Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

According to the New York Times, more radiation overdoses have occurred from CT brain perfusion scans than what was originally thought. More than 400 patients in the US have reportedly experienced higher radiation doses from the scans—although the FDA says that this number may be lower than the actual number of overdose cases. Last year, the Food and Drug Administration began an inquiry into why some patients that underwent the scan, which tests for stroke, experienced radiation overdose. GE Healthcare is the company that supplies the scanners.

CT brain perfusion scans are designed to deliver radiation doses equal to about 200 skull X-rays. Yet some patients reportedly received up to 13 times that radiation amount.

While the FDA has yet to release any official findings, the New York Times says that not only are the overdoses larger than what was originally determined, but some patients are experiencing much more serious side effects than hair loss, including confusion, headaches, memory loss, and a possibly higher risk of developing cancer or brain damage.

Despite these symptoms, some hospitals and doctors reportedly failed to detect that patients had experienced radiation overdose. Even after the FDA put out a national alert asking that hospitals check the tests’ radiation output, some hospitals kept overdosing patients for weeks or months.

Causes of the radiation overdoses have included improper test administration by physicians, which can be grounds for a medical malpractice case, and possible product defect issues, such as design deficiencies and failure to provide the proper training for how to use the medical devices.

After Stroke Scans, Patients Face Serious Health Risks, The New York Times, July 31, 2010

FDA Investigates Radiation Overdose At Hospitals, NPR, December 15, 2009

Related Web Resources:
FDA

Medical Malpractice, Nolo

Continue reading "Boston Medical Malpractice?: CT Brain Perfusion Scans Can Cause Radiation Overdose" »

According to the Boston Globe, a federal immigration agency report examining the death of immigrant detainee Pedro Tavarez accuses Suffolk County Jail medical staff of waiting too long to get the 49-year-old man the proper medical help. Tavarez, who was suffering from diabetes and hypertension, was being held at the jail so he could be deported back to the Dominican Republic. He died of heart failure on October 19.
after a deadly bacterial infection ravaged his body.

The 98-page report by the ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility claims that Tavarez did not receive the proper medical care while at the jail. Prison Health Services Inc. runs the jail infirmary.

Tavarez's medical condition grew worse and although Boston Medical Center is closer to the jail, he was taken to Shattuck Hospital where he suffered a heart attack. Unfortunately, the Jamaica Plain hospital lacks medical emergency services, so he was transported to Faulkner Hospital. Due to the unavailability of an intensive-care bed, he was sent to Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

The report says language barriers, incomplete medical records, and staff that failed to check his vitals and get him to the right hospital immediately contributed to Tavarez not getting the proper medical care that he needed. He was initially treated for a cold but after his condition deteriorated he was admitted to an infirmary where staff was supposed to check his vitals every four hours. The report says that this did not always happen. Also, the Bureau of Prisons doctor has said that Tavarez should have been transported to a hospital sooner. Instead, he stayed at the jail infirmary for another day.

Prisons and jails owe prisoners, detainees, and suspects a duty of care to protect them from Boston police brutality and crimes committed by other inmates. The law enforcement officers must also must provide them with the proper emergency and medical care when warranted and make sure that they are fed and given enough to drink. Unfortunately, there are people who end up hurt or dead while in police custody because other parties were negligent or reckless. Injured suspects and prisoners have been known to file Boston injury lawsuits seeking compensation for the harm that they suffered.

Suffolk jail is faulted in death of detainee, Boston, July 30, 2010

Report faults care in death of Boston detainee, Boston Herald, July 30, 2010

Read the Government's Federal Report (PDF)

Related Web Resources:
ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility

Suffolk County Jail

Continue reading "Suffolk County, Massachusetts Wrongful Death?: Jail Waited Too Long to Send Immigrant Detainee to the Hospital, Says Federal Report" »

The Supreme Judicial Court has thrown out a 125-year old ruling that allows there to be a distinction between snow and ice conditions caused by nature and those that accumulate artificially. In a unanimous Massachusetts slip and fall ruling, the state’s high court said that effective immediately (and retroactively to pending lawsuits) it will no longer be reasonable for a property owner to allow ice or snow to accumulate on a walkway even if either got there by natural means.

The court’s decision comes in the Massachusetts slip and fall lawsuit filed by Emanuel Papadopoulos against Target and Weiss Landscaping, the snowplow company it hired to clear snow and ice from in Liberty Tree Mall. Papadopoulos was involved in the Danvers slip and fall accident in 2002 when he slipped on snow that had turned into ice in the parking area.

While lower courts had ruled in favor of the defendants as a result of the distinction between “artificial” and “natural” ice, which holds that property owners are not violating their duty of care when they don’t remove natural accumulations of ice and snow, the Supreme Judicial Court’s ruling now paves the way for Papadopoulos’s Massachusetts slip and fall lawsuit to go back to a lower court for reconsideration.

Common kinds of slip and fall injuries:
• Bruises
• Scrapes
• Broken bones
• Fractures
• Hip injuries
• Traumatic brain injuries
• Spinal cord injuries
• Resulting health complications

Boston, Massachusetts Slip and Fall
Boston slip and fall injuries can be excruciatingly painful and costly to treat. You may have grounds for a Boston premises liability case.

High court changes rules on slip-and-fall lawsuits, Boston.com, July 26, 2010

SJC upends 100 years of slip-and-slide law, Boston Business, July 26, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Slip and Fall, Nolo

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

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A study of 323 Boston dementia patients from 22 assisted living facilities is calling into question whether treating residents advanced stage dementia patients who are suffering from pneumonia with antibiotics is the proper course of action. According to the study’s findings, which was published last week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, antibiotics may prolong a dementia patient’s life for about nine months. However, in the meantime, the resident may be experiencing greater pain, anxiety, and depression. Patients who were not treated with antibiotics appeared to experience greater levels of comfort than residents who were given the medication.

Pneumonia is a common illness for patients with advanced dementia because they have swallowing problems, making it easy for food to get caught in their lungs, and their immune system is likely impaired. The researchers are saying that it is important that caregivers discuss medical options with a patient’s family first rather than automatically treating his/her pneumonia with antibiotics..

Unfortunately, many nursing homes don’t consult with a patient’s family members first because they are worried they might get sued for Boston nursing home negligence. To cover their bases, they provide aggressive medical care—an option that might not be the best course of action for every resident.

Boston Nursing Home Negligence
It isn’t enough for a Massachusetts assisted living facility to provide a patient with medical and nursing care. The type of treatment provided must be the the one that's best one for the patient’s specific needs. It is important that the resident or family members are consulted about medical decisions and informed consent is obtained.

Study questions dementia care, Boston.com, July 13, 2010

When Pneumonia Follows Severe Dementia, New York TImes, July 23, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Alzheimer's Disease and Other Forms of Dementia, WebMD

Archives of Internal Medicine

Continue reading "Dementia Care: Are Boston Nursing Homes Providing the Proper Medical Treatment When They Use Antibiotics to Treat Pneumonia?" »

CPR was performed on a 13-year-old boy on Monday night at the Holiday Inn on Jones Road in Falmouth. The boy nearly drowned while in the hotel pool.

Now that summer is here, the number of drowning and near drowning incidents for the year will undoubtedly go up. It is important that pool owners and supervisors, both of residential and private pools and hot tubs, make sure that the proper safety measures are in place to prevent Massachusetts drowning accidents from happening.

Just this Saturday, 2-year-old twins died in a Lynnfield drowning accident in their own pool. Veronica and Angelina Andreottola appear to have fallen into the water because a retractable cover was not completely covering the pool. Police say the toddlers may have pushed the button for the cover. Their death comes just weeks after state Representative Robert J. Nyman died from an accidental drowning in his own backyard pool.

Pool owners can be held liable for Boston personal injury or wrongful death if their negligence allowed another party to drown, nearly drown, slip and fall, or injure themselves in any other way in or around a pool or a whirlpool. Kids and adults that don’t know how to swim or are prone to certain health complications are at risk of drowning. Adequate supervision, such as lifeguards or an adult that knows how to swim and perform CPR, proper lighting, making sure the pool is clear of debris so that anyone drowning at the bottom can be easily detected, and placing rescue equipment in the pool area are just some of the steps that a property owner can take to decrease the chances that a Boston pool drowning accident will happen. Installing retractable covers, pool fences, and secured gates around the pool area can help.

CPR performed on 13-year-old near drowning victim at Falmouth hotel pool, CapeCodToday, July 20, 2010

Surveillance tape looked at in twins' drowning, WHDH, July 20, 2010

Legislator’s autopsy determines death was accidental drowning, Boston.com, June 28, 2010

Related Web Resources:
CPSC Warns Backyard Pool Drownings Happen "Quickly and Silently", CPSC

Drowning Facts, YMCA

Unintentional Drowning: Fact Sheet, CDC

Continue reading "13-Year-Old Nearly Drowns in Falmouth Swimming Pool Accident at Holiday Inn" »

A construction worker hurt his back and fractured his ribs on Monday during what is being described as a Shrewsbury slip and fall accident through the roof of an AutoZone that is under construction. The victim is employed by M&M Drywall of Georgia, a subcontractor for this job.

The worker fell 15 feet during the Massachusetts construction accident. According to Shrewsbury Fire Chief James M. Vuona, who is quoted on Telegram.com, the man fell after lifting a piece of plywood that was covering one of the openings of the auto parts store’s unfinished roof.

Vuona says that the Massachusetts fall accident may have happened because the surface that the worker was standing on was wet—either from dew or rain. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into the Shrewsbury construction accident.

Boston, Massachusetts Construction Fall Accidents
Fall accidents from roofs, skylights, cranes, scaffolds, and other elevated heights are a common cause of serious injuries to construction workers. Construction falls can lead to traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, coma, and even death. While an employer is supposed to pay Massachusetts workers’ compensation benefits for work injuries and deaths, disputes sometimes can arise, and this is where an experienced Boston workers' compensation law firm can help you. There also may be third parties who should be held liable.

There are safety measures that must be in place to protect construction workers from getting hurt in a fall accident. For example, the roof of a structure under construction must be finished to a degree where it is safe enough for workers to go on it. Also, workers must be equipped with the proper protection and safety procedures must be abided by.

Man injured in job accident, News Telegram.com, July 13, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Falls, OSHA

Construction Safety, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Continue reading "Construction Worker Injured During Massachusetts Slip and Fall Accident Through Roof" »

The parents of 7-month-old Kaylee Marie Drolet are suing Baystate Medical Center in Springfield and four doctors for Massachusetts medical malpractice. Matthew Drolet and Samantha Martino claim the defendants conducted an autopsy on Kaylee and took out her organs without their consent. The hospital disagrees, claiming that Martino gave her verbal consent that her baby’s organs could be removed.

Kaylee passed away on March 31, 2007. The infant had suffered from a very rare genetic disease called Charged syndrome.

Martino, 26, says that minutes after Kaylee was pronounced dead, a hospital doctor asked her to complete paperwork for an autopsy. She claims that she asked him to come back later but that he never did.

Martino and Drolet, 24, say that they didn’t know that Kaylee’s organs had been removed until after the funeral director told them that they were not in her body. The couple filed their Massachusetts injury lawsuit in Hampden Superior Court. They are claiming emotional distress, pain, and suffering.

A Baystate spokesperson contends that the hospital abided by state regulations and its own policy when getting Martino’s consent and that two hospital employees were on the phone when she agreed to the procedure.

However, Martino denies giving her consent and her signature is not on the consent form. Barring certain exceptions, usually involving public health and criminal issues, under Massachusetts law and regulations next of kin must give their consent before an autopsy can be conducted.

Boston Medical Malpractice
Medical mistakes can be extremely traumatic for the victims and/or their families. If you believe that you or your loved one underwent the wrong surgery, an unnecessary medical procedure, or were the victims of hospital negligence, medication mix-ups, failure to obtain informed consent, anesthesia errors, wrong diagnosis, delayed diagnosis, poor postoperative care, or any other type of medical mistake, it is important that you explore your legal options for filing a Boston, Massachusetts malpractice claim as soon as possible.

‘Her heart is somewhere else’, Boston Herald, July 11, 2010

Springfield MA-based Hospital Sued for Autopsy, Organ Removal Without Consent, Justice News Flash, July 12 ,2010

Related Web Resources:
Baystate Medical Center

CHARGE Syndrome

Massachusetts Law About Burial, Cremation and Funerals, Massachusetts Law Libraries

Police are investigating a New Bedford dog attack on Friday that left a 22-year-old UMass Dartmouth student with serious injuries. WPRI reports that the man was walking close to Country and Robeson Streets in the evening when three pit bulls came out of a residence and mauled him.

According to witnesses, they jumped on the man, biting him all over his body. A number of people tried to rescue him, while drivers blasted their horns to scare the dogs away.

The student was transported to Saint Luke’s Hospital for treatment. He will likely have to undergo facial reconstructive surgery.

In other recent Massachusetts dog bite news, Lex Lizotte, a 5-year-old boy and his babysitter Karen Bruno O'Leary, 38,were injured when her bulldog attacked them in Lakeville. O’Leary reportedly held her dog, which kept biting her, until police arrived. They shot the animal nine times. Neighbors have said that dog has never a problem in the past.

Lizotte had to be flown to Boston Children’s Hospital where he underwent four hours of surgery for treatment of his injuries. O’Leary sustained serious facial and arm injuries from the Massachusetts dog attack.

Boston Dog Attacks
Dog owners can be held liable for dog bite injuries sustained by a victim. Common dog bite injuries include bite marks, open wounds, puncture wounds, rabies, nerve damage, organ damage, facial injuries, infection, and disfigurement. These injuries can be extremely painful, disfiguring, and traumatic. They may require costly surgeries to remedy and victims can be left scarred and disfigured for life. Kids and the elderly are especially susceptible to serious Massachusetts dog bite injuries. A person who is attacked by a dog may developed a fear of dogs, which can impede his/her ability to live a normal life. A dog owner does not have to be negligent in order be held liable for your Massachusetts dog bite injuries.

3 pit bulls attack man in New Bedford, WHDH, July 12, 2010

Lakeville boy, 5, survives vicious mauling, Boston Herald, June 25, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Animal and Dog Bites, Justia

Dog Bite Prevention, CDC

Continue reading "New Bedford Dog Attack Involving Three Pit Bulls Leaves UMass Dartmouth Student with Serious Facial Injuries" »

According to police, 21-year-old Evan Hoffman had just been released from jail on bail an hour before his Jeep Cherokee crossed the double yellow lines on Beacon Street to crash head-on into a minivan shortly after 6am on June 26. The Newton car accident claimed the life of the van’s driver, Chelsea resident Jose Puzul-Peres. Hoffman has not been charged In the Massachusetts traffic crash, which is still under investigation.

Hoffman, however, was arrested at around 3am that day for allegedly kicking cars and smashing windshields on Beacon Street. According to police, the 21-year-old Newton resident was shirtless, swinging a belt at the windshields, and yelling at women on the street. He was arrested and charged with three counts of destruction of property and disorderly conduct. A bail bondsman then helped him get out of jail.

It was just on June 24 that Hoffman had gotten back the use of his driver’s license, after a one-year suspension, and was released from probation for a 2008 drunk driving conviction involving him crashing his mother’s vehicle and leaving the car accident site. Also, according to Registry of Motor Vehicles records, during the time that Hoffman’s license was suspended he was involved in a New York car accident. The records also indicate that the registration of the Jeep he was driving during the Newton car accident that killed Puzul-Peres had been revoked.

To determine who is liable for causing your Boston, Massachusetts car accident, it is important that you consult with a Boston injury law firm to explore your legal options. There may be more than one party who should be held liable. You have three years from the time of injury to file your Massachusetts personal injury lawsuit.

Driver in fatal Newton crash had prior accident with suspended license, Wicked Local, July 2, 2010

Police: Man Smashing Windshields In Fatal Crash, WCVB Boston, July 2, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Massachusetts Highway Department

MassDOT

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety