Anyone have experience with seeking legal assistance with a medical malpractice? I have a family member that endured something very horrific and feel like it's possibly a case worth looking at.

 

I’m sure someone at Morgan and Morgan would love to speak with them.

 

This isn’t helpful to your situation (sorry) but I’m amazed how common this seems to be. I’ve had two co-pilots have to go AMA and walk out of hospitals because what they were trying to do would have ended their medicals. One would have had to do dialysis for life. Both healed on their own or with alternate procedures.

Scary.

 

So this is non aviation related just thought I would throw it to the group.

So my father-in-law just had an ablation procedure done to help his heart. He's had it done before but this will probably be the last time. This time the procedure required for the team to use a pump for his heart and I believe his lungs were being controlled as well. In order to do the procedure they would use a paralytic which imobilizes you along with anesthesia and mental blockers so you don't feel or remember anything. Not sure why but they put patches over your eyes, probably to prevent anything getting in your eyes. Apparently your eyes are open when a paralytic is used.

So the paralytic takes affect but the anesthesia and memory blockers do not. Time comes for the team of doctors and assistants to do their thing. This was close to a 5 hr procedure that my father-in-law felt, heard, smelled everything that was happening. From the incisions in his groin and his side where they went thru his ribs, the staff talking, the music playing in the operating room. He doesn't like Simon and Garfunkel and they were playing more than once. He said even with the patches over his eyes he could still see movement out his peripheral. I think the only way he survived that was because his heart and lungs were mechanically controlled otherwise I would think they would just explode, how his mind didn't I'm just not sure. He's in ICU recovering but I can imagine this has done some psychological damage to this poor guy.

I'm not a doctor nor a lawyer but this seems like something we should seek some legal help on. I would not want this to happen to anyone and feel there needs to be procedures in place to prevent this. Had he died during the operation no one know why other than just saying his heart wasn't strong enough.

I appreciate any thoughts or advice.

 

the State that this occurred in will be important. Some have short statutes of limitations. I would consult an attorney regarding this. The Lanier Law Firm (Mark Lanier) is one of the top trial law firms in the nation, FYI. You can google search them. He has gone after, and won, cases against Pharma companies, Oil companies, etc etc

 

This sounds like the plot of a really bad horror movie. That poor guy. That is definitely inexcusable. Hopefully this wasn’t in a state that limits malpractice payouts because he is due a large one.

 

Unfortunately it looks like that's the case. Looks my state has a 500k max.

 

Awareness under anesthesia is a well known phenomenon. It doesn’t necessarily imply gross incompetence or negligence. The anesthesia record should be pretty clear if a gross mistake was made, especially if they are electronic as most are now.

Call the hospital and ask for risk management and make a complaint. That will get attention quickly. Also ask for a copy of the intraoperative anesthesia record

It is also, in fact, the plot of a bad horror movie - “Awake”

 

A record only indicates what someone wrote happened, not what actually happened. Seems weird to paralyze someone before knocking them out. Someone wasn't being a good monitor, or maybe they may need better oversight of their anesthesia drug handling.

 

Most anesthesia setups now automatically record the critical data piece that will differentiate between malpractice and bad luck in a case of awareness. 20 years ago that wasn’t true.

And the unfortunate gentleman was almost certainly anesthetized and paralyzed simultaneously. the anesthetic induction agent wears off after a few minutes while the paralytic lasts longer.