St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

The parents of a child born at Memorial Hospital in Belleville, Illinois have filed a birth injury lawsuit claiming that the child is suffering from cerebral palsy due to a doctor's negligent treatment.

According to an article published in the St. Clair Record, the medical malpractice lawsuit claims the infant did not receive enough oxygen to her brain during delivery, which led to brain injury and cerebral palsy.

The disorder causes children to become developmentally disabled and can lead to pain and disfigurement. Medical care for children with cerebral palsy can become quite costly for parents.

A study by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project concluded that 157,700 injuries to mothers and newborns could have been prevented in 2006 alone. A disturbing trend emerged in the study, demonstrating that children born in rural areas were more likely to suffer birth injuries than children born in metropolitan areas.

Continue reading "Parents Allege Child Born at Belleville, Illinois Hospital Suffered from Brain Injury" »

A series of St. Louis Post-Dispatch stories are turning the tables on alarmists who claim there are too many "frivolous lawsuits" against health care facilities and physicians.

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association President Todd A. Smith contacted the Post-Dispatch to refute a Northwestern University study which claimed that medical malpractice suits were causing newly trained doctors to leave the state of Illinois. The claim failed to take into account the fact that a high portion of doctors trained in Illinois are from out-of-state and plan to return home to begin their careers.

In a case dating back to 2003, a doctor operated on a five-year-old girl's right eye instead of her left. According to the story in the Post, the doctor then attempted to cover-up his mistake by lying to the girl's parents and tampering with medical charts. Despite being caught and paying a fine, the doctor has not been suspended from a day of work.

As reporter Jeremy Kohler writes, "Leniency and secrecy are the rule when it comes to policing Missouri's 22,000 doctors, a Post-Dispatch investigation has found."

As demonstrated in an article posted on Dec. 12 of last year, the list of what the Missouri medical board will publicly disseminate about a doctor on trial is much shorter than what the board refuses to reveal. Criminal records, investigations, history of training and education, hospital privilege restrictions and discipline from other states are off-limits, as is any information about physicians who are suspended, revoked or retired.

Considering these facts, one can imagine how difficult it is to get the real story on a doctor who may have caused harm to an innocent patient.

Continue reading "Medical Malpractice: Alarmists on Trial" »

A woman from Fairview Heights, Illinois has filed a lawsuit for medical malpractice against her St. Clair County doctor.

The plaintiff claims her doctor failed to notice that she had a stroke and neglected to give her the proper diagnosis. As a result, her condition became worse than it would have been if she were properly treated. Her brain, back and lower half of her body sustained permanent injuries, which resulted in expensive medical bills and lost time at work.

According to an article published in the Madison / St. Clair Record, the woman demands more than $50,000 from the internist's healthcare foundation and the hospitals at which he works.

The U.S. Department of Justice reports that between the years of 2000 and 2004, only about 12 percent of cases ended with a payout for plaintiffs in Illinois. Medical malpractice cases are difficult and expensive, requiring true personal injury experts.

Continue reading "Fairview Heights, Illinois Woman Sues Doctor over Malpractice" »

On Thursday, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned a five-year old ruling that limited the amount patients could receive from medical malpractice cases. Previously, the law allowed jury awards of up to $500,000 against doctors and $1 million against hospitals for non-economic damages (such as pain, suffering, loss of companionship, etc). In its 4-to-2 decision, the court stated the law was a violation of the states separation of powers because legislators were imposing decision that should be left up to judges and juries.

While lawyers, patients' rights advocates and union groups celebrated the decision, medical associations and doctors say it will mark a return to increased malpractice rates and an exodus of medical professionals from the state of Illinois. Others argue that the blame for high insurance rates lies with the insurance companies themselves.

Continue reading "Illinois Supreme Court Throws Out Caps on Medical Malpractice Awards" »

Madison County, Illinois, has been the subject of ridicule for a medical malpractice crisis. There is no crisis and never has been.

Over the past 10 years, there has been an average number of 5 medical malpractice cases each year that go to trial in Madison County, Illinois, and the significant majority of them result in verdicts for the physicians and hospitals. Unfortunately, this is far less than the perception of the public.

Why are there a limited number of medical malpractice cases filed? Under Illinois law, a case must be reviewed by a physician in the same field as the Defendant doctor or hospital, and this costs money - usually several thousand dollars. Most of the time, the review shows no malpractice - resulting in a loss to the client or attorney. In order to file suit, a physician's affidavit explaining the malpractice must be attached to the complaint.

Once the claim is filed, the doctor or hospital will begin defending the case. The insurance companies for the doctors and hospitals normally have the case reviewed by a board of physicians, compred of 25 or more physicians. All of them will render an opinion as to whether or not there is malpractice and advise the insurance company of their opinions. Even if there is a consensus of malpractice, the physicians generally have the final say on whether or not to admit malpractice and pay the claim. They rarely do - sometimes out of ego.

For clients and Plaintiffs attorneys, the risk is great. The cost of hiring expert physicians is great, ranging between $20,000 and $50,000 to prosecute one case. A loss at trial means these costs will not be recovered.

Due to the risk and expense of these claims, small claims are cost prohibitive. Generally, there needs to be significant injury, such as a wrongful death, and clear liability. If liability is not clear, insurance companies will not pay. Moreover, juries will not find for a Plaintiff in a close case - they always side with the doctor or hospital.

For these reasons, no frivolous claims are made. Most personal injury attorneys will not handle this type of claim. Further, there are only a limited number of attorneys who can afford to prosecute this type of claim, and spend the significant time required to research the medicine and work with experts.

The fact of the matter is that medical errors occur in Madison County, Illinois, as well as across the country. The national trend of increasing deaths due to medical accidents is a fact. Hearst newspapers have recently reported that the rate of these deaths has increased since 1999. This figure is appalling.

The effect of malpractice on families can be great. Victims can be affected for the rest of their lives. Patients are entitled to good patient care, and medical malpractice claims keep physicians and hospitals in check.

Continue reading "There Is No Medical Malpractice Crisis In Madison County, Illinois " »

A Quincy, Illinois family brought suit for the death of their mother due to negligence of doctors. The mother had gone in for a colonoscopy at the Quincy Surgical Center----she had low blood pressure due to the prep----probably due to loss of fluid.

The colonoscopy went as expected, but the patient continued to have abnormally low blood pressure. She was discharged home without IV fluids. At home, she complained of chest pain and falling.

Eventually she was rushed to the Blessing Hospital with the low blood pressure and chest complaints. An EKG was abnormal as well as a blood test for heart damage. The ER doctor failed to recognize and treat this heart attack and then failed to call in a cardiologist timely.

Four and a half hours later, the patient died due to the heart attack without being treated by a cardiologist.

Suit was brought against the doctor for performing the colonoscopy for discharging the patient without stabilizing her vital signs; and against the ER doctor for not recognizing and treating the heart attack. It was thought that the low blood pressure prevented the heart from getting adequate blood causing the heart attack.

Suit is pending in Adams County, Illnois with WWF&G prosecuting the case.

Continue reading "Quincy, Illinois Doctors Sued For Medical Malpractice In Heart Attack Death" »

A Jacksonville, Illinois nursing home was sued by our Illinois injury law firm for causing the death of a patient. The suit was brought on behalf a Quincy, Illinois family in Jacksonville (Morgan County), Illinois.

Our suit claimed that the nursing home violated the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act and the Illinois Wrongful Death Act in causing a patient's death. The patient had been in an auto accident near Quincy (Adams County), Illinois, and was initially treated at two area hospitals. She was then transperred to a nursing home.

The patient was breathing through a tracheostomy in her neck. Because of the severe injuries, she would pull at her breathing tube. On several occasions she was able to pull out this tube causing her to almost die. Instead of instituting one on one surveillance or wrist restraints, the nursing home used drugs and mitts. Both were found to be ineffective in stopping the resident from pulling off the breathing tube on several occasions.

Finally, the patient was found without her trache breathing tube inserted and died. Our suit claimed that wrist restraints or one on one supervision should have been used. Expert testimony from a nurse and family physician supported the claim.

In Illinois, all nursing homes must follow the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act which states that residents have basic rights and they cannot be the subject of neglect. Nurses must uphold the standard of care of acting as a reasonable careful nurse when attending to a resident at a nursing home. Too many times residents are just given an anti-anxiety drug and left uncared for. Sadly, this was the case here.

Damages for this conduct can include medical cost for treatment, funeral expenses, money damages for the pain and suffering of the resident up to her death, and losses to the heirs for loss of support, love and affection.

Continue reading "Jacksonville Illinois Nursing Home Sued" »