Doctors Forcing Patients to Sign Gag Orders
Can you believe this?!
There are doctors who are forcing patients to sign a contract promising not to criticize the doctor, “his expertise and/or treatment.”
No signature-No medical care
Category: Birth Injuries
Simple Checklist Helps Prevent Deaths and Complications after Surgery
The New England Journal of Medicine has published a study showing that using a simple checklist helped decrease the number of surgery related deaths by more than 40%. The research showed that major complications after surgery fell by almost 1/3.
Using a Checklist
The checklist required the operating team to review a list of questions which included:
1. Were proper antibiotics given;
2. Was the correct patient on the operating table;
3. Was the correct surgical site identified;
4. Was sufficient anesthesia and blood supply available;
5. Did the patient have any allergies;
6. Counting needles/sponges to make sure nothing was left inside the patient.
Staggering Results
You Can File a Complaint About Your Doctor!
I get several calls a week from patients, of family members of patients, who are concerned about the care that they, or their family member, have received from their doctor or hospital.
In most cases, a careful investigation of the facts reveals that there are no grounds for a medical malpractice claim (in other words, the doctor or hospital wasn’t negligent) or that there may have been negligence in the patient’s care, but the cost of filing a lawsuit would be more than the potential recovery.
Explaining these facts to my clients is one of the more frustrating aspects of being a medical malpractice lawyer. I hate telling patients that I believe there was negligence in the care they received but that I don’t think they should pursue a compensation claim.
Altered Medical Files: “I think my records have been tampered with!”
Altering medical records does not happen as often as it appears to happen on television or in the movies. However, it happens enough that experienced medical malpractice lawyers develop a sense of when further investigation into the legitimacy of a medical record or chart is warranted.
One of my favourite movies of all times is The Verdict with Paul Newman. I love the scene where he finally realizes that he can prove that the defendant doctor altered the medical files of the woman who was left in a coma because of the doctor’s negligence.
Lessons Learned From Past Cases:
No “Wrongful Life” in Canada: Supreme Court
In Canada there is no such thing as a claim for “wrongful life”. In a ruling released last week, the Supreme Court of Canada denied leave to appeal a Court of Appeal decision that confirmed that Canadian law does not recognize the tort of “wrongful life” as a legitimate cause of action.
In Hergott, et al. v. Bovingdon the defendant doctor prescribed a fertility drug for the plaintiff mother. The doctor did not explain the risks of taking the drug to the mother.
The drug caused the mom to become pregnant with twins. Unfortunately, the twin pregnancy caused a premature birth, and the premature birth caused the twins to be born with severe disabilities.
Posted in: Birth Injuries, Informed Consent, Medical Malpractice, Uncategorized
Medical Malpractice Claim Over Birth Injuries Dismissed
An obstetrician’s failure to obtain informed consent was not the legal cause of an infant’s brain damage, according to a decision from Ontario.
The Ontario Court of Appeal just released a ruling upholding a trial decision dismissing a claim of obstetric malpractice.
In Cruz v. Robins the trial judge held that the use of forceps during the infant plaintiff’s delivery caused the baby’s brachial plexis injury and brain damage. The judge found that the parents, Mr. and Mrs. Cruz should have been consulted and should have been informed of the option of a caesarean section and its risks. Further, he found that they should have been advised of the risks involved in proceeding with a mid-forceps delivery. Nevertheless, the trial judge concluded that had the appellants been advised and given the choice, the same result would have occurred.
Posted in: Birth Injuries, Brain Injuries, Medical Malpractice, Uncategorized
