Kentucky Injury Lawyer Blog

A stalwart of the conservative political movement in the United States recently broke ranks with other conservative and tort-reform groups. The conservative CATO Institute has issued a new study that takes the position that caps on medical malpractice damages might harm patients and promote further unsafe medical care. The Institute’s close affiliation with many conservative groups, politicians, and policy positions should give this paper all that much more credibility in insurance defense and medical provider communities who are pushing a tort-reform agenda, including placing caps on damages in medical malpractice cases around the country. For decades, conservative tort-reform groups have pushed the position that “excessive” or “runaway” jury verdicts in medical malpractice cases have all but sounded the death toll for medical providers around the country. Claims that doctors and other medical providers have been put out of business or forced to leave practices in certain states due to high malpractice insurance rates are a common rallying cry seeking sympathy from voters and consumers.

It seems, however, that the CATO Institute has come to the same conclusion that trial lawyers have known for years: caps on damages only harm patients and victims of malpractice, not doctors and hospitals. The American system of trial by jury and the right to seek compensation for harm and damage caused by the negligence of others is the only way to ensure that quality medical care continues to be the norm, not the exception. Placing caps on the amount of damage that victims of malpractice can seek is an outright assault on that fundamental right. Fortunately, it seems that the CATO Institute agrees. Hopefully, so-called tort-reformers will carefully review the well thought out evidence and arguments presented by the Institute and embrace the concept that the preservation of our jury trial system will only result in safer and better care for everyday Americans.

Continue reading "Conservative CATO Institute Issues Policy Statement Condemming Caps on Medical Malpratice Damages" »

Norton Hospital has closed its psychiatry unit after a preliminary investigation into a patient’s death. The death occurred last weekend and officials have indicated that Norton's level of safety and quality of patient care was not acceptable.

Norton officials said the death occured last weekend in a 21-bed unit for adults, prompting officials to temporarily close the unit to new admissions. They also are working to transfer the 10
remaining patients to other facilities.

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is launching an investigation into the death.
Lee Millman, a spokeswoman for the Atlanta office of CMS, said that the agency has started an investigation. She also said her agency has notified the state of Kentucky, which employs investigators contracted by CMS. Gwenda Bond, a spokeswoman for the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said her agency’s Office of Inspector General has been in contact with CMS and will investigate.

A patient in the psychiatric unit of Norton Hospital in downtown Louisville allegedly committed suicide last week according to local news reports. The hospital says there is an ongoing investigation into the safety and quality of patient care in its inpatient psychiatry unit but wouldn't comment further to local news.

The unit was closed as of the time of this writing and no new patients have been admitted.

I have represented several families of individuals who have committed suicide while in the the care of others - either in the hospital or incarcerated There are complicated medical and legal issues that must be explored and handled by an attorney knowledgable and experienced in suicide cases. Whether the individual's death was a foreseeable event and whether the hospital took all precautions to prevent the death will be two of the primary questions needing to be answered. I hope the family of this individual is able to get those answers.

Robert Gant, a former Metro EMS employee was fired by the agency on September 23, 2011 after failing a drug test. According to the Courier-Journal, there has been a rash of drug-related disciplinary activity at Metro EMS related to drug use by employees. In addition to Gant, four other employees were suspended without pay in July of this year as a result of a Louisville Metro Police Department investigation involving allegations of distributing illegal substances.

Gant was cleared by the police and returned to work, only to test positive for marijuana on September 14. EMS says that it is now routinely drug testing all employees. It is not clear if drug tests were used prior to the police investigation or if that prompted a new policy.
Gant was an EMT who would have worked directly with injured patients. However, things seem to be worse than just routine employees using drugs. In August, Major Roger Parvin was involved in a scandal that included the theft of 180 vials of a controlled substance going missing from the agency. Many of the vials were later recovered after Parvin confessed, but not all. Also, in July, another employee was arrested for drunken driving.

Whatever the reason for the drug abuse and other problems, the large number of incidents in such a short period of time is very troubling. What is more worrisome is that these folks, like Gant, are often first responders to major traumas and accident. Having a drunk or drugged EMT or other medical personnel working on injured patients could lead to serious lapses in care, or worse. Moreover, often these employees are operating large ambulances at high speeds in order to get to the injured.

Continue reading "Continued Drug Abuse Problems at Metro Louisville EMS Prompt Concerns" »

A previous post explored this situation, and now some new information has become available. Cody Johns' stepfather stated to a Jefferson County deputy coroner that a Norton employee came out to the parking lot with a wheelchair, but told him there was nothing they could do for him and advised them to go to an emergency room. Norton denies this.

A 911 call tape that has been released demonstrates Mr. Johns' stepfather asking the dispatcher to call Norton and ask that they come out and help them in the parking lot where they stayed until EMS arrived. Mr. Johns' body temperature reportedly was measured at 110 degrees at the hospital.

As we stated her before, from a legal perspective, there are a number of issues that arise. In addition to the workers' compensation benefits and medical malpractice/wrongful death claim issues, Norton's actions here could violate the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (“EMTALA”). EMTALA is a federal law that prohibits the denial of emergency medical treatment. However, it is unclear if the immediate care center at issue here would be subject to the law.

We use our blog as a forum to educate the public using real life events. However, we are very sensitive to the fact that these real life events have resulted in a tragedy that will inflict great pain and sorrow on those involved and those close to the victim(s). As such, we understand that they may not approve, and we will immediately remove a post if a victim or their loved ones makes that request.

18 year old Cody Johns of Sellersburg, Indiana died from a heat stroke he suffered after working outside all day in Louisville, Kentucky at a landscaping job. After complaining of overheating and becoming disoriented, his co-workers placed him in an air conditioned pickup truck. When that did not work, they took him to the Norton Immediate Care Center at Westport Village. His stepfather, with whom he works, went inside to describe Mr. Johns' symptoms and was told that they could not help and that he needed to go to an emergency room. The co-workers then called Louisville Metro EMS from the parking lot and waited for them to arrive. They immediately began working on Mr. Johns and transported him to the hospital, but it was too late. Norton denies that they denied treatment to Mr. Johns.

Bill Smock, an emergency room physician, said that these events disturb him and was critical of Norton. Even if Mr. Johns need a hospital emergency room, the immediate care facility could have at least started offering some treatment, such as trying to cool him down.

From a legal perspective, there are a number of issues that arise. First, because Mr. Johns was working at the time this occurred, a workers' compensation claim is viable. Then, a medical malpractice/wrongful death claim can also be brought against Norton for the denial of medical treatment. Regardless, it is imperative that a full investigation promptly take place to determine exactly what happened and to make sure evidence is preserved. Hiring an attorney experienced in handling these types of cases will know what to do to in order to achieve those goals.

We use our blog as a forum to educate the public using real life events. However, we are very sensitive to the fact that these real life events have resulted in a tragedy that will inflict great pain and sorrow on those involved and those close to the victim(s). As such, we understand that they may not approve, and we will immediately remove a post if a victim or their loved ones makes that request.

A Pennsylvania jury has awarded a woman more than $500,000 in her lawsuit against Hospital and nurses who left a sponge in her abdomen following a cesarean-section delivery. Interestingly, there was not an award against the Doctor who performed the C-section, was not found liable.
The jury found that the nurses failed to properly perform a required sponge count in Ms. The Doctor claimed he relied on the nurses to conduct a proper sponge count before he began closing the wound.

Following her delivery, Webster complained of continued and worsening pain in her abdomen; however, it was not until two months after she gave birth that Ms. Webster presented to a medical facility complaining of severe pain. A CT scan of her abdomen and pelvis revealed a “lap sponge within the lower abdomen and upper pelvis which was most likely left during prior surgery,” according to the suit.

Webster also had a severe infection where the sponge had adhered to a portion of her bowel, which was perforated in two spots. She underwent surgery to remove 16 inches of her small bowel according to court documents.

Ms. Webster has continued until this day experiencing complications such as abdominal pain and has ongoing digestive problems. However, she was able to deliver a second child successfully by C-section.

Of note, the damages may get even better for Ms. Webster as, apparently, in Pennsylvania a successful plaintiff can petition of the Court for “delay damages,” which represents the interest accrued on the verdict since 2005, when the suit was filed.

A $5.25 million settlement has been reached in a malpractice suit brought against Dr. Ramon Mabasa and New Milford Hospital by a woman whose left leg had to be amputated.

Ms. Eileen Kelleher, now 63 years of age, the plaintiff, reached the settlement stemming from complications she underwent after receiving spinal surgery.

Dr. Mabasa, who performed an "anterior transabdominal approach to the lumbosacral spine" on Ms. Kelleher, and the hospital staff that took care of Ms. Kelleher in the intensive care unit after her June 6, 2005 surgery failed to properly care for and treat her, resulting in the loss of her left leg.

"Eileen Kelleher is one of the most heinously injured clients that we have ever had," said her attorney. "It's amazing she survived."

Dr. Mabasa, who was the hospital's chief of surgery at the time, is now retired. Ms. Kelleher presented to Dr. Mabasa in 2005 to have "an elective back surgery." Dr. Mabasa, who had experience in general surgery, performed a vascular surgery technique that, apparently, is outside his scope of expertise.

"Dr. Mabasa is no longer with the hospital," Ms. Kelleher’s representative said. . "But at the time, his job was to do the vascular surgery. He is not a vascular surgeon. He is a general surgeon."

The suit also alleged that the nursing staff did not properly supervise or monitor Ms. Kelleher's care and, when complications arose, her physicians were not notified promptly so adequate medical interventions could be made. Dr. Mabasa was disciplined by the state Department of Public Health around five (5) years ago.

At the time of her planned back surgery Ms. Kelleher was unaware Dr. Mabasa was to be involved in her surgery until just before the procedure was to take place. He said that denied her an opportunity to check on his credentials, which likely would have influenced her decision to go ahead with the “elective” procedure.

Last week the Washington Post reported that officials estimate that wrong-site surgery occurs 40 times a week in US hospitals and clinics. In 2010, over ninety cases were reported to the accrediting organization, compared with forty-nine in 2004. It is estimated that medical errors affect nearly one-third of hospital patients.

Wrong-site surgeries are called "never events" because they should never happen in the medical setting if proper rules and procedures are followed. Unfortunately, these incidents have actually increased over the last seven years.

Medicare requires reporting and does not pay for wrong-site surgery, and many insurers have followed suit.

To read the full Washington Post article click here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/the-pain-of-wrong-site-surgery/2011/06/07/AGK3uLdH_story.html

If you or a loved one has been the victim of a wrong-site surgery or other medical error contact the attorneys at Bahe Cook Cantley & Nefzger (502) 587-2002 to speak with a medical malpractice attorney.

The number of medical malpractice payments paid by doctors fell for the seventh year in a row, hitting the lowest point on record, according to new data analyzed by Public Citizen, a citizens' rights group.

Public Citizen released the report as Congress pushes the "Help Efficient, Accessible, Low-cost, Timely Healthcare Act of 2011" (H.R. 5). The bill, sponsored by large insurance interests, seeks to reduce the ability of people harmed by medical malpractice to go to court.

“The premise on which this bill is based is bogus,” says David Arkush, director of Public Citizen’s Congress Watch division. “Health care costs have nothing to do with what’s going on in the courtroom. Lawmakers are using it an excuse to throw a bone to their campaign contributors in the health care industry, who don’t want patients to have legal recourse if they are harmed by malpractice.”

The analysis also found that:

• Between 2000 and 2010, health care spending rose 90 percent while medical malpractice payments fell 11.9 percent;
• Malpractice payments in 2010 amounted to just 0.13 of 1 percent of national health costs, the lowest percentage on record; and
• Total costs for malpractice litigation fell in 2009 to just 0.40 of 1 percent of health costs, the lowest level since the databank’s inception.

There is a crisis in medical malpractice, not lawsuits,” said Taylor Lincoln, research director for Public Citizen’s Congress Watch division and the author of the analysis. “Trying to stop people from being compensated for catastrophic injuries is not the answer. We should instead concentrate on making hospitals safer and disciplining doctors who repeatedly commit malpractice.”

To see the full report click here: http://www.citizen.org/documents/NPDB-2010.pdf