Medical Malpractice in a Hospital Setting
New York Hospital and Medical Malpractice Attorneys
In a study of American hospitals from 1998 to 2002, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) reported that as many as 98,000 hospitalized patients died every year due to medical errors. Many thousands more were injured. These are preventable injuries and deaths resulting from medical malpractice.
The medical malpractice attorneys at Powers & Santola, LLP, handle medical negligence cases against individual care providers, as well as institutions such as hospitals, clinics and nursing homes ). Our results speak for themselves: We have achieved millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for people who suffered serious injury and families who lost a loved one.
If you suspect that medical malpractice hurt you or a family member, please contact us or call 866-689-9692 to schedule a free consultation in our Albany or Syracuse office. You have a limited amount of time to bring a medical malpractice claim. Talk to an attorney today to ensure you do not miss your opportunity.
Our firm has handled these, and other, medical malpractice cases that occur in a hospital setting:
Obstetrics-Gynecology (OB/GYN) / Pediatric Malpractice
- Failure to monitor mother or infant's vital signs, improper reading of fetal monitor
- Improper use of vacuum device or forceps, resulting in infant brain injury and possible cerebral palsy
- Improper extraction of infant, resulting in shoulder dystocia and Erb's palsy
- Failure to closely monitor a mother attempting a vaginal delivery after c-section and to do a timely c-section in case of complications
- Misdiagnosis or failure to treat an infectious disease (such as perinatal group b beta strep )
Surgical Malpractice
While many types of doctors provide surgical services, the medical malpractice issues relating to surgery are much the same and include:
- Improper surgical technique
- Failing to detect, treat and manage complications of surgery such as hernia surgery, breast surgery, abdominal surgery, gastric bypass surgery, lung surgery, cataract surgery, Lasik surgery, prostate surgery, plastic surgery (including breast reduction or augmentation surgery, rhytidectomy and weight loss surgery.)
- Failure to detect, manage and treat complications, including post-operative bleeding and perforations
- Failure to refer a patient to a specialized surgeon or another type of specialist
- Improper supervision of residents and interns performing surgical procedures
- Orthopedic malpractice for surgical complications of intervertebral discs, femur fractures and carpal tunnel syndrome
- Failure to perform or complete a thorough patient assessment, read the patient's medical chart or consider the patient's medical history
- Improper intubation/positioning of the patient
- Failure to monitor the patient during or after a procedure with anesthesiology
- Failure to treat or manage a change in the patient's condition during surgery
Emergency Medicine Malpractice
- Failure to diagnose such conditions as myocardial infarction ( heart attack), stroke, spinal fractures, appendicitis, compartment syndrome, viral or bacterial meningitis, spinal cord compression, or bowel obstruction
- Failure to call in appropriate medical or surgical consults to treat a patient
- Failure to admit a patient or premature discharge of a patient from the emergency room
- Failure to order appropriate diagnostic tests, such as EKGs, CT scans, X-rays, or blood work, and failure to review test results in a timely manner
- Misdiagnosis of, and failure to treat, heart attack, stroke, congestive heart failure (CHF), endocarditis
- Failure to identify and treat complications from catheterization and post-catheterization perforations
- Failure to diagnose and treat complications such as sepsis and internal bleeding
- Mismanagement of medications, such as anticoagulants
- Failure to hospitalize a patient when EKG changes or other diagnostic tests indicate the need for hospitalization
- Failure to follow the rules and statutes of the New York State Department of Health
- Allowing untrained or unqualified medical personnel to treat patients without proper supervision
- Improper staffing resulting in dangerous decreases in patient care standards
- Inadequate chart documentation
- Failure to coordinate patient care among the various specialties and to communicate between physicians, nurses and medical providers working with a patient
- Failure to receive properly-informed patient consent
- Clerical/administration errors affecting patient care
- Failure to conduct medical tests as ordered or to report test results in a timely manner
See other types of medical malpractice that can occur in a clinic or outpatient setting.
Contact Us
Talk to an experienced upstate New York medical malpractice lawyer. Contact Powers & Santola, LLP, online or call us toll-free at 866-689-9692 to schedule a free initial consultation at our Albany or Syracuse law office.
