Syracuse Personal Injury Law Blog

Stress, drinking and car accidents during the holiday season

Published on: December 19, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

The holidays can be extremely stressful for some people. While most hope to spend the holidays relaxing in front of a fire, that is not always how it turns out. Many individuals are out running around trying to get presents, planning holiday parties and attending work events. There is a lot to get done and a lot of people to see.

Combine all these activities and the cold weather and you often end up with a variety of ailments. There are some pretty typical ways that people can hurt their health during the holidays. These ailments can even result in unfortunate consequences for others.

A typical health problem over the holidays is weight gain. It’s not uncommon for people to become more sedentary and to eat more food (especially sweets) during the holiday season. This can lead to overeating and eventual weight gain.

Hospital works to decrease medical errors, malpractice suits

Published on: December 18, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Although a medical malpractice lawsuit win can often lead to compensation for the victims involved, it also serves another purpose. It hopefully motivates the physicians and medical entities to change their safety procedures so the negligence doesn’t happen again.

A recent news article described a few ways that doctors and hospitals in a nearby state are trying to decrease medical errors and therefore medical malpractice claims. One hospital apparently does simulations of high-risk situations such as postpartum hemorrhaging as a way to teach their physicians and staff how to properly communicate during such an event. The training has helped one hospital cut its medical malpractice costs by 26 percent since 2011.

Another way that the hospital has tried to improve its communication during these situations is by creating an office of patient affairs. They realized that it’s important to talk to patients directly about what is happening or what has happened instead of covering things up or acting like nothing happened. The hospital has seen great results from this approach. Clearly communicating during patient handoffs is also another strategy that has been helpful.

New York crash involving garbage truck kills two in car

Published on: December 18, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

A recent car accident involving a truck may result in an investigation as to who was at fault and whether there was negligence involved. The accident happened on Long Island and involved a garbage truck and a BMW. The accident apparently happened at about 4 a.m. in an intersection. The two vehicles collided, killing both individuals in the BMW. When the vehicles collided, there was apparently a very loud explosion of flames.

Police say the accident was so serious that it was hard to identify the two individuals who died in the BMW. Authorities took the driver of the garbage truck to the hospital.

When a smaller vehicle is involved in an accident with a truck, no matter the size, the outcome is often quite serious. Smaller vehicles are often no match for these large vehicles. Whether it’s a garbage truck or a semi, there are a variety of reasons why a truck accident might occur.

30-year-old woman killed in New York car accident

Published on: December 17, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Losing a loved one any time of the year is difficult, but it can be especially hard during the holiday season. Most people are planning holiday get-togethers and thinking of what to buy each other. No one ever expects to suddenly lose a loved one in a senseless car accident.

An accident in a Brooklyn neighborhood recently took the life of a 30-year-old woman. The woman was apparently hit and killed by a driver at about 5:30p.m. on a Sunday evening. The driver of the car involved was apparently uninsured and unlicensed.

There were two other pedestrians that were seriously injured. The 30-year-old woman was taken to the hospital but was later pronounced dead.

Women bitten by cat files medical malpractice lawsuit

Published on: December 17, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Most of the time when someone goes into a New York hospital with a minor issue, it stays a minor issue. The doctors at the hospital are able to treat the ailment and send the patient home with follow up instructions. But once in a while, for one reason or another, a seemingly minor injury can snowball into something that is very debilitating or even disabling.

A recent lawsuit filed in another state concerns just this very scenario. A woman came into the hospital after a cat bit her. She was apparently taking care of her sister-in-law’s cat when the feline got into a fight with a stray cat. The 41-year-old woman got in the middle of it and was bitten on the forearm, hand and thumb.

The woman initially cleaned the wounds but eventually noticed an infection. She went to a local hospital after she noticed abscesses on her wrist. She returned to the hospital several times after that and doctors referred her to a hand surgeon and gave her antibiotics.

Lawsuit: woman riding in ambulance suffers spinal cord injury

Published on: December 15, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

Spinal cord injuries can lead to devastating outcomes. In some cases, this type of injury can leave someone permanently paralyzed and in the worst case scenario, it can even lead to death.

A really sad story has recently come out about an elderly couple from another state. The husband was being transported in an ambulance to a hospice care facility back in 2012. During the transfer, his 85-year-old wife was in the ambulance with him. Suddenly, the driver of the ambulance stopped to avoid hitting a vehicle in front of him, according to the report. The sudden stop caused the elderly woman to pitch forward and strike her head on the inside of the ambulance.

The woman was taken to a hospital and died the next day. She had reportedly suffered a severe spinal cord injury that led to severe pain before her death. She was hoping to spend time with her husband at the hospice care facility before he died. Her husband died from cancer hours after she passed away at the hospital from her injuries.

Women claim defective birth control packaging led to pregnancies

Published on: December 14, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

An old product recall case has sparked a lawsuit brought by nearly 120 women against a pharmaceutical company. The recall happened back in 2011 and involved birth control pills. The pills were apparently packaged out of order, which potentially left women vulnerable to pregnancy. More than half a million blister packs were recalled after one customer noticed the pills were out of order.

Of the women involved in the lawsuit, more than 100 became pregnant and 94 of them carried the child to term. They are suing the company, as well as other companies that were involved in making and distributing the pills under other brand names, seeking damages for medical costs, lost income and for some, the cost of raising a child.

A similar lawsuit was recently rejected class-action status by a U.S. district judge. The judge said he considers each woman’s case unique and that each one should be weighed individually based on its specific and circumstances.

Survey asks physicians why they got sued

Published on: December 13, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

We constantly discuss a variety of medical malpractice cases on our blog, but sometimes it’s hard to see the bigger picture. Looking at the issue as a whole can sometimes help the medical field understand where they are lacking and what they can do better in order to not cause injury to their patients.

A recent survey asked some 4,000 physicians about their experience with being sued for malpractice. According to the survey, by the time the respondents were 60 years of age and older, 80 percent of them had been sued at least once.

While there are many reasons that may be brought up in a medical malpractice suit, the physicians who responded indicated three top reasons. Failure to diagnose and a patient suffering abnormal injury both came in at 31 percent. Those two were followed by failure to treat at 12 percent.

Cosmetic surgery: what questions should I ask?

Published on: December 12, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

In our last post we started discussing cosmetic surgery. This type of surgery has a large range of risks that come with it, just as other surgeries do. Although there are risks involved, many people still make the decision to go through with the surgery. One of the best ways to prepare for such a surgery is to make sure you find a surgeon you are comfortable with and to ask the right questions.

It’s good to learn about the qualifications of your surgeon. Is he or she board-certified? How many procedures has he or she done? What kind of results should you expect? You should also discuss any kinds of complications that could happen, especially if you have an extensive medical history. Beyond that, it’s important to know what the recovery will be like and how long you may need to take off work.

The doctor should also discuss things like scarring, cost and possible discomfort due to the surgery. Going into this type of surgery with these questions answered can help you feel confident in your decision. If your surgeon is avoiding discussing any of these topics, you may want to consider working with a different surgeon.

Syracuse University suffers brain injury after boxing incident

Published on: December 12, 2015 | By Jeff DeFrancisco

When someone experiences an injury, it can be temporary or permanent. Many types of injuries are immediately noticed and medical care is provided. One of the more difficult types of injuries to diagnose and cure is a brain injury. It may happen during a car accident, work accident or during a fall or athletic event. Brain injuries can come in many forms and in many severities. They can lead to memory loss, nausea, headaches, dizziness and sensory problems, among others.

A recent story out of Syracuse University highlights yet another incident of a brain injury causing devastating symptoms. The brain injury victim, a student at the university, has filed a lawsuit after he suffered a brain injury as part of a boxing session.

The student said he joined the boxing club during his senior year so he could exercise. During an exercise drill last year, the instructor repeatedly and unexpectedly punched him in the head. The student did not have any protective gear to cover his head. The drill was supposed to be a non-contact drill, reportedly. During the exercise, the coach, who has been named in the lawsuit, did nothing to stop the incident.