What is Medical Malpractice?
Medical Malpractice is, “bad, wrong, or injudicious treatment of a patient, professionally and in respect to the particular disease or injury, resulting. in injury, unnecessary suffering, or death to the patient, and proceeding from ignorance, carelessness, want of proper professional skill, disregard of established rules or principles, neglect, or a malicious or criminal intent .” (Black’s Law Dictionary 1111. 4th Ed. Rev. 1968). Like general malpractice, it refers to negligence in a professional setting. However, it is limited to healthcare providers, such as a doctor or hospital.
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider deviates from the applicable standard of care, intentionally or unintentionally, and harms a patient. Cases such as Napier v. Greenzweig show that medical malpractice can be as blatant as ignoring understood rules, or it can be a mistake like a severe surgical error or a misdiagnosis. Medical malpractice is considered to be a serious issue, and healthcare providers found liable for malpractice often pay extensive damages. Occasionally, a doctor may lose their license to practice medicine if malpractice is severe enough or repeated.
Fully understanding cases of medical malpractice often involves some level of medical knowledge. Because of this, it is difficult to prove medical malpractice in court, and expert witnesses are typically needed to testify about a healthcare provider’s negligence.
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Florida Families Settle Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Traffic Accident
The families of two teenagers who died in an accident in Stuart, FL in August 2009 have settled in a wrongful death lawsuit with a construction company that owned the front-end loader the teens’ vehicle struck. The amount Sheltra & Son Construction Co will pay was not released in the confidential settlement.
Three teenagers were riding in a Jeep Cherokee traveling on Southeast Cove Road around 2 a.m. when they came upon a road-widening project. A front-end loader was halfway into the eastbound lane of the road without any flagmen or signs to warn drivers to slow for the vehicle.
The Jeep slammed into the equipment killing all three teens. The Florida Highway Patrol found the 18-year-old driver had a blood-alcohol level of 0.251, more than three times the legal limit, at the time of the accident. The other teens were also impaired, according to the police. […]
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Car Accident Round-Up – Fatal Accidents Throughout East Coast
Car accidents include death of Ithaca College student
PA Accident Takes Life of College Student
The Scranton Times Tribune reports a 20-year-old driver died in a fiery wreck on I-81 Saturday. The accident occurred near mile-marker 211 in Susquehanna County, PA around 2:30 a.m. as the young man passed through the state on his way to Ithaca College. The car went off the right side of the highway then hit a rock embankment before coming to rest on the highway’s shoulder on the driver’s side of the car. The vehicle became engulfed in flames. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
NC Legislator Involved in Fatal Car Accident
One man is dead and a North Carolina state legislator is in critical condition after their two cars collided late Friday night in Winston-Salem, NC. Police report that the 70-year-old NC representative, […]
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New Jersey Town to Pay $10 Million to Family of Boy Who Drowned in Town Pool
The Village of Ridgewood, New Jersey has been ordered to pay $10 million to the family of a boy who drowned in the town-owned Graydon Pool in July 2008. A Hackensack Superior Court jury found the pool was negligently supervised at the time of the 13-year-old boy’s death.
During the incident, there were more than nine lifeguards at the pool and none of them saw the child struggling to stay afloat. One of the boy’s friends tried to save him, but his efforts were unsuccessful. He alerted the boy’s mother who then alerted the pool manager and lifeguards.
The lawsuit alleged the manager had the lifeguards search the nearby area for the boy, as opposed to looking in the water. It took 40 minutes for the lifeguards to find the boy in the pool, at which time he had already died.
About Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys
Munley Law is a Pennsylvania accident and injury law firm that represents car accident victims and their families throughout the state of Pennsylvania and the Northeast, […]
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New York Man Awarded $1.5 Million After Debilitating Auto Accident
A man who suffered “a permanent, significant physical limitation” as the result of a serious automobile accident on Route 104 in Ontario, New York, has been awarded over $1.5 million by a Monroe County Supreme Court jury.
The man was stopped at a stop light in 2009 when he was hit from behind by another vehicle. He was diagnosed with acute lumbar spine injuries. The defendant‘s insurance company, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., offered to settle the case for $5,000 and refused mediation or arbitration to settle the case, forcing the case into trial.
InsuranceNewsNet.com reports the man was awarded $1.25 million in past, present and future pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life, along with $321,250 in past and future medical expenses.
About Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys
Munley Law is a Pennsylvania accident and injury law firm that represents car accident victims and their families throughout the state of Pennsylvania and the Northeast, […]
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LA County Hospital Likely to Pay $2.8 Million in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
Los Angeles County officials will likely agree to a $2.8 million settlement in a lawsuit brought by a woman whose child suffered birth injuries at the County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in March 2008.
In a lawsuit filed by the then 18-year-old, the woman claims the medical staff failed to perform an emergency cesarean section when she was showing signs of distress during labor. Her son was later diagnosed with neurological injuries from fetal distress, according to an article in the Contra Costa Times.
The hospital will also waive the nearly $20,000 hospital bill and will cover the $16,000 lien placed against the woman’s home. In addition, the hospital was required to implement safety measures to prevent future incidents similar to this one.
About Munley Law Personal Injury Attorneys
Munley Law is a Pennsylvania accident and injury law firm that represents car accident victims and their families throughout the state of Pennsylvania and the Northeast, […]
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