According to a recent survey, over ninety percent of doctors say that they overtest and overtreat as a way to protect themselves from medical malpractice lawsuits. The findings of the survey aligned with another published by the Associated Press that found that emergency room doctors overtreat in order to avoid malpractice suits.

The survey asked simply, "Do physicians order more tests and procedures than patients need to protect themselves from malpractice suits?" and, "Are protections against unwarranted malpractice lawsuits needed to decrease the unnecessary use of diagnostic tests?" Not surprisingly, ninety-one percent of doctors answered "yes" to both statements.

Dr. Tara Bishop found the results to be quite accurate.  She said, "When you sit around at a dinner party with doctors, malpractice fears and a kind of hatred of the malpractice system really comes up as a common theme." Overtreatment costs the US healthcare system billions of dollars every year.

If you have been the victim of medical malpractice, consult with a North Carolina personal injury lawyer by contacting the Lanier Law Group today!

In Orlando, Florida, a woman that became infected with HIV after receiving a kidney transplant is planning to file a medical malpractice lawsuit against Lee Memorial Health Systems.  According to the plaintiff, 55 year old Karen Cruz, the health care facility was negligent and deviated from the standard of care.

Cruz said, "Everybody in dialysis waits and dreams when you get the call that says we got a kidney for you. But the greatest gift is to get a live kidney from a donor."  On August 29^th, Cruz went to Southwest Florida Regional Medical Center to undergo transplant surgery.  For her, the transplant had been long awaited. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect what would happen following the organ transplant.

According to Cruz's personal injury lawyer, the donor's blood was tested for HIV and other diseases on August 14, 2007.  On August 24^th, the tests came back positive for HIV, yet doctors allowed the transplant o take place.

In 2009, Cruz's lawyer contacted her and told her about the results of the blood test.  Based on the test, it was assumed that Cruz might have become infected with HIV.  It was later revealed that Cruz was, in fact, HIV positive.

Cruz told news sources, "I have not been able to enjoy not one minute of life since I got off that operating table. I have been so sick, it's unreal… It makes it very difficult to trust any doctor for me. I would have to be on my deathbed to say yes to any surgery today."  In order to stay alive, she says she must take at least 20 pills a day. 

At this time, she is seeking monetary compensation from the medical facility to cover her current and future healthcare costs.  Her medical bills exceed $100,000, but in the state of Florida, medical malpractice claims are capped at $100,000.

If you have been a victim of medical malpractice, now is the time to speak with a North Carolina personal injury attorney.  Contact the Lanier Law Group now!

If you have been injured by a medical professional, you may be wondering how you can take legal action.  However, what you must realize before proceeding with your claim is that medical malpractice cases are very complex.  Additionally, in order for your claim to be successful, you will need to prove medical negligence caused your injuries.  To do this, will need to show the court that:

-  There was a doctor/patient relationship
-  The medical professional that treated you did not provide the acceptable standard of care that is expected by the medical community
-  You suffered an injury as a direct result of the medical professional's negligence and deviation from the acceptable standard of care

As you can imagine, these case elements can be difficult to prove on your own.  For this reason, you will want to secure representation from a North Carolina personal injury attorney that is experienced and knowledgeable in this unique area of law, like the attorneys at the Lanier Law Firm.  Contact us today to discuss your medical malpractice case.

Beth Hippely died from a medication overdose in January 2007. In August 2007, her family went to trial and won a $33.3 million verdict in a wrongful death lawsuit against Walgreens Pharmacy. Walgreens appealed the jury verdict, but last month a Florida court of appeals ruled in favor of the family, saying the lower court’s ruling stands as is.

The lawsuit stems from an unfortunate incident of pharmacy negligence. Hippely was on blood thinner medication as part of her breast cancer treatment. Her family claims that a teenage pharmacy technician accidently gave Hippely a dosage of the medication that was 10 times stronger than what she had been prescribed. As a result, she suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and paralysis, which ultimately led to her death.

A medical malpractice lawsuit filed against a Texas hospital has resulted in a $1.3 million jury verdict for the victim’s family.

The lawsuit was filed against Christus St. Mary Hospital in Port Arthur, Texas by the family of 41-year-old Stacy Meaux. The lawsuit claims the hospital was negligent in its treatment of Meaux, who died of a heart attack hours after coming to the hospital’s emergency room.

The Jefferson County jury found both the hospital and Dr. Michael Peterson to have committed “willful or wanton negligence” in treating Meaux. The exact details of what transpired while Meaux was at the hospital have not been disclosed.

Although the jury awarded Meaux’s family $1.3 million in damages, a medical malpractice cap will limit the amount of damages awarded for pain and suffering to $250,000 per defendant.

If you have suffered an injury due to doctor or hospital malpractice, or if you believe your loved one was killed as a result of medical malpractice, you may have legal grounds to pursue a lawsuit against the responsible party. An experienced North Carolina medical malpractice attorney at Lanier Law Group can help you exercise your rights to recovery by guiding you through the claims process and aggressively prosecuting your claim for the largest possible settlement.

To learn more, please contact Lanier Law Group today to schedule your FREE consultation!

After experiencing complications following a transplant surgery, two brothers are suing both UMPC and the hospital’s chief of transplantation for medical malpractice.

The brothers, 45-year-old Peter Cullen and 42-year-old Timothy Cullen, came to the hospital to undergo a liver transplant. Timothy Cullen served as a donor to his brother Peter who has been suffering from liver disease. In separate lawsuits, the brothers claim the hospital and Dr. Amadeo Marcos failed to fully disclose all of the dangers and risks associated with the surgery.

This isn’t the first time patients experienced health complications following a transplant surgery performed by Dr. Marcos. A recent study examining Dr. Marcos’ surgeries found that 66% of the 121 live donor transplant recipients he treated experienced some type of significant complication.

Both men, who are now suffering from complications due to the surgery, are seeking an unspecified amount in damages.

If you or a loved one is a victim of surgical malpractice, you should take a moment to consult a knowledgeable and well-practiced North Carolina medical malpractice attorney at Lanier Law Group. The firm has ample experience handling malpractice claims, and can help you pursue a lawsuit against the doctor or hospital responsible for your condition.

To learn more, please contact Lanier Law Group today by calling 1-888-CONSULT!

In response to concerns that Americans may be exposed to too much radiation during medical tests, the National Institute of Health (NIH) is planning to start monitoring how much radiation patients receive each time they undergo a CT scan or any other procedure that requires electronic imaging.  

Two studies have raised concerns about the amount of radiation patients accumulate throughout their lifetime. One study in the Archives of Internal Medicine estimates that radiation exposure during medical testing and other procedures contributes to 29,000 cases of cancer and 14,500 deaths every year. A second study published in the Archives claims the problem could be even worse, suggesting patients receive up to four times more radiation from imagining tests than was originally thought. The study also mentions that children are more vulnerable to the exposure because their bodies are still small and growing.

The NIH will not monitor exposure caused by machine malfunctions or mistakes, which only accounts for a small percentage of radiation overdoses.

NIH says hospitals rarely record how much radiation a patient receives. Doses tend to vary depending on the patient’s size, the number of scans that need to be performed, and the size of the area on the body that needs to be scanned.

NIH doctors will now start recording the radiation dosage and include that information in records patients can take with them. However, t he NIH doesn’t treat enough patients to fully measure such risks alone, which requires data from hundreds of thousands of patients. For this reason, the NIH is hoping other doctors and hospitals will start monitoring radiation levels, so they can pool data from multiple institutions and compare the risk of cancer between patients who received high radiation exposure versus low radiation exposure.

Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are entrusted by millions of people to properly fill and dispense their medications. Nine times out of ten, there are never any problems. But unfortunately, every now and then a pharmacist or pharmacy technician makes a mistake or error that injures, harms, or kills the patient. This is referred to as pharmacy malpractice, and legal action can be taken.

There are several errors that can result in a pharmacy malpractice lawsuit, such as:

• Dispensing the wrong medication
• Giving a patient another patient’s prescription
• Dispensing a medication the patient cannot have, either because he/she is allergic to it or because it cannot be combined with another medication the patient is already taking
• Giving the patient the wrong dosage instructions
• Misreading the doctor’s handwriting, thereby dispensing a different medication than what was prescribed
• Making a mistake while compounding a patient’s medication

A study conducted by the Institute of Medicine found that as many as 1.5 million Americans suffer from adverse side effects or health complications due to pharmacy errors. If you or a loved one is suffering from a health complication or debilitating injury due to pharmacy malpractice, you should speak with a personal injury attorney who has experience handling malpractice cases about what your legal options entail. Generally, if you can prove the pharmacist had a duty of care, and that he/she breached that duty of care resulting in your harm or injury, you stand to recover damages for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and decreased quality of life. 

At Lanier Law Group we have ample experience in North Carolina medical malpractice law, and would be happy to discuss your situation during a FREE consultation. Contact the office to schedule an appointment with a North Carolina medical malpractice attorney at Lanier Law Group today!

A medication error is one of the most serious forms of medical malpractice a doctor, nurse, pharmacist, or hospital can commit.  When a patient is given the wrong medication or the wrong dosage of a medication, it can lead to serious injury, debilitating health complications, and even death.

Common types of medication errors include:

• Administering the wrong dosage
• Prescribing the wrong dosage
• Prescribing the wrong medication all together
• Prescribing medication that cannot safely be mixed with other medications the patient is currently taking
• Failing to check a patient’s medical history to determine whether or not the patient can safely consume the drug
• Dispensing the wrong medication
• Including the wrong dosage instructions on the prescription bottle

Birth injuries are a serious form of medical malpractice that can affect the quality of the baby’s life for years to come, if not permanently.  These types of injuries occur when a mistake or error is made during labor or delivery.  Perhaps the nurse failed to properly monitor the fetal monitoring strip.  Maybe a doctor failed to quickly deliver a baby in distress, resulting in insufficient flow of oxygen to the brain.  Or maybe the doctor pulled too hard on the baby’s shoulder during delivery, resulting in a brachial plexus injury.

If you believe your child has suffered a birth injury due to medical malpractice or doctor or hospital negligence, you should consult an attorney a Lanier Law Group who can advise you of your rights and legal options.  North Carolina medical malpractice laws state that if a patient suffers an injury, debilitating condition, or death due to the negligence of a medical professional, they have the right to be compensated for:

• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Lost wages and earning capacity
• Medical expenses relating to the injury
• Physical therapy, speech therapy, medication, adaptive equipment, etc.
• A one-on-one aid or caregiver
• Overall decreased quality of life
• Any additional financial hardship associated with the injury

Are you suffering from an injury, illness, or debilitating condition due to negligent or substandard medical care or treatment?  If so, you may have grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Doctors, physicians, and all other healthcare professionals commit medical malpractice when they cause injury, harm, or death to a patient because they failed to provide the same standard of care that another medical professional would provide.  There are many different forms of medical malpractice, some of which include:

• Failure to diagnose a disease or medical condition
• Misdiagnosis a disease or medical condition
• Medication error
• Surgical error or malpractice
• Anesthesia error 
• Emergency room errors 
• Pharmacy errors
• Ordering the wrong tests

In order for a patient to win a medical malpractice lawsuit, they must be able to prove the following:

• That they were being treated by the doctor(s) and medical professional(s) named in the lawsuit, and
• The medical professional(s) acted negligently, recklessly, or below the standard of medical care in their field, and
• That the medical professional’s negligence is what caused the injury or condition to occur