physician liability

Published on: May 20, 2024

Feds Target Overuse of Antipsychotic Drugs in Nursing Homes

Medicare warnings to nursing homes that are believed to engage in the overuse of antipsychotic drugs among their residents can help reduce these dangerous practices.

Some of the common medications that can be used on nursing home residents include quetiapine which is often used to help treat symptoms of anxiety, hallucinations and delusions among persons suffering from dementia. Research suggests that as many as one in every 7 nursing home residents is prescribed the drug. While the drug can be helpful in controlling the symptoms, it is not without its side effects which include kidney injury, heart failure and an increased risk of strokes and blood clots. According to one study, long term use of quetiapine is associated with a 62% increased risk in kidney damage and a 27% increase in heart failure risks. These residents may also have a 65% increased risk of suffering a stroke. Bone fractures are also another huge risk with an estimated 43% increased risk among patients on quetiapine.

Officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are currently investigating an increase in the use of antipsychotic medications at some nursing home facilities across the country. As part of the investigation, the agency found that more than 5,000 doctors were aggressively prescribing medications to patients at several facilities. More than 80,000 patients were receiving these medications.

Published on: December 14, 2019

Depressed Doctors at Higher Risk of Medical Errors

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Depression affects millions of people in the U.S. Depression can sometimes be caused by life events such as job burn-out. When a doctor suffers from burnout-related depression, a patient’s safety may be compromised.

According to the results of a new study, doctors who are depressed may be at a higher risk of making medical errors that threaten patient safety. The study which was published recently in the JAMA Network Open, finds that depressed doctors are more likely to report medical errors. The study also finds that these medical errors actually increase the risk of the doctor committing even more serious errors in the future. These medical errors can result in a medical malpractice claim.

Several earlier studies have indicated that physicians are at a high risk of mental problems, like depression, due to a number of factors. Physician burnout is a very real phenomenon, and can be linked to heavy caseloads, stressful work environments and high pressure challenges that can lead to feelings of irritability, lack of morale and motivation and feelings of hopelessness. Many studies have pointed to certain fields of medicine that are more prone to high stress levels, like oncology and surgery.

Published on: July 31, 2019

Misdiagnosis is a Leading Cause of Medical Errors

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

When you go to a doctor for an illness, one of the basic assumptions you may have is that the physician will be able to correctly diagnose your condition and provide treatment. However, misdiagnosis or wrong diagnosis is one of the leading causes of medical errors. In fact, a new Johns Hopkins study confirms that wrong diagnoses, especially those related to the three most commonly misdiagnosed conditions, are a serious health concern in the United Sates.

The results of the study were published recently and confirm that a wrong diagnosis, or incorrect diagnosis, is the No. 1 cause of medical errors. The researchers attempted to identify the diseases that were involved in the majority of medical malpractice clams. The data was based on malpractice cases from between 2006 and 2015.

The researchers concluded that as many as 75 percent of diagnostic error cases involved the Big Three – vascular events, infections and cancer.

Published on: January 25, 2018

Stress is a Major Factor in Emergency Room Medical Errors

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Medical errors are one the leading causes of death in the United States, and accounts for about 250,000 deaths per year. That number is almost half the population of the City of Atlanta. In fact, it is estimated that about one third of the people admitted to a hospital will fall victim to a medical error.

Stressed-out doctors are at a great risk of making errors in the emergency room where even the smallest error can translate into a fatal mistake. Managing stress effectively is critical to reducing these risks.

A new study by the BMJ Open finds that the risk of errors increases with the stress level of doctors in the emergency room. In the study, researchers obtained blood and saliva samples of 20 residents working in an emergency room. They analyzed the samples which were obtained both before and after the emergency room shifts to understand the stress levels of the doctors. They also questioned the doctors about the number of patients they treated, the number of errors made, and the number of “near-miss” incidents they experienced. A “near-miss” incident was defined as an act of omission that could possibly cause harm to patients.

Published on: May 21, 2017

Georgia Residents Overwhelmingly Reject Proposed Medical Malpractice Bill

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Georgia residents are overwhelmingly opposed to a bill that would restrict their access to medical malpractice damages. They’re also strongly in favor of holding nursing homes accountable for the neglect and abuse of residents.

Those are the results of a new survey conducted by the Public Policy Polling Institute, which found that residents across seven states are overwhelmingly in opposition to HR 1215. The recently introduced bill seeks to limit noneconomic damages available in cases involving medical malpractice and nursing home abuse. The bill would also cover any damages from lawsuits related to malfunctioning or defective medical devices, as well as pharmaceutical company drug-related lawsuits.

The Public Policy Polling survey specifically focused on residents living in seven states: Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Utah and Arizona. These are states that are either red (Republican) or purple (have voted Republican or Democrat in the past few years). Typically, voters who live in red or purple states favor restrictions on medical malpractice damages.

Published on: January 24, 2012

Distracted Medical Professionals Are a Patient Safety Risk and result in Medical Malpractice Claims

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Doctors and nurses now have access to smart phones and other gadgets that help them in their work.Doctors can refer to smart phones to easily access the Internet, or access patient data.However, the increasing use of electronic communication devices in hospitals has also meant an increasing number of distractions that could possibly harm patients. A significant number of medical malpractice claims arise out of a failure of medical professionals to closely monitor a patient’s condition. All medical malpractice attorneys have seen incidents in which a doctor who is very competent misses a change in a patient’s condition that, while easily addressed if caught early, results in catastrophic problems when left unchecked. It appears clear now that some of the incidents are likely the result of distractions caused by electronic devices.

According to this report, the risk of distractions from the use of electronic gadgets is so great that many hospitals have begun to limit their use altogether.Medical schools have also begun teaching students to focus on caring for patients, instead of relying on devices.However, the fact is that more and more medical students now are armed with devices that equip them with information that can increase patient safety.These measures have come after a number of incidents reported from around the country in which doctors, nurses, technicians and other personnel were found to be distracted using their devices for personal uses.

In one incident, a nurse was found researching airline fares during a spinal surgery procedure.Doctors have also been found using their cell phones to have personal conversations while performing procedures.Needless to say, none of this enhances patient safety, and actually increases the risks of medical errors.The Institute of Medicine in its path breaking report To Err Is Human in 1999, found that more than 90,000 patients die every year as a result of medical errors.Hospitals have been investing in reducing medical errors, and unfortunately, electronic gadgets seem to increase those risks.

Published on: October 5, 2011

Killer’s Family Can Sue Georgia Psychiatrist for Medical Malpractice for Discontinuing Medication

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

In a groundbreaking ruling, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled that the family of a man, who stabbed his mother to death, can proceed with a lawsuit against the psychiatrist who discontinued the man’s medications.It has long been the law in Georgia that third parties who suffer a personal injury or wrongful death due to a psychiatrist failing to properly treat a patient can recover damages. However, this case adds a new twist in that the family of the patient and the victim are the same. The decision is important because it now allows families most directly impacted by the conduct of a patient to retain a medical malpractice attorney and sue the psychiatrist.

The case involves Victor Bruscato, who was undergoing psychotic treatment by Derrick Johnson O’Brien.The doctor had placed Victor on antipsychotic medication, but decided to discontinue two of the most powerful medications when he became concerned that Bruscato was showing signs of another dangerous syndrome.

In August 2002, Bruscato attacked his mother with a battery charger, causing her severe head injuries and stabbing her seventy-two times.He was charged with murder, but was judged incompetent to stand trial.His father sued the psychiatrist for medical malpractice, alleging that the doctor’s negligence in discontinuing the medication had causes his son’s psychosis to get out of control.The psychiatrist refuted the allegations, saying that Bruscato’s family was not eligible to file a civil lawsuit in a crime that was committed by their own son.

Published on: May 5, 2009

Georgia Ranked on List of States with Poor Doctor Discipline

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A new report by non-profit organization Public Citizen has placed Georgia on the list of ten worst states based on doctor discipline records. The report takes into consideration the numbers of disciplinary actions taken by the state’s boards of medical examiners against negligent physicians. In Georgia, the rate of actions against such doctors is a dismal 2.40 actions for every 1,000 physicians. The state is tenth on the list following Minnesota with a paltry .95 actions per 1,000 doctors, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Mississippi, Connecticut, New Hampshire Maryland, Florida and California.

Not only that, Georgia is also specially marked for criticism as one of the states with the largest decrease in rank for disciplinary action rates. Between 2001 and 20003, the state was at number 15 on the list, while it has dropped to number 42 in this year’s report.

Georgia should take a page out of the book of fellow southern states like Kentucky and Louisiana, each of which features in the ten best states for serious disciplinary actions against doctors. That list also includes Alaska where 6.54 serious disciplinary actions were taken for every 1,000 doctors, Kentucky with 5.87 disciplinary actions, Louisiana with 4.74 actions besides Ohio, Arizona, Okalahoma, North Dakota, Iowa, Colorado and Maine.

Published on: April 3, 2009

Fulton County Boy Awarded $2.3 Million for Botched Circumcision

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

There could be not a medical malpractice awardthatcould compensate this boy and his family for the unimaginable horror they have been made to suffer.While a Fulton County Jury has awarded them damages of $2.3 million for a circumcision procedure that went wrong, the boy and his family will need counseling for a very long time.

The award relates to the injury caused to the young boy during what should have been a fairly routine circumcision procedure performed soon after he was born. The procedure however ended with the doctor removing a small portion of the tip of the penis. There was bungling on the part of more than one doctor at the hospital, Tenet South Fulton Medical Center where the procedure was performed in 2004. The pediatrician who was informed by a nurse after the boy began to bleed heavily, failed to respond to the call. Due to the negligence and failures of both the doctors, the boy suffered a permanent injury.

In 2006, his mother filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the doctor who performed the circumcision, as well as the pediatrician who failed to respond to an emergency. The jury was convinced that the doctor Haiba Sonyika snipped off a portion of the organ and that the pediatrician Cheryl J. Kendall could have reattached the cut off portion if she had responded to the emergency immediately.The boy has been awarded $1.8 million in damages, while his mother has been awarded an additional award of $500,000. The hospital where the procedure was performed was not found negligent.

Published on: March 4, 2008

Medical Malpractice Rights Denied by Tort Reform

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The Tort Reform Act of 2005 may be going up on appeal. In 2005 Georgia legislators saw fit to pass a Tort Reform Act that, among other things, gave emergency room doctors virtual immunity from negligence suits.

That bill provided that the ER staff cannot be held liable for damages unless it is shown by clear and convincing evidence that the doctor or health care provider’s actions showed “gross negligence.”Gross negligence is defined as the absence of that degree of care that every man of common sense, however inattentive he may be, exercises under the same or similar circumstances.Another common definition of “gross negligence” is “reckless disregard for the safety of the patient.”

In addition to this standard of care change, pain and suffering damages in a medical malpractice case were capped at $350,000.Thus, if you are injured as a result of medical malpractice, your right to recover has been greatly diminished.