Illinois Injury Attorney Blog

A Gurnee, Illinois family had its Medical Malpractice verdict upheld against the Erie Family Health Center. The Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyers at Kooi Law recently learned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld the $29.1 million verdict in the lawsuit, Arroyo v. United States. This case stems from an infection Christian Arroyo developed after he was born in 2003. He is now a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy.

Arroyo's parents contend their son developed a common neonatal blood infection not long after his birth. They allege physicians and nurses at Erie Family Health Center, a clinic funded by the United States government, did not treat their newborn for more than 12 hours. The Arroyos claim this Medical Negligence led to irreversible brain damage in their son.

Last year, the Arroyos won their Medical Malpractice case. However, the United States government appealed the multi-million dollar verdict. The federal government claimed the lawsuit was not timely because Christian's parents waited two years to file a Medical Malpractice claim. However, the Court of Appeals rejected that contention. The Arroyo's attorney argued the doctors never told the parents antibiotics could have prevented Christian's brain damage. The Arroyos didn't find this out until their next son was born and immediately given antibiotics. Thus, the Arroyos attorney argued, the parents had no way of knowing medical negligence occurred until the situation with their next son and the antibiotics he was given.

The Arroyos say they are pleased with the Court's decision and that the monetary award will help them care for their son, Christian. Illinois is one of several states that does not limit jury awards in mostMedical Malpractice cases. At one time, Illinois did have such a limit, known as a "cap." This cap was implemented in 2005 and set a $500,000 limit on noneconomic damages in cases against doctors and a $1 million cap against hospitals. The Illinois Supreme Court struck down that law in February of last year claiming the law violated the separation of powers. The Court said the law took away some of the power of judges and juries to make decisions.

While Illinois's Medical Negligence law does not limit damages, it does set a time limit for when when Medical Malpractice claims can be made. Of course, there are exceptions, but in general, a medical malpractice claim must be made within two years of when the medical error occurred.

Continue reading "ILLINOIS FAMILY AWARDED $29.1 MILLION IN MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CASE" »

Learning if your Illinois doctor has a history of Medical Malpractice will soon be much easier. Such information will soon be available online as part of the state's new "Patient Right to Know Act" which Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed Tuesday. Experienced Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyers are familiar with this online Medical Malpractice information source because it's not new. The law reinstates the website that had been in place for a few years until the Illinois Supreme Court ruled last year that a Medical Malpractice reform law was not constitutional. Thus, the state had to take down the website.

So what will the database entail? People should be able to find a more detailed history on Illinois physicians such as any judgments and settlements against the doctors in Medical Malpractice and Medical Negligence lawsuits in the past five years. Appeals will also be noted. People can also learn if a doctor was disciplined in Illinois or in another state. Doctors will have about two months to look over the information before the website is active for consumers. Then, information on almost 50,000 licensed doctors will be back on the web, and it will be updated continuously.

If you are interested in using the database, you can find it on the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation's website. Illinois is not the only state to offer such medical information to people. California, Idaho and Florida are just a few of the other states with similar searchable databases.

Illinois lawmakers and the state's court system are constantly changing and reforming Illinois's Medical Malpractice rules and laws. Thus, the honest and hard-working Illinois Medical Malpractice Lawyers at Kooi Law are staying on top of these changes to better serve their clients. This is also why it's important to carefully choose a Medical Malpractice Lawyer if you believe you are the victim of a medical error.

One such change was mentioned earlier, and it was a big one. In February of last year, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned the state’s Medical Malpractice law which had been in place for five years. The law was overturned because it limited compensation to injured patients for pain and suffering. Thus, what's commonly known as "caps" on jury awards in Medical Malpractice and Medical Negligence cases were done away with. The caps had been set at $500,000 for non-economic damages in decisions against physicians and $1 million in verdicts against hospitals. Now, juries are not restricted on how much they can award a victim of a medical error.

Another key element of Illinois's Medical Malpractice Act is the statute of limitations. This aspect mandates that an apparent victim of a medical mistake must start Medical Malpractice actions within 2 years of when the supposed error happened. However, there are circumstances that can allow a victim a longer period of time to file a Medical Malpractice lawsuit.

Continue reading "ILLINOIS DOCTORS' MEDICAL MALPRACTICE HISTORY TO SOON BE ONLINE" »

People in Illinois should soon be able to find out if their doctors were ever guilty of Medical Malpractice. That's part of a new bill, the Patients' Right to Know Act, that the governor is expected to sign. The Illinois General Assembly passed the bill Tuesday.

As reported by the Chicago Tribune in the article, "Patients' Right to Know Act Passes Assembly," the bill also would give people information about whether an Illinois doctor was ever fired or found guilty of a crime or made a Medical Malpractice payment in the last 5 years. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation would compile the doctors' histories and make them public by putting them on its website.

Illinois lawmakers have been focusing on Medical Malpractice reform and patients' rights in recent years. Just last year, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that caps on Medical Malpractice or Medical Negligence awards were not constitutional. Those caps had been in place due to a 2005 law which placed awards at $500,000 for non-economic damages against doctors and a million dollars against hospitals.

Continue reading "ILLINOIS LEGISLATION WOULD GIVE PATIENTS INFO ON DOCTOR MEDICAL MALPRACTICE HISTORY" »

A Medical Malpractice presentation at the annual American Roentgen Ray Society meeting in Chicago, Illinois showed the absolute number of Medical Malpractice and Medical Negligence lawsuits filed seems to be getting smaller. However, these lawsuits still do exist in high numbers. Chicago's Doctor Leonard Berlin, vice chair of radiology at Northshore University Hospital, detailed causes of medical malpractice among radiologists. Berlin said failure to diagnose breast and lung cancer are most often the causes of medical malpractice cases in his field.

According to www.cmio.net in the article, "AARS: Malpractice Suits Decline, Challenges Persist," Berlin found that about 60 years ago, the cause of medical malpractice lawsuits began to change from apparent acts of commission to apparent acts of failing to diagnose. He says as that change was happening, the number of medical malpractice claims per malpractice insurance policy began to decline. The article states radiologists are often considered key players in medical malpractice cases because they are often at the center of a diagnosis or missed diagnosis.

Of course, reducing medical errors is a key objective for doctors. Berlin suggested radiologists review the pertinent clinical data. He says they should examine the image again with a colleague or the attending doctor.

Continue reading "FEWER MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAWSUITS FILED ACCORDING TO REPORT AT ANNUAL MEDICAL MEETING IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS" »

An Illinois man is suing his spine surgeon for Medical Malpractice after a surgery left the man without his sight. Illinois's Ronald McClintock also named Trinity Regional Health in that Medical Negligence lawsuit. The spine surgeon charged with Medical Malpractice is R. Scott Collins from Moline, Illinois.

As reported by www.outpatientsurgery.net in the article, "Illinois Man Sues Spine Surgeon and Hospital After He Goes Blind," McClintock had spine surgery in May of 2010 at Trinity Regional Health. The procedure lasted 250 minutes. Apparently, the patient was lying face down for 100 minutes longer than anticipated. He has type 2 diabetes and is severely overweight. When the surgery was complete, McClintock contends he had low blood pressure, couldn't move his hands or arms and couldn't see among other issues. While he did recover from the other complications, McClintock is now blind. The surgeon did not report any complications from the surgery.

In Illinois, there is no cap on compensatory damages in Medical Malpractice cases. This is a relatively new development. As detailed by the New York Times in "Illinois Court Strikes Down Malpractice Statute," in February of last year, the Illinois Supreme Court struck down caps stating the restrictions limited compensation to injured patients.

Continue reading "ILLINOIS MAN SUES CLAIMING MEDICAL MALPRACTICE AFTER GOING BLIND" »

Through their website, Medicare.gov, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Medicare are now publishing what they describe as Nursing Home Resident Rights.

Per current law, Nursing home residents have certain rights and protections, and all nursing homes are required to provide this list to new residents and publish a copy in their facility.

Some of these resident rights include:

-The right to be treated with dignity and respect.
-The right to be informed in writing about services and fees before you enter the nursing home.
-The right to manage your own money or to choose someone else you trust to do this for you.
-The right to privacy, and to keep and use your personal belongings and property as long as it doesn't interfere with the rights, health, or safety of others.
-The right to be informed about your medical condition, medications, and to see your own doctor. You also have the right to refuse medications and treatments.
-The right to have a choice over your schedule (for example, when you get up and go to sleep), your activities and other preferences that are important to you.
-The right to an environment more like a home that maximizes your comfort and provides you with assistance to be as independent as possible.

Continue reading "CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES ISSUES NURSING HOME RESIDENTS' RIGHTS LIST" »

Placing your loved one in a reputable long-term care facility is just the first step in ensuring they are well cared for. Regardless of complaints or sanctions found during state and federal inspections (be they few or many), residential facilities are often understaffed. This fact in concert with the advanced needs of elder patients can create a worrisome environment. As an advocate for your loved one, you've got federal (and sometimes state) law on your side to insist that your relative or friend gets the quality of care they deserve. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and your state law contain many protections.

The following are just a sample from the Code of Federal Regulations:

• Care Plans
Each nursing home resident is entitled to a personalized "care plan," that addresses their respective medical and safety needs. This plan must have an anticipated goal of ensuring a resident/patient maintains their highest practicable physical, mental and psychosocial well-being. Federal law requires that facilities do a full assessment of a resident's condition within 14 days of admission, and at least every 12 months thereafter. A care plan should include measurable objectives and timetables.

• Visiting Hours
In my experience with friends or family members that have loved ones in nursing homes, it is not at all uncommon for facilities to put forth the idea that Family can only visit during visiting hours. Not only is this mendacious, Federal legislation actually specifically prohibits such rules. 42 CFR 483.10(j) allows immediate family the right to visit at any time. In fact, we often advise clients to visit during off-hours so that they can perceive their loved one's environment when staff members aren't expecting visitors.

• Skilled Care or Rehabilitation Services
In the past, we have had clients tell us that their parents' nursing home facility has terminated skilled care or rehab services because their Mom or Dad weren't making progress. Again, however, this is contrary to federal and often times, state law. Assuming that the resident would benefit from such services, a facility is charged with trying to maintain their condition regardless of progress. All facilities are required to make sure that a person's ability to carry out activities of daily living doesn't deteriorate. The only exception would be if the individual's medical condition deteriorates to such an extent that termination of the activity is in their better interest.

• Nutrition and Eating
Feeding tubes may be used only if absolutely necessary. Long-term care facilities are not permitted to utilize them solely to address a resident who eats slowly or needs extra help cutting or eating food. The facility must provide whatever help a resident needs to eat without extrinsic medical involvement such as Gastric or G-Tubes. Feeding tubes should only be placed with qualified physician orders, and where absolutely necessary to maintain health.

Continue reading "FEDERAL AND ILLINOIS NURSING HOME LAWS PLACE POWER IN THE HANDS OF FAMILY MEMBERS" »

The federal government through the CMS (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) has placed hundreds of nursing homes on a list of long-term care facilities that it wants to improve systemic issues or face expulsion from the Medicaid program.

The watch list is intended to heighten efforts to bring more attention to quality deficiencies at long-term care or nursing home facilities identified on this "special focus facility," or SFF, list.

The pressure is important because Medicaid is a significant payer for long-term care facilities. By utilizing financial leverage, CMS hopes to bring about improvements in operations at poor-quality or high risk nursing homes.

In November of 2007, CMS began highlighting nursing homes with serious quality issues on its Nursing Home Compare Web site.

Continue reading "THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PLACES ILLINOIS NURSING HOMES ON THEIR WATCH LIST" »

An Indiana Nursing home resident, Rodney Kenney, died after catching fire while sitting in his wheelchair at Regency Place, a Dyer, Indiana, Lake County, nursing home. Rodney Kenney, 72, died at a Chicago hospital where he was treated for burns. State Inspectors say the Alzheimer's patient was severely burned when his clothing caught fire as he sat in a wheel chair. Authorities say they found a cigarette lighter near Kenney, but that he was not a smoker. In fact, state law prohibits smoking in nursing homes and patients are not allowed to possess smoking materials.

Continue reading "NURSING HOME RESIDENT TREATED AT CHICAGO HOSPITAL FOR FATAL INJURIES AFTER CATCHING FIRE AT AN INDIANA LONG TERM FACILITY" »