The link between concussions suffered while playing professional football and permanent brain injury has grown over the past few years as more football players are diagnosed with depression, anxiety and other terminal illnesses. The growing number of players exhibiting erratic (and sometimes violent) behavior off the field and even committing…
Syracuse Personal Injury Law Blog
How to travel safely during the Thanksgiving holiday
Last week’s lake effect snowstorm in the Buffalo area was an epic weather event. Also, as temperatures were forecasted to warm up, fears arose that flooding would grip the area as well. As of today, it is predicted that flooding will largely be avoided, which is good news for people…
When can airbags be a threat to passengers?
When you think about how airbags in vehicles are supposed to work, the overriding notion is that they are supposed to save lives. They are supposed to cushion the impact between a driver (primarily their head) and the steering column and the dashboard. The same could be said about airbags…
How patients can avoid complications with hospital discharges
Some hospital error cases are based on patient readmissions that occur because of mistakes on diagnosing patients for discharge, and the lack of education that patients receive. Indeed, there are a number of things that hospitals can do in these areas to increase patient safety. This post will highlight some…
Why melting snow may lead to black ice
The recent snow storms in Buffalo and greater Eerie County have been historic in the amounts that have fallen. Residents and businesses alike have been digging out for days on end. Now it appears that an equally historic warm up is imminent, which raises the possibility of flooding. If things…
Could non-economic damages caps be discriminatory?
In our prior post, we talked about how caps on non-economic damages could be harmful to medical malpractice plaintiffs, in that they may not compensate injuries that involve a great deal of pain and suffering or long-term emotional injuries. With these scenarios possible when medical negligence mars procedures involving reproductive…
Three things you can do to avoid medical malpractice
In a prior post, we highlighted the breaches in procedure and improper actions taken by physicians that led to Joan Rivers’ death. Essentially, there were critical errors that if they were abated, could have saved Rivers’ life. While the Rivers’ case appears to be a straightforward case of negligence, many…
Why professional certifications may be important
As a patient, you may not be as concerned with certifications as a physician might be; but perhaps you should. Indeed, doctors may believe that certifications are an important measure for keeping abreast of the latest recommendations and best practices for a particular field. When doctors are into continuing education,…
Can doctors acting as Good Samaritans be held liable?
Indeed, physicians have difficult jobs where there may be times where they must make split second decisions that can have critical implications on patients’ lives. This is why they go through extensive training in order to properly diagnose illnesses and injuries and to make care recommendations accordingly. Despite the difficult…
Cancer treatment risks for men with prior cardiac histories
A number of our posts focus on the legal duty that physicians, nurses and hospital staff in using reasonable care in treating patients. A large part of that duty involves properly assessing patients for treatments; which may include asking questions about what drugs a patient may be allergic to and…