New York Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog

A Westchester County jury returned a $2.2 million dollar verdict against Westchester Medical Center located in Valhalla, NY and one of its physicians for allowing Eric Trainor, a 30 year-old quadriplegic and former contractor, to develop bedsores (pressure sores, decubiti) that progressed to Stage IV. Mr. Trainor was involved in a car accident on the way to a construction job back in 2005, which resulted in a spinal cord injury and quadraplegia.

From the crash site, he was taken to Westchester Medical Center where the bedsores developed. The Stage IV wounds on his back and buttocks progressed all the way down to the bone. The plaintiff argued at trial that the development of the sores delayed his physical therapy and left him without the opportunity to build upper-body strength.

The attorneys at Gallivan & Gallivan aggressively represent individuals who have developed bedsores (pressure sores, decubitus ulcers) in hospitals or nursing homes. As we have discussed on the New York Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Blog many times before, bedsores are preventable with appropriate care in almost all circumstances. If you or a loved one has been neglected, please contact us.

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Crash victim awarded $2.2M for bedsores from hospital stay, Journal News, Rebecca Baker, October 5, 2009.

Tom Baker is a professor of law and health sciences at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law and author of "The Medical Malpractice Myth". In an August 31, 2009 interview with Anne Underwood of the New York Times, Professor Baker explains, in understandable language, why tort reform would NOT reduce the costs of medical care.

He points out that three separate studies in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, found that approximately 1 serious injury occurs out of every 100 hospitalization. The same study also found that only 4-7 percent of individuals harmed by medical malpractice pursue claims. Therefore, based on the available research, it is apparent that not enough people pursue medical malpractice claims, not too many. Professor Baker calls the notion that there are lots of frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits "ludicrous."

For the transcript of the entire interview, please click on the link below.

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Would Tort Reform Lower Costs?, New York Times, Anne Underwood, August 31, 2009.

Staff Writers at the New York Daily News reported that between 2004 and 2008, New York State cited NYC hospitals 16 times for falsified, incomplete or missing medical records. Bellevue Hospital, Woodhull Hospital and Jacobi Medical Center were all cited over that period for "correcting" and/or simply "losing" medical records.

As we have reported previously on this site, the attorneys at Gallivan & Gallivan have represented victims of elder abuse and medical malpractice where health care providers have falsified records.

In fact, we were recently retained by a family in a nursing home matter where their family member passed away after suffering numerous falls and developing pressure sores. Our client passed away at the end of a 9 month admission. However, nurse's aides continued to document that the resident was toileted for five days after her death. In our view, this shows a blatant disregard for the welfare of patients, carelessness, and calls into question the integrity of the entire medical record.

Website Resources:

Hospital Records Were Sometimes Falsified to Cover Up Medical Mistakes; Daily News, Robert Gearty, Benjamin Lesser and Greg B. Smith, July 26, 2009.

A study performed by researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York indicates that 7 percent of patients are not notified of abnormal medical test results. The researchers found that out of 1,889 patients with abnormal test results, 135 were not notified. The study was based on information gleaned from over 5000 patient medical records from 4 medical centers and 19 primary care physicians.

Even more disconcerting, when the numbers were analyzed further, they showed that 23 percent of abnormal test results were not reported at 2 of the large medical centers. Hospitals and physicians should have policies and procedures in place that specify how and when patients are notified of any abnormal test results.

The law firm of Gallivan & Gallivan represented a patient who was not provided with the appropriate test results by her primary care physician. This failure tragically lead to a delay in diagnosing colon cancer. If you have suffered as a result of the medical malpractice of a physician or other health care provider, please contact us.

Website Resources:

New York researchers reveal doctor's medical malpractice, Justice New Flash, June 29, 2009.