Many factors contribute to the fact that healthcare in the U.S. ranks among the best in the world. Aside from effective education and technology, medical malpractice lawyers, through scrutiny and legal actions, contribute to our quality of healthcare by demanding high professional and ethical standards in the medical field.

The law defines medical malpractice or medical negligence as the failure to do something that a reasonably cautious medical care professional would or would not do under similar or the same circumstances. Consequently, a malpractice lawyer must establish through expert testimony the standard of care required by the medical field. Once the standard of care is established, the attorney must then prove that the defendant violated or failed to uphold those professional standards. Treatment resulting in injury to the patient doesn't in and of itself prove medical malpractice because medical treatment carries no guarantee of a successful outcome. Even if a doctor exercises extreme caution, there are calculated risks that are inescapable, referred to as "unavoidable risks."

Surgical Errors

Surgical errors are a common type of medical malpractice and can include errors regarding the administering and monitoring of anesthesia, the inadvertent cutting or injuring of nerves, organs, or body parts, as wells as improper post-surgical care. Once again, not all surgical complications result from error. If a patient is allergic to anesthesia, for example, he or she may go into shock and suffer serious injury or death, but there may have been no prior indication of allergy or way to know that this would have occurred. Additionally, some nerve damage during surgery may be considered reasonable. However, if the nerve is completely severed or transected, it may be considered malpractice. In general, the more remote an injury is from the area receiving surgery, the greater the likelihood of medical malpractice.

Pharmaceutical Litigation

Recalled drugs have been shown to cause serious side effects, injury or death. Because of inadequate testing and lax FDA standards, products have slipped into mass marketing and resulted in widespread usage, including some that are the most heavily used medications on the market:

• Propulsid - a heartburn medicine linked to heart damage, heart failure and death.
• Rezulin - a diabetic medicine causing liver damage and potentially resulting in liver failure, requiring transplants or death.
• PPA - a common ingredient in many over-the-counter cold medications and diet drugs, which can cause hemorrhagic strokes.
• Vioxx - used to reduce arthritis inflammation and menstrual pain, results in risk of heart attack, stroke or blood clots.

Our firm believes that "equal protection under the law" requires strong advocacy for those citizens most vulnerable to dangerous medications.

At Johnson and Monteleone, L.L.P., we are accepting VIOXX cases for heart attack, stroke or blood clot as well as cases involving Rezulin and Propulsid. We also offer legal advice and litigation services for the full scope of medical malpractice cases, ranging from health care provider and facility negligence to faulty and malfunctioning medical products.

Please call our office at (208) 331-2100 to arrange a free, no obligation consultation regarding your medical malpractice concerns.