medical negligence
Florida Rehabilitation Center May Face Elder Neglect Charges
Orlando elder abuse attorneys have been following a recent case of suspected abuse closely after hearing about the severity of the victim’s injuries. The Clermont Police Department and the Florida Department of Children and Families are investigating a local rehabilitation center on suspicion of elder abuse after an elderly man was taken to the hospital with third-degree skin ulcers on his buttocks. According to the police report, the man was taken to South Lake Hospital, where staffers alerted police and the state agency after treating the man’s ulcers. Given the advanced stage of the ulcers, staff members suspected neglect, prompting the investigation.
Florida Legislators Should Reconsider Medical Malpractice Damage Caps
There has been a lot of discussion in the media recently on the benefits of limits on the damages that medical malpractice victims can receive in court awards. This discussion is largely fueled by lobbyists and publicists for the insurance and hospital industries who say that damage caps are necessary in order to prevent medical practitioners, healthcare facilities and patients from being punished due to a small minority of negligent individuals and facilities. They say that caps are necessary to keep malpractice insurance premiums affordable for doctors and healthcare facilities and help prevent doctors from moving their practices to other states.
Florida Man Files Medical Malpractice Suit After Surgical Fire
A Florida man recently filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against NCH Downtown Naples Hospital after he was seriously injured by a surgical fire while undergoing pacemaker surgery. The man had his pacemaker surgically implanted on March 19, 2008. When he woke up after the surgery, he discovered second-degree burns all over his chest, neck and one shoulder. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), around 650 people are injured each year in surgical fires, a relatively unknown but potentially deadly and disfiguring risk in the surgical wards of hospitals.
Orlando Hosts National Prescription Drug Abuse Conference
A national conference on the growing problem of prescription drug abuse was held recently here in Orlando and included law enforcement officials, legislators, medical professionals and others to shed light on what is now described as an epidemic of abuse. Florida has gained a reputation in recent years as an easy place to score prescription drugs, especially painkillers such as Oxycontin, Vicodin and others. Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham welcomed the increased attention on prescription drug abuse, as he has represented countless people in recent years that have been injured by people under the influence of prescription pharmaceuticals. Florida’s reputation as a “pill mill” where people from all over the country can easily obtain drugs has brought much-needed attention to our state’s problems.