Chicago Injury Attorney Blog

According to the American Medical Association, for every 100 physicians, about 95 medical liability claims are filed. Nearly 61% of doctors who belong to the 55 and over age group have been sued for medical malpractice. These findings are based on a 2008 survey of 5,825 “non-federal patient care physicians.” Doctors from 42 specialties participated in the survey practice.

Among the other findings:
• The older a doctor is, the greater the chance that he/she will have been sued.
• 47.5% of male doctors had been sued.
• 26.3% of them were sued twice.
• 23% of female doctors had been sued.
• 9.4% were sued twice.
• General surgeons and obstetricians/gynecologists were the specialties that had been sued the most for medical malpractice.
• Psychiatrists were the ones with the lowest medical malpractice rate.
• 65% of medical malpractice claims were dismissed, dropped, or withdrawn.
• 27.5% of medical malpractice cases were settled.
• 4.5% were resolved using an alternative dispute mechanism.
• 5% of medical malpractice lawsuits went to a civil jury.
• Doctors in single specialty and solo practices had the highest claim frequency rates.

In another study, by the ISMIE Mutual Insurance Co. and the Illinois State Medical Society, about 1,100 Illinois doctors were surveyed between Jun 21 and July 2, 2010:

• 66% admitted that they had eliminated or reduced certain procedures and services because the risk of becoming the target of an Illinois medical malpractice claim was high.
• 89% say they order more tests than what is needed.
• 82% think of each patient as a liability risk.

Medical Liability Claim Frequency: A 2007-2008 Snapshot of Physicians, American Medical Association

Illinois Physician Survey Shows Huge Impact of Lawsuit Fears (PDF)

Related Web Resource:
Fear and Loathing in Illinois: Lawsuit Threat Leads to “Defensive Medicine” in Health Care

Continue reading "Chicago Medical Malpractice: American Medical Association Reports that for Every 100 US Doctors, 95 Medical Liability Claims Filed " »

According to a new study found in the journal Human Reproduction, children conceived with assisted reproduction techniques have a higher-than-average risk of developing cerebral palsy. The study, which involved 590,000 children born between 1995 and 2003 in Demark, found that babies made with the help of fertility treatments were two times more likely to be diagnosed as suffering from cerebral palsy than those who were conceived naturally. These findings confirm results determined by a number of other studies. That said, it is also important to note that this risk is still considered low considering that only 2 or 3 out of every 1000 babies in the US and Europe have cerebral palsy.

According to the study’s findings, the increased odds of twin and multiple births and preterm deliveries that come with assisted reproduction may contribute to the increased risk that a baby will be born with the cerebral palsy. Researchers say that if this is so then implanting women with just one embryo at a time may help lower the odds. They actually found no increased risk of cerebral palsy among singleton births conceived through in-vitro fertilization.

Other findings from the study:
• 55% of babies conceived using fertility drugs had a 55% higher risk of developing cerebral palsy than children who were conceived naturally
• 63% of infants conceived through assisted reproduction were born prematurely
• 54% of assisted-reproduction births were twins or triplets

Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is any one of a number of neurological disorders that can permanently impair muscle coordination and body movement. It can lead to permanent disabilities. A person with severe cerebral palsy may require specialized care for life. While cerebral palsy can develop naturally in some children, there are cerebral palsy cases that occur because of Illinois medical negligence. When medical mistakes contributed to causing your child’s cerebral palsy, you may have reason to sue the medical professionals involved for Chicago, Illinois medical malpractice. This is where an experienced Chicago birthing injury law firm can step in.

Fertility treatment tied to risk of cerebral palsy, Reuters, July 2, 2010

Cerebral Palsy Information Page, NINDS.NIH.Gov

Related Web Resources:
CerebralPalsy.org

Human Reproduction

Continue reading "Does Fertility Treatment Increase Risk of Cerebral Palsy? " »

The family of Christian Arroyo has been awarded a $29.1 million Chicago, Illinois medical malpractice verdict against the federal government. Arroyo, 6, has cerebral palsy and is a quadriplegic.

Arroyo was born in May 2003 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. According to the plaintiffs, Arroyo’s mother Maria developed an infection before she went into labor and her water broke early. The Arroyo family says that even though the newborn displayed signs that he was suffering from an infection, doctors failed to treat him. This allowed the infection to enter his bloodstream, causing permanent brain damage. Now, Christian is a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy who is unable to talk, walk, or eat with his mouth.

The family filed its Chicago cerebral palsy lawsuit against the US government because the doctors that delivered Arroyo were employed by the Erie Family Health Center, a Chicago clinic that is federally funded. Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, injured parties can sue the federal government. A judge, not a jury decides these cases. The verdict will be offset by the $6.5 million Chicago birthing malpractice lawsuit reached between the plaintiffs and the hospital last year.

Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is a permanent condition that leaves a child with serious issues affecting movement and muscle coordination. When caused by the negligent or careless actions of a medical professional during birth, the family may be entitled to receive Chicago medical malpractice compensation involving injuries to a minor.

Living with cerebral palsy can be extremely challenging for a child, who may not be able to speak, move, or eat properly. Mental retardation can also occur. Cerebral palsy can be costly to live with, which is one reason why it is important that your family receive all of the personal injury compensation that your child is owed.

Family awarded $29M for quadriplegic child, Chicago Sun-Times, April 6, 2010

Gurnee family wins $29.1 million in medical malpractice lawsuit, Daily Herald, April 1, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Cerebral palsy, KidsHealth.org

Forms of Cerebral Palsy, Origins of Palsy

Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has placed obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Scott Pierce on probation for one year and fined him $500. Pierce is accused of mistreating a pregnant woman while she was in labor with her fifth child.

The patient, Catherine Skol, sued Pierce for Chicago medical malpractice in Cook County last December. Skol delivered her baby at Rush University Medical Center in March 2008.

According to her Chicago medical malpractice complaint, Pierce, who was filling in for Skol’s doctor, arrived at the hospital four hours after she got there, scolded her for not calling first, and wouldn't give her any pain medicine. He is accused of telling a nurse that the patient deserved to feel pain for failing to let them know that she was coming to the hospital.

Skol also contends that Pierce performed a painful vaginal exam while she was experiencing a contraction and told her to push even though she wasn’t fully dilated. She says he told her to shut up, keep her mouth shut, and push. She says she and her husband became afraid to complain after Pierce allegedly told her she could hemorrhage and the baby could die.

Skol says that while she was in labor, Pierce made hostile cell phone calls to other people and then used a very large needle to give her unnecessary stitches after the birth.

Following an investigation into the incident, Rush University Medical Center suspended Pierce’s privileges there. Pierce has is own private in Melrose Park.

If you or your child suffered injuries during delivery, you may have grounds for filing a Chicago medical malpractice lawsuit. Your obstetrician-gynecologist is supposed to provide you with a certain standard of care. Failure to provide that level of care can be grounds for a Chicago medical malpractice lawsuit if you or your child suffered physical or emotional harm as a result.

Doctor disciplined for allegedly chastising Chicago-area woman in labor and denying her pain medication, Chicago Tribune, July 22, 2009

Woman: Doctor Told Me to "Shut Up and Push," NBC Chicago, January 6, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Medical Malpractice and Childbirth, Wrong Diagnosis

Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation

In Winnebago County, Illinois, the family of 4-year-old Jeremy Law has agreed to settle its birthing malpractice lawsuit with a Rockford hospital for $12 million. This is the largest personal injury settlement to ever be issued in this county. Jeremy now has Cerebral palsy.

Patricia Law was admitted to St. Anthony Medical Center's labor and delivery area on November 7, 2004. A nurse gave her Pitocin to induce labor. Dr. Fernando has stated under oath that he gave Patricia the drug because nursing workers had told him that the baby was positioned heads-down and ready to be delivered. He says he would have performed a Caesarian birth if he had been notified that the baby was in breech position.

Even though the baby’s fetal heart beat became irregular, the nurse administered more Pitocin and did not conduct a vaginal exam to check the baby’s position. Some 15 minutes later, the baby experienced bradycardia and there was not enough oxygen traveling to his brain. It wasn’t until 20 minutes later that Jeremy was delivered by emergency Caesarean.

According to the Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit , hospital staffers neglected to identify that Jeremy was positioned in his mother’s womb for a breech delivery, neglected to detect signs of fetal distress, and neglected to deliver him by Caesarean procedure in a timely manner. Because of their medical negligence, the complaint contends that Jeremy sustained major brain damage because he did not receive enough oxygen during his delivery.

Pediatric neurologists have told the Laws that Jeremy’s developmental age will not go beyond what is now—that of a 2-month-old infant. He will continue to physically develop but he won’t be able to roll over, hold his head up, crawl, sit, stand, or grasp.

Illinois Cerebral Palsy Lawsuits
In order to prove that your child was the victim of birthing malpractice that caused his or her Cerebral palsy, you will need the help of an experienced Chicago birthing malpractice lawyer that understands the complexities involved in these kinds of Illinois medical malpractice cases. In many cases, a child with Cerebral palsy will require specialized medical attention and nursing care for life. The financial toll is generally too much for a family to carry without obtaining obtaining damages from all negligent parties.

You and your child may be entitled to Illinois birthing malpractice damages for the devastating harm, pain, and suffering that all of you must now endure.

$12 Million Settlement in Birth Injury Lawsuit Against OSF Healthcare, Business Wire, May 20, 2009

Related Web Resources:
NINDS Cerebral Palsy Information Page

Cerebral Palsy Program/Guide

In Illinois, a woman is suing a number medical care providers for medical malpractice. Anastasia Parker claims that because she was injected with radioactive iodine while she was pregnant, her daughter Taelor Hannah was born with hypothyroidism and will have to undergo medical treatment for the condition for the duration of her life. Parker is seeking a judgment over $500,000 plus costs.

In 2006, Parker underwent a thyroidectomy. She then had to be administered radioactive iodine on more than one occasion. Dr. Wael Girgis and Dr. Mohamed Megahy, however, failed to make sure that she wasn’t pregnant before administering the radioactive iodine injections.

Parker’s Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit contends that as a result, her daughter, who was born on August 3, 2007, was soon after diagnosed with hypothyroidism. The complaint says that because Parker was injected with radioactive iodine while pregnant with Taelor Hannah, the toddler is at higher risk of cognitive deficits, developmental delays, mental retardation, and cancer. Parker also blames the defendants for failing to tell her about the risks of taking radioactive iodine and of not talking to the proper doctors before administering the injections to her.

The defendants in Parker’s Illinois civil lawsuit are Dr. Megahy, Dr. Girgis, Belleville Oncology, Maryville Oncology, and Memorial Hospital.

Doctors are supposed to make sure that anything that they administer to a patient will not cause injury or other harm to him or her. They owe it to all of their patients to provide no less than a certain standard of care, and failure to provide that care can be grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit if a patient gets hurt, even more sick, or dies.

If your son or daughter is born with an illness, injury, or condition that occurred because your doctor or another medical provider was negligent, careless, reckless, or made a mistake, you also may have grounds to file an Illinois birthing malpractice lawsuit.

Woman treated for thyroid condition sues doctors for not administering pregnancy test, The Record, March 31, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Hypothyroidism in Children, EHealthMD.com

Hypothyroidism, MayoClinic.com

A new study sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development shows that scheduling a Caesarean birth for convenience, rather than necessity, can increase the chances the baby will be born with what could be serious birth complications. The report comes as health officials express alarm at how the number of Caesarean births taking place in the US is at a record high.

Over 1/3rd of babies in the US are now born via C-section. Why this increase has occurred is unclear. One reason may be that more women are having babies at a later age, which can increase the chances of birth complications. While the American College of Obstetricians suggests that mothers do not undergo elective repeat C-sections sooner than her 39th week of pregnancy, elective C-sections do take place earlier in a woman's pregnancy.

There are many valid medical reasons to deliver a baby by Caesarean. However, once a woman has delivered her baby surgically, rather than vaginally, she is more likely to undergo the same procedure in the future. Reasons why a woman might elect to deliver by Caesarean include, excitement to see the baby as soon as possible, fitting into a preferred obstetrician’s schedule, and convenience.

Data for the study came from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Among the findings:

• 24,077 women had a repeat C-section between 1999 and 2002.
• 13,258 of these Caesarean births were elective. This means there was no medical reason for why the mother couldn’t deliver her baby vaginally.
• 36% of the deliveries took place earlier than 39 weeks.
• Over 15% of the babies who were delivered at 37 weeks experienced complications, including low blood sugar, breathing problems, respiratory distress, and medical conditions requiring intensive care.

More about the study can be found in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Early Repeat C-Sections Increase Risks, Study Finds, Washington Post, January 8, 2009

Caesarean problems increase, News-Leader.com, January 26, 2009

Related Web Resources:
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

New England Journal of Medicine

CaesareanBirth.com

Birthing Errors
If you believe your son or daughter sustained a birth complication because you received the wrong medical advice or because mistakes were made during delivery, you may be entitled to birthing malpractice compensation.

Continue reading "Risk of Birth Complications May Increase with Early Repeat Caesarean Deliveries" »