Vermont & New Hampshire Injury Blog

HOSPITAL MISTAKES CAN BE DEADLY

Harmed by a Prescription Drug? | NH Medical Malpractice Attorneys

Recent lawsuits and large settlements have brought attention to the fact that millions of Americans are injured or killed each year by prescription drugs.  Medication mix-ups and incorrect dosing information cause patients to fall ill when they are supposed to getting better.  When medical mistakes hurt instead of heal we all must be more careful when picking up a prescription.

We have compiled two fact sheets on prescription drug mistakes.  One covers the most common prescription errors and the other can help you avoid mistakes at the pharmacy.  What each boils down to is one simple fact: You must be vigilant when filling your prescriptions.

Though we would like to think that each medication we receive is the right drug with the correct dosing this is not always the case.  Therefore be sure that you ask your doctor to tell you what the medicine looks like, what the proper dose is and what you should expect when taking the medication.  DO NOT LEAVE the pharmacy without opening the package and checking your doctor's information with the label and with the medication itself.  If you have ANY questions or concerns ask the pharmacist and your doctor before taking the medication. 

We hope that this information will help you avoid a prescription error.  At Van Dorn & Curtiss we have seen too many people injured by the negligent actions of a doctor, nurse or pharmacist.  If you have been harmed please contact your NH medical malpractice attorneys today for your free consultation.

Medical Malpractice Epidemic Persists Even as Compensation to Victims Decreases Part III

Medical Malpractice Epidemic Persists Even as Compensation to Victims Decreases Part II

Medical Malpractice Epidemic Persists Even as Compensation to Victims Decreases

Vermont Acts to Make Drug Makers’ Gifts Public

Common Medical Malpractice Cases | New Hampshire

• medication mistakes
• medication mix-ups
• wrong diagnosis
• surgery errors
• infections caught in the hospital
• lab testing errors

Does The Medical System Really Make Life Threatening Mistakes?

When people employed in the medical industry learn that I represent victims of medical malpractice against hospitals, doctors and other medical providers I  often get a cold reception. With the medical professionals willing to talk with me about (yes I do have friends and colleagues in the medical profession and they do talk to me) they candidly admit that mistakes are made in hospitals, clinics and doctor's offices that often cause serious injury and sometimes death. For the most part they also agree that the  victims of these mistakes should have  legal recourse and should receive reasonable compensation for their losses.

Sometimes the mistakes are on an individual level and sometimes they are big and very dangerous mistakes that threaten the safety and wellbeing of large numbers of people. One of the big mistakes was made recently in one of the nation's biggest medical laboratories, Quest Diagnostics in the testing of vitamin levels in blood samples. To read about it see the January 7, 2008 NY Times article.  Mistakes like these have the potential of causing serious problems. False results may lead to patient's changing or eliminating important supplements they are required to take to maintain good health. False results could even lead to toxic overdoses.

Does the medical industry make mistakes? You bet it does. Our legal system of medical malpractice law is  necessary and vital to redress those mistakes asking only that the persons or corporations responsible for making them should be made to pay the costs of the mistakes. Otherwise the entire burden of medical mistakes would be thrust on the victim. This is unwise and unfair and contrary to our tried and true system of American justice. To learn more about medical malpractice and our law firm's experience in this area of the law visit the Medical Malpractice Section of This Website.

One Million Dollar Settlement in Medical Malpractice Claim Against VA Hospital

We are pleased to announce the recent settlement of a major medical malpractice case in our office. Our client Bill N. a disabled veteran suffered from a chronic debilitating skin disease known as hydradenitis suppurativa. For many years he was treated at the Veteran’s Administration Hospital in White River Junction Vermont yet they could not control or cure the problem. At one point he was hospitalized for over a year. The treating doctor’s admitted they weren’t helping him but nevertheless they would not refer him to a specialist outside the VA system. So he continued to deteriorate. Finally,  he saw a doctor at Brigham Women’s Hospital in Boston who was shocked that the VA did not give him better treatment. As a result Bill sought legal counsel and his local lawyer referred him to us, here at Van Dorn & Curtiss. After speaking with the doctor in Boston who said that if Bill had been treated by a specialist there was a lot that could have been done to help him that the VA didn’t do. We decided to represent Bill and filed the law suit on his behalf.

The Vermont US Attorney’s Office  represented the VA and despite the fact that the attorneys there had no experience with medical malpractice law they adamantly denied that the VA was liable forcing the case into a long drawn out litigation. Finally before the case went to trial the VA settled for $1,000,0000 which was the maximum authority the Vermont US Attorney had for settling the case. Click here to see our Case Results article on this settlement.

Medical Errors Caused by Doctor Behavior

In today's NY Times there is an article concerning doctor's behavior and medical errors that can lead to medical malpractice. There are some astonishing stories in the article, but unfortunately they are all too familiar to attorneys who regularly represent victims of medical negligence. The headline of the article refers to physician behavior that can be both arrogant and abusive. Physician behavior is blamed for low morale and high turnover among hospital staff. Most importantly poor behavior and attitudes of doctors often lead to medical mistakes causing serious harm and sometimes even death to patients.

The most troubling aspect of all of this is that outside of bringing a medical malpractice suit there is little that can be done. Unlike attorneys, doctors and physicians do not have ethical boards that can receive complaints of improper behavior of doctors. Some states have medical boards but they are often understaffed and underfunded and can do little about the underlying problem. Unfortunately medical malpractice law suits are often too expensive to pursue even though the wrong doing of the doctor is obvious but the harm caused does not rise to the level of bringing a law suit that may cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses before a jury ever sees the case.

We are grateful to the NY Times for running this article and are hopeful that more public scrutiny may cause the medical profession to improve its ability to police itself and get rid of those doctors who should not be practicing medicine.

Woman Dies While Awaiting Treatment

Today on CNN there was shocking footage of a woman who died at hospital at Brooklyn New York while awaiting treatment.  Surveillance footage shows the woman lying on the floor of the emergency-room while hospital staff and doctors walked by, apparently ignoring her dire need for care.  Sadly, nobody noticed her or offered help for nearly an hour.  By the time she received medical attention she had already passed.  Several hospital staff members were fired because of their neglect and abuse. 

Though the facts of this situation were particularly shocking, medical errors happen.  If you or a loved has been a victim of medical negligence, you should consider consulting an experience attorney to discuss your claim.