Jeffrey A. Mitchell’s Answers

Generally, each doctor is responsible for his or her own medical errors. It is not uncommon to see multiple health care providers involved in medical malpractice cases. Many times a physician will assume that the doctor who treated the patient before him did everything that he was supposed to do. In medical malpractice cases, the best stragegy is to focus the case on the physician or health care provider who is most responsible for the injuries and damages suffered by the patient. There are...

According to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, more than 7,000 deaths occur each year from incorrect prescriptions. Another 1.5 million people are made sick or injured by drug errors. If your daughter is not seriously harmed, there is no reason to hire a lawyer. There is also no reason to expect the pharmacy to do much of anything about the error. Pharmacies usually won't admit fault, even when no serious injury occurred. The admission in your case is rare. If you believe...

The first question that must be answered is whether the claim is still viable under Indiana's statute of limitations. Some states have very short statutes which will require any claim to be brought within a year of the malpractice. This can be answered by a local medical malpractice attorney. If the case is still legally viable, then the records will need to be reviewed by an expert to determine if performing the "wrong" procedure was in fact medical malpractice or merely a judgment call...

I agree with Mr. Meyers that your first priority is to take care of your child. This drug, which is used to treat seizures does have age guidelines depending on the type of seizure that is being treated. Has any of the healthcare providers told you that your child's ongoing brain issues are related to the overdose? If not, you may want to ask a pharmacologist about this drug. it does have many side effects. I presume that the 10 other lawyers who reviewed this case looked at the records...

Your question will require consultation with an expert cardiologist who can review your records to determine your medical history and the sequence of events. Not every bad outcome automatically means that malpractice was committed. Moreover, just because a subsequent healthcare provider tells you to seek legal help also does not mean you have a winnable case. If a cardiologist reviews your records and determines that it was negligence to take you off of the Plavix, the issue will be...

Cutting a piece of your daughter's lip off while trying to remove the tape of the naso-gastric tube is not likey going to be considered a risk of that task. It is likely negligence. The key issue here though is the question of damages. 6 stitches and no medical bills will likely render this a claim that is not worth pursuing as a medical malpractice case. However, if the lip is permanently deformed and requires significant corrective plastic surgery and/or permanent scarring then it...

In most cases of placental abruption, the placenta is only partially separated from the uterus. When more than 50% of the placenta is separated risk of stillbirth goes up drastically than when the separation involves only a small part of the placenta. Known risk factors for abruption of the placenta include: •Smoking •Using cocaine during pregnancy •Being over 35 years of age •Having a multiple pregnancy •High blood pressure •Having a blood clotting disorder like...

Military medical malpractice claims are different than state law claims. A claim against a military hospital (like the VA hospitals around the country) is governed by the Federal Tort Claims Act (the FTCA). This cause of action however, does not exist for an active duty military person. Active duty military men are prohibited under a case called Feres from suing. The Feres doctrine specifically precludes claims against the military by active duty personnel. However, it does not...

In a medical malpractice case, the patient has the burden of proving that the defendant physician breached the standard of care, and that breach caused him to suffer substantial damages that they would not have otherwise suffered. Whenever a delay in treatment occurs, the key issue is whether the delay was reasonable and/or a judgment call and if not, whether the delay caused the patient to suffer damages they would not have otherwise suffered with timely medical intervention or care. These...

Failure to diagnose lung cancer is not an uncommon complaint in medical malpractice lawsuits. However, in any failure to diagnose cancer case (or delay in diagnosing cancer), the key issue is the time frame between the missed diagnosis and the actual diagnosis. The longer the delay in diagnosing the cancer means the patient lost more of an opportunity to undergo successful treatment of the cancer. In most instances, these cases are worth pursuing only where the delay is substantial....