Georgia Injury Law Blog

A new study indicates that lack of sleep and insomnia are huge health problems among American adults.  According to the study which has been published in the medical journal The Lancet, as many as a quarter of all adults are not happy with the amount of sleep they get each night.  In fact, approximately 10% of adults meet the criteria for full-fledged insomnia.  The Atlanta car accident lawyers at our firm unfortunately see far too many serious vehicle accidents due to drowsy or distracted driving.

Researchers based their study on an analysis of previous scientific databases, and findings from major studies conducted on sleep over the past 5 years.  They found several factors that indicated we need to increase awareness about the widespread nature of insomnia, and spotlight the consequences of insomnia. 

Insomnia is associated with a number of health disorders.  According to a report published in 2002, persons who suffer from insomnia are about twice as likely to suffer from congestive heart failure compared to persons who have healthy and normal sleep patterns.  Additionally, these persons will be approximately 5 times as likely to suffer from depression or anxiety-related disorders.  Persons who suffer from insomnia, according to the researchers, may also be at a high risk for substance abuse, and psychological disorders.

Those are not the only effects of insomnia.  Studies have found that persons who suffer from insomnia may suffer from effects very similar to those of sleep deprivation.  Sleep deprivation is different from insomnia.  Sleep deprivation refers to a reduced length of sleep due to lower opportunity to sleep.  However, insomniacs have an inability to sleep in spite of having the opportunity to sleep. 

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Distracted Driving , Truck Accidents | 0 Comments Permalink

Most injuries that occur when an automobile is on a collision path with an animal on the road happen not when the car hits the animal, but when the car crashes following the near-collision or impact with the animal.  Therefore, how a driver reacts when he is faced with a stray animal on the road is extremely important in determining the probably of a Georgia car accident.    

The Washington Post spoke to a number of highway safety troopers around the country and came up with the following conclusions.  When it comes to avoiding animal-related collisions, swerving may be much more dangerous than hitting an animal.  Many troopers urge motorists to avoid sudden evasive maneuvers if you're not able to check for traffic beforehand.  If you can make a safe lane change, do so.  However, avoid swerving if you are unable to check your mirror and check for traffic.

If the animal is shorter than the hood of your car, and you have no time to change your lanes, then it is probably advisable to hit the animal.  If the animal is taller than the hood of the car, then it is advisable to avoid the animal if possible.  Unfortunately, very often when drivers are faced with a situation like this, they panic and make the wrong decision, which can lead to a single or multiple car accident.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, there were about 173 fatal accidents involving animals in 2009, which is the last year for which statistics are available.  There were also about 12,000 car accidents resulting in injuries involving animals that same year.  According to the insurance industry for Highway safety however, 1.5 million accidents involving deer occur around the country every year.  These result in $1 billion in damages.

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Distracted Driving , Motorcycles , Traffic Fatalities | 0 Comments Permalink

An increasing number of hospitals around the country are making use of robotic drug dispensers that can prepare intravenous medications to be administered to patients, in a sterile environment. You don’t have to be an Atlanta medical malpractice attorney to know that when there is a risk of contamination of the intravenous medication, a patient could be at a high risk of infections. Contamination is exactly what researchers found when they inspected one of these robotic drug dispensers at a hospital. 

The contamination was found by chance during a routine screening at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in North Carolina. Hospital staff were conducting an inspection of the robotic drug dispensing machine, and found to their shock that there were cultures of Bacillus cereus bacteria in the dispenser. The researchers believe that is the very first time that there has been a known contamination of these robotic drug dispensers.

Fortunately, the researchers were able to conduct an inspection, based on quality assurance measures that were developed by the manufacturer of the robot. The contamination was found before it resulted in dangerous infections. Atlanta medical malpractice attorneysknow just how serious any infections caused by the Bacillus cereus organisms can be.

These dispensers are used to prepare intravenous medications that are administered to patients through IV lines. Any contamination in the dispenser can therefore contaminate the intravenous drug, and this medication, including the germs, can be delivered directly into the person's bloodstream. 

Posted By Robert Katz In Medical Malpractice | 0 Comments Permalink

A state report blames a nursing home that failed to supervise two residents who had a history of altercations with each other, for a fatal fight that killed one of the residents. Unfortunately, nursing home abuse situations often arise due to inadequate supervision of residents and/or inadequate training of staff to evaluate the potential for resident-on-resident attacks. As nursing home abuse attorneys know, these attacks can often turn deadly.

Atlanta nursing home abuse lawyers have known for a long while that Georgia struggles with providing a safe environment for nursing home residents. In 2002, a report by the American Medical Association found that nursing home abuse problems in Georgia were at crisis levels. In fact, during this period of time, nursing home abuse claims in the state rose not just in frequency, but also in the severity of injuries involved. 

Often, elder abuse in nursing homes can be traced to a shortage of staff. Many nursing facilities deal with low reimbursement rates by cutting back on staff numbers, and therefore, eroding the quality of care. As a result, there are fewer numbers of staff members to pay individual attention to senior residents, many of who are in delicate health.

The decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is a difficult one. However, family members must ensure that they visit their senior citizens at the nursing home as often as possible, and must make sure that their loved one is being looked after well.

Posted By Robert Katz In Nursing Home Abuse | 0 Comments Permalink

The Food and Drug Administration has failed in its responsibility to maintain oversight over companies that manufacture disposable wipes. As a result, sanitation and hygiene standards at these facilities have dropped, and the result has been several fatalities and infections across the country caused by contaminated wipes. An investigation by the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel found poor hygiene standards at a facility operated by yet another Wisconsin-based company that manufactures wipes.

Product liability claims are likely from any serious infection or wrongful death which arises due these wipes. A personal injury arising out of a serious infection often results in long-term hospitalization and continuing issues for the individual. Product liability claims which arise out of the improper manufacturing of a product can be very difficult to prove. However, personal injury lawyers have developed a variety of techniques of attacking these types of cases. The work of government agencies is often an important component in establishing civil liability in these matters.

That company, Rockline Industries manufactures baby wipes and other wipes that are used in hospitals and homes. According to the investigation, at least 5 years ago, employees of the company acting as whistleblowers wrote a letter to the Food and Drug Administration warning that thousands of contaminated wipes were being manufactured at the company's Arkansas facility. The whistleblowers alleged that the company was aware of the contamination of these wipes, but failed to take action, and continued to ship these wipes across the country. 

In 2006, an investigator from the Food and Drug Administration arrived at the facility, and found shockingly unsanitary conditions. These conditions included poor sanitation standards and shoddy product testing. The inspection was triggered after consumers began complaining about the moldy odors on some of the wipes, as well as the presence of foreign objects, including blades and even a dead cockroach.

Posted By Robert Katz In Product Liability | 0 Comments Permalink

A California-based company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission are announcing a recall of dining tables, because of the risk that the tables could collapse, injuring consumers. As any personal injury attorney who has handled a collapsing table or chair case can attest, the injuries from this type of incident are more significant than they may first appear. For instance, consider the possibility of a small child sitting at a table that collapses. The weight of the table could easily seriously injure or kill the child.

For adults, the risk of a collapsing table relates more to a leg or knee injury. If the heavy wooden table were to collapse on an individual’s knee, then there is a significant potential for a knee replacement surgery. It is good that the company has taken the issue seriously and is recalling the tables. They will very likely avoid a number of product liability claims.

The table, the Dover Dining Table is manufactured in China and imported by West Elm, a division of Williams-Sonoma of San Francisco, California. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, West Elm is recalling approximately 830 dining tables in the United States. In Canada, 10 tables are being recalled. The recall is linked to a potential defect that could cause the wooden base of the table to collapse. This can cause the glass top to fall, posing serious injury hazards to consumers seated at the table.

The company is aware of at least 14 reports in which the tables collapsed or broke, and in at least one incident, a consumer suffered leg injuries. The dining table consists of a tempered glass top and a brown wooden base. The tables have the words West Elm and SKU: 2188233 printed on the underside of the center beam. The tables were sold at West Elm stores, as well as online stores between July 2011 and October 2011 for about $500.

Posted By Robert Katz In Product Liability | 0 Comments Permalink

Getting home safe when you are under the influence of alcohol should be much easier for Atlanta motorists. The Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety has released a smartphone app that is meant to help drivers find a sober ride home after their New Year's celebrations. Some of the worst auto accidents seen in the office of a personal injury lawyer involve drunk drivers. Inevitably, these car accidents result in the most serious types of personal injury and very often involve a wrongful death.

The New Year's Eve holidays typically see large numbers of serious and fatal accidents involving intoxicated motorists. The alcohol flows freely over New Year's, and according to some statistics, more drunk driving take place during this holiday than any other holiday of the year. This year, the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety issued technology to reach out to motorists, and help them get a safe ride home. 

The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety collaborated with a number of safety partners to compile a list of sober ride programs that intoxicated motorists were able to access to make sure that they reach home safe on New Year's. The list of programs was compiled and made available as a smartphone application. The application is called Drive Sober Georgia. You can still download the application on your iPhone or Android phones. 

All people have to do to get a safe and sober ride home is use this app, and it'll guide you through the process. No matter where you were in Georgia this past New Year's Eve, you could access the application to find a safe ride home, like the Tow-to-Go program by the AAA, which allows motorists to get their cars towed home safely. 

Posted By Robert Katz In DUI | 0 Comments Permalink

According to a new exposé by ProPublica, an unknown number of senior citizens who die in nursing homes around the country may have died due to nursing home abuse. However, their families may never know because investigations into such a wrongful death are rare. Nursing home abuse attorneys are well aware of the serious nature of the problem. When investigating these matters, we often find that the nursing home has been active in trying to cover up the abuse, rather than conducting an honest investigation which uncovers the issue and provides useful information to improving the care they provide.

As part of the exposé, the team at ProPublicainvestigated coroner and medical examiner’s office records, and looked at the number of sudden and unusual fatalities at several nursing homes. They found in their investigations that in cases involving seniors who die suddenly, or under any kind of suspicious circumstances, there is no guarantee of any investigation into the death. ProPublicahas reached several conclusions that point to systemic flaws.

For instance, when a senior death is reported as natural, coroners and medical examiners very rarely investigate it. However, the fact is that very often, doctors make errors in judging whether a death is natural or not. In one study conducted in 2008, approximately 50% of doctors were not able to correctly identify the cause of death for an elderly patient who had died after a brain injury that occurred as a result of a fall accident. What this means is that an unknown number of deaths in nursing homes are probably being classified as natural deaths, when they are anything but.

Also, in many states, doctors are allowed to write out a death certificate without even seeing the body. In one case that the ProPublicateam came across during this investigation, a Pennsylvania doctor reported that a 83-year-old person had died of natural causes, when in fact, the death had been the result of beating by nursing home staff. The doctor never saw the patient, and never noticed the bruises on the man's body, that would've alerted him to the fact that this was not a natural death.

Posted By Robert Katz In Medical Malpractice , Nursing Home Abuse , Nursing Homes , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink

Car accident death rates in Georgia seem to have mirrored the nationwide drop in traffic accident deaths in the year 2010. Highway safety officials in Georgia recorded a substantial drop in accident fatalities in the state for the 5th successive year. Most personal injury lawyers have not really seen that significant level of a drop in their wrongful death cases. That is likely due to the fact the decrease has come through improvement of roadways. Very few wrongful death cases caused by roadway defects are actually litigated.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Georgia Department of Transportation, a total of 1,244 people died in car accidents in Georgia last year. That was a drop of 3.7% from the previous year, or 48 fewer fatalities. In 2009, the number of people killed in auto accidents was 1,292. The number has been dropping steadily since 2006.

To understand the kind of progress that has been made in keeping motorists safe on Georgia roads, consider this - in 2005, there were 1,744 deaths in traffic accidents in Georgia, compared to 1,244 in 2010. In just 5 years, transportation safety agencies and law enforcement in Georgia have been able to reduce the number of people being killed in preventable traffic accidents.

What's more, there may be more good news as 2011 winds up. According to Georgia transportation safety officials, the number of people killed in traffic accidents in 2011 is likely to be lower than the number last year.

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink

The Georgia Court Of Appeals has reversed a jury verdict in favor of a Yamaha Rhino rider, who suffered a serious personal injury during an off-road vehicle accident. The victim, a gravedigger from Georgia had been riding his Yamaha Rhino off-highway vehicle when the vehicle flipped over. He suffered serious leg injuries.

A court had ordered Yamaha to pay damages of $317,000. However, the Georgia Court of Appeals has now reversed the verdict. According to the appeals court's decision, unlike a car accident, the victim had assumed the risk of injuries when he purchased the off-road vehicle in 2006. With this and to the dismay of many personal injury lawyers, Yamaha's unblemished Rhino injury lawsuit record continues. The company has continually won lawsuits arising out injuries and fatalities resulting from accidents involving its off-road vehicle. However, the company has also entered into undisclosed settlements with several injured people, so the unblemished track record isn’t that clean. Those settlements are confidential, however.

The Yamaha Rhino was introduced in 2003, and quickly became popular among a growing generation of off-road vehicle fans. These off-road vehicles are different from all-terrain vehicles, in that they do include some additional safety features like safety belts. However, consumer safety groups soon found that the Yamaha Rhino was linked to a number of accidents ending in injuries. Some of the injuries that have resulted from these off-road vehicle accidents have been severe. Yamaha Rhino riders, who were caught or trapped when the off-road vehicle flipped over, have suffered from severe crushing injuries, and arm and leg injuries. There have also been amputations and severe limbs. The Rhino weighs about 1,100 pounds, and any accident that results in the vehicle flipping over and landing on a person, can cause serious injuries.

The number of persons filing lawsuits against Yamaha over the Rhino off-road vehicle has increased. The lawsuits claimed that the Rhino is inherently defective. The off-road vehicle is susceptible to rollovers even when it was traveling at low speeds. Even Yamaha Rhino riders who were riding their off-road vehicle on relatively flat roads were injured in accidents. Additionally, the vehicle offered no protection against crushing injuries or amputations when limbs were trapped underneath the vehicle. Yamaha responded to criticism by saying that its vehicles were safely designed, and that these accidents and injuries were the result of riders’ failure to follow all safety instructions and use the vehicle according to manufacturer specifications.

Posted By Robert Katz In Product Liability , Rollover Accidents | 0 Comments Permalink