery is conducted, and about how patients need to be aware of the rivalry among different types of specialties for their surgical business.

Sharon Burke’s story shows how a misunderstanding between two specialists – in her case, a neurologist and a radiologist – can lead to a tragic preventable injury. Hers was made worse by individual acts of negligent care by the two doctors, along with their failure to communicate with each other.

To understand the modern scandal of hospital infections, it helps to know that the history of efforts to get doctors to wash their hands dates back to a cranky obstetrician in Vienna, Austria in 1846.

Billy Boone became an accidental pioneer in establishing the legal right of patients to know their surgeon’s level of experience – without having to ask first. It’s all about the information that a surgeon must provide to the patient so that the patient’s consent becomes truly intelligent and “informed.”

Mike Wood lost the use of his hand because his surgeon scared him into rushing into an operation he really didn’t need. The surgeon also lacked experience in the operation, and there was a better, safer way available, even if it was justified. All this shows the importance of careful questioning of the surgeon before going into any non-emergency surgery. It also shows the importance of realizing that doctors can have a conflict between their desire to do more surgery and make money, and the goal of doing what’s best for the patient.