Last year, an Alabama jury awarded $10 million to the family of a young boy who suffered devastating injuries after his bacterial meningitis went undetected for too long. Meningitis is an infection of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. When caused by bacteria, the condition is referred…
A Philadelphia jury recently awarded $4.2 million to a woman whose leg was caused to be amputated because of an infection that she developed after undergoing a double-knee replacement. The patient, who was a diabetic, presented in 2009 with bilateral knee pain and was diagnosed with degenerative arthritis in both…
“No human being should ever die from a urinary tract infection in today’s world of modern medicine.” That was the theme of a Maryland medical malpractice case in which the jury last week awarded $2.6 million dollars to the husband and two young children of a woman who indeed died…
A recent article in Maryland’s legal newspaper, The Daily Record, titled “Md. hospitals take aim at costly, deadly sepsis,” correctly points out that hospitals must have the proper procedures in place to both detect and treat sepsis quickly. The article can be found here. Sepsis is a complication of an…
A six year old boy went to Baltimore-Washington Medical Center complaining of a fever, swollen tonsils, and unexplained hip pain. The hospital, located in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, allegedly failed to perform a “rapid strep test” – standard safety protocol at hospitals in such situations. It has been alleged that…
A woman in Pennsylvania was recently awarded one of the highest sums ever recorded in a medical malpractice suit after an infection went unnoticed and nearly killed her. The lawsuit was based upon medical negligence and medical errors committed by a home nurse that was treating the woman, who was…
When Myles Massey was born on September 1, 2007, along with his brother, Henry, a medical mystery began to unfold. The twin boys were born prematurely in a Washington state hospital, but it was only Myles who exhibited signs that something was wrong. It took years, but Myles’ family has…
In 2003 a twenty-seven year old man, Mr. Bennett, arrived at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. He entered the emergency department complaining of generalized weakness, vomiting and a bump on the head. Later that day, he was moved from the emergency department and admitted to the hospital. Despite…
A South Carolina jury has awarded a $3 million verdict in a medical malpractice case against a South Carolina hospital and emergency room doctor. The case was filed by the husband of a woman who died after being improperly discharged from the hospital. The woman was seen in the emergency…
A Baltimore County jury has awarded $1.44 million to the family of a man who died a day after spending six hours in a St. Joseph Medical Center emergency home. The verdict was against an emergency room doctor who works at St. Joseph. The family in the case claimed that…
A Florida jury has jus awarded the parents of a 15 year old girl $4.3 million in a medical malpractice case that was filed in 1996. The case arose when the girl was born, at which time doctors misdiagnosed a virus that the girl had. As a result, the girl’s…
A Los Angeles jury has awarded $7.3 million in a medical negligence lawsuit against a hospital due to the alleged failure to timely diagnose and treat a baby with meningitis in a neonatal intensive care unit. The baby had suffered brain damage as a result of the malpractice. As an…
A Texas man who lost both of his arms and legs to a hospital acquired infection infection, called methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus also known as MRSA, has been awarded $17.5 million by a Texas jury. After medical malpractice caps are applied, the plaintiff could collect up to $7.5 million from the…
Every year in the United States, approximately 5% of patients admitted to hospitals develop hospital acquired infections (Staph, MRSA, etc.). A hospital acquired infection is one that is caused by just being in the hospital. Such infections double the rate of mortality for admitted patients, and it a leading cause…
A federal judge in a federal tort claims act case involving medical malpractice has ordered the U.S. government to pay $8.6 million in damages due to an air force base doctor’s misdiagnosis of flesh-eating bacteria. In 2002, the woman went to the base emergency room for pain and swelling in…