Emergency Room Malpractice
Emergency room malpractice usually takes place when serious conditions are missed in the emergency room, delaying treatment and resulting in serious injury or death. The Sweeney Law Firm represents victims and families of emergency room malpractice. Here are some examples of emergency room malpractice:
- A middle-aged man presents to an emergency room with signs and symptoms of an impending heart attack and is misdiagnosed as having gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD-sometimes called “acid reflux” or “acid indigestion”) and discharged from the emergency room, only to die within hours from a massive heart attack.
- A child is seen in the emergency room with a history of a rash. The child is diagnosed with having chicken pox, and a pediatrician confirms this diagnosis while the child is still in the emergency room. The child is sent home, and a day later, the child is deceased. The diagnosis of chicken pox was error. The child instead had streptococcal infection of the blood (sepsis) which was untreated.
- A young man presents to the emergency room with a sudden onset, very severe headache, nausea and vomiting. He is diagnosed as having a viral infection and is sent home. Two days later he returns with persistent and worsening headache, nausea and vomiting, and with symptoms which probably are seizures. The emergency doctor confirmed the diagnoses of viral infection, and once again sent him home. He died two days later from a massive brain hemorrhage.
- A baby with a very severe ear infection accompanied by vomiting and dehydration was discharged from the hospital emergency room without treatment. The ear infection spread to the brain and the baby died a day later.
- An elderly patient is taking a Coumadin, a “blood-thinner”. She was taken to the emergency room with a history a severe head ache and neck pain. She was also passing blood in her urine and had vaginal bleeding as though she were having menstrual periods again. She was found to be seriously over-anticoagulated from too much Coumadin. Instead of being immediately hospitalized, and having her coagulation status corrected, she was sent home. She died soon afterwards from a brain hemorrhage secondary to over-anticoagulation with Coumadin.
Hospital malpractice is frequently involved in such cases. The hospital provides the emergency room physician, and is therefore is liable for this physician’s conduct. The emergency physician involved may lack appropriate training, experience and credentialing in providing emergency room care, and may have a history of being sued for malpractice on multiple previous occasions. The hospital may be liable for failing to have proper policies and protocols in place which, if followed, would have prevented a patient’s injury or death.
In consultations with physicians who specialize in emergency medicine and other specialized fields of medicine, the lawyers at Sweeney Law Firm will work with medical specialists to analyze medical records and other sources of information to determine if emergency room malpractice occurred. If so, the Sweeney Law Firm may be able to recover money damages for you and your family to help pay for medical expenses, rehabilitation expenses, lost income and other financial losses as well as compensation for emotional and physical pain and suffering.
Call the Sweeney Law Firm at 260-420-3137 or Toll Free at 866-793-6339. Get answers to your questions. Learn your legal rights. There is no cost or obligation for our office to evaluate your case.
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Fort Wayne, Indiana Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice Lawyers & Attorneys
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