Ohio Surgical errors occur on a regular basis. Why did the surgery fail? Why did the patient die? Why has recovery following the surgery taken so very long? Why was a foreign object left behind? WHY ISN'T ANYONE EXPLAINING TO ME WHAT WENT WRONG? Behind the wall of silence in healthcare are the unanswered questions [...]
I recently read a great article about surgical errors, 10 Red Flags in General Surgical Malpractice Cases, by another medical malpractice lawyer, Todd Hendrickson. The article lists 10 post-operative developments that can be overlooked by busy surgeons, but should raise concerns. When a surgeon ignores a red flag, there may be grounds for a medical negligence claim [...]
Surgical errors sometimes occur before the surgery even takes place. Before an operation, surgeons perform a preop assessment of the patient to determine whether they are a candidate for the operation. Patients must meet certain indications to be considered for surgery. In addition, the patient must be assessed to determine whether they are fit enough for [...]
I came across this pretty astounding surgical error: a Toledo area nurse tossed out a healthy kidney during a transplant surgery. This kind of error, seemingly unbelievable, raises a number of interesting considerations. The article proclaims that such an error is rare. I take issue with that. Surgical errors are all too common. I [...]
One common type of surgical error occurs before the operation is even scheduled. Like the Abraham Maslow saying "if you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail," surgeons are sometimes criticized for over-prescribing surgical fixes to medical problems. Poor patient selection may rise to the level of medical negligence if (a) the patient isn't [...]
There are two types of surgical errors: avoidable ones and "known and accepted complications of the procedure." Avoidable errors occur when surgeons fail to take proper precautions during a surgery, perform wrong-site surgery or perform a surgery that is not indicated thereby putting the patient at unnecessary risk. When an avoidable surgical error occurs and harm ensues, there is likely [...]
Bariatric surgery (also called "weight-loss surgery" or "obesity surgery") is a common source of medical negligence claims in Ohio. The surgery is very dangerous, with a complication rate estimated to be as high as 40%. However, when the growing and desperate population of obese patients meet physicians who are vying to perform this lucrative procedure, risks can be understated. Medical negligence claims [...]
Recent medical studies show that spinal cord monitoring during spinal surgery and aorta repair surgery can prevent some avoidable spinal cord injuries from those surgeries, such as paraplegia and quadriplegia. Monitoring is done using equipment, similar to an EEG, that monitors changes in sensory and electrical impulses that herald spinal cord compromise. Once alerted to impending problems, physicians can take [...]