Hawaii Injury Lawyer Blog

This past week, 75 former NFL players sued the National Football League in Los Angeles Superior Court claiming that for 90 years the league knew about the risks of game-related concussions and that the NFL concealed brain injury risks from coaches, trainers, players and the public. The players also named helmet manufacturer Riddell as a defendant. According to the lawsuit, as early as the 1920s the NFL was aware of the harmful effects of traumatic brain injuries such as concussions on a player’s brain, but failed to adequately warn or prevent these risks.

Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are caused when excessive forces are applied to the head that result in damage to the brain. TBIs can occur as the result of a variety of types of accidents but are common results of sports accidents, car accidents, violence or Shaken Baby Syndrome. Effects of TBIs may include short-term memory loss, compromised cognitive functioning and in some cases, an inability to manage the activities of daily living. Where a TBI is the result of another’s negligence or wrongful conduct, a victim may be entitled to compensation.

Here, as well as allegations that the NFL knew as early as the 1920s about the effects of TBIs, the lawsuit also claims that the NFL commissioned a brain injury study in 1994 entitled “NFL Committee on Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.” But, according to the lawsuit it wasn’t until June 2010 that the NFL acknowledged that concussions could lead to dementia, memory loss, dizziness and other symptoms.

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A recent study into the causes of autism failed to determine just one cause for the condition but instead identified 16 different factors that contribute to an increased risk of future autism. According to the article published in Pediatrics, “Although there is insufficient evidence to implicate any one perinatal or neonatal factors…[there is] some evidence to suggest that exposure to multiple neonatal complications may increase autism risk.”

Among the factors identified as increasing risk include fetal distress, umbilical cord complications, birth injury, or trauma. Generally, birth injuries occur when the blood flow is compromised during labor and delivery. Doctors and nurses need to take immediate action to increase the oxygen supply to the baby. Lifelong injuries – including erb’s palsy, cerebral palsy and possibly autism - can occur if the supply is not immediately restored.

The failure to take immediate action and act according to the appropriate standard of care may constitute medical malpractice, and the doctors, nurse and hospital staff responsible may be required paying damages – including the cost of a child’s treatment for the rest of their life.

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In the first of what could potentially be many, on Monday a medical malpractice trial began against a Miami Veterans Administration Hospital for using improperly cleaned colonoscopy equipment. According to the lawsuit, a U.S. Air Force veteran – Robert Metzler - from Coral Gables, contracted the life-threatening hepatitis C condition as the result of being scoped with dirty colonoscopy equipment. At trial, attorneys explained that Metzler now faces a future of exhaustion, the threat of cirrhosis or liver cancer, and loss of sexual companionship.

Metzler is not alone in his claim. More than 11,000 U.S military vets have been informed that they had colonoscopies with the use of dirty equipment at three VA Hospitals. Metzler’s trial against the Miami VA marks the first trial. In addition to the Miami VA Hospital, other VA hospitals implicated include ones in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Augusta, Georgia.

Metzler now has hepatitis C, which also has the potential for insomnia, hot flashes and liver failure. Although some drugs exist to treat the condition, significant side effects may occur from their use including suicidal and homicidal tendencies.

Society depends on medical providers for quality care and treatment. When we visit a doctor or go to the hospital we expect to emerge healthier. While the majority of medical providers offer excellent care, when providers fail to comply with community standards of care and commit medical errors, they may be liable for medical malpractice.

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The recent suicide of a 50-year-old nurse highlights the extent of tragedy when a medical mistake occurs. Kimberley Hiatt, a registered nurse at Seattle Children’s Hospital overdosed a baby with 10 times the necessary medication. The child died a few days later. Shortly thereafter, Hiatt was fired and investigated by the state nursing commission. Hiatt’s death underscores the complexity involved when medical errors occur.

Patients killed by medical errors continue to increase. In fact, 1 in 7 Medicare patients are victims of serious medical errors and hospitals each year. A Department of Health and Human Service’s report this past November reported that 180,000 patients die each year due to preventable errors. This is nearly double the 98,000 reported deaths each year in 2000.

In addition to the significant toll on families of medical malpractice and wrongful death, studies show health care workers are often traumatized by their actions, with reactions ranging from anxiety to sleeping problems, questioning their professional abilities and thoughts of suicide.

Further, where medical malpractice occurs, is important for families of a victim to seek compensation in order to provide for a lifetime of care caused by a medical error.

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