According to the National Academy of Science, Medical Mistakes kill an estimated 44,000 to 98,000 and injure as many as one million Americans every year.
Please take a moment to watch the following informational videos in which Medical Malpractice Attorney; Harold T. Harper answers some of his clients most frequently asked questions:
Were you or a member of your family hurt or injured as a result of Medical Negligence? Do you really know what occurred? You deserve a clear explanation, and if medical malpractice did cause your injury you may be entitled to monetary compensation.
One of the most challenging areas of law is Medical Malpractice. Bringing a successful claim to the insurance company or to a jury, requires lawyers with extensive experience, the financial resources to pay for a thorough investigation, and access to top medical experts.
Some of the types of Medical Malpractice we handle are: Misdiagnosis, or the failure of a doctor to diagnose a treatable condition within a reasonable amount of time, Mistakes made in the hospital or emergency room and Medication errors, among others.
If you believe you have been harmed by a medical professional, we urge you to contact Harper and Rogers today to arrange for a free legal consultation.
A recent case handled by Attorney Harold T. Harper was reported in The Times:
JURY AWARDS GARY NATIVE $1.5 MILLION IN MALPRACTICE CASE JURY AWARD: Ex-steelworker lost stomach following surgery; doctor still works at local hospitals Posted: Tuesday, November 14, 2006 12:00 am |CROWN POINT | A former worker for U.S. Steel won a $1.5 million malpractice case against a local surgeon Monday in Lake County court, attorneys in the case said. Michael Castro, 54, was born and raised in Gary and was a steelworker until he had surgery Feb. 25, 2000, to repair problems with gastroesophageal reflux, said his attorney, Harold Harper, of Valparaiso. Read the story HERE.
Telephone: (219) 762 9538
In Search of a National Strategy to Reduce Preventable Medical Errors
Attorney Harold T. Harper, January 24th, 2011
A recent government study highlights the alarming fact that hospitals have made very little progress in cutting down on preventable errors over the last decade. The 81-page report, titled Adverse Events in Hospitals: National Incidence Among Medicare Beneficiaries, was prepared by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Inspector General and was released late last year.
It’s headline findings are shocking: “An estimated 13.5% of hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries experienced adverse events during their hospital stays,” it says while a further 13.5% experienced events while in the hospital that resulted in “temporary harm.” This is all the more galling because, the study found, nearly half of these incidents – 44% - “were clearly or likely preventable.”
As the Hartford Courant noted in an editorial analyzing this and a similar academic study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine: “These two studies show that there has been little to no progress since the landmark 1999 report, “To Err is Human,” showing that between 44,000 and 98,000 are killed in hospitals due to preventable medical errors.”
“This situation,” the newspaper went on to note, “is intolerable.” We wholeheartedly agree.
While acknowledging that no system is perfect, it needs to be said that medical practitioners need to be held to the highest professional standards. Indianans who believe an injury or surgical complication they or a loved one have experienced may be the result of sub-standard performance by doctors working under Medicare owe it to themselves to speak with an Indiana medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. As taxpayers and as patients we have every reason to expect the highest standard of care from our doctors. When the medical system fails to measure up, a Gary, Valparaiso or other Northwest Indiana medical injury and wrongful death lawyer can be an essential ally in every patient’s fight for justice.
Hartford Courant: Harm in Hospitals
http://www.courant.com/news/opinion/editorials/hc-ed-hospital-harm-0110-20110110,0,5003531.story
Department of Health & Human Services – Office of the Inspector General news archive (go to 11-16-2010 to download the report: Adverse Events in Hospitals)
http://oig.hhs.gov/w-new_archive.asp
Certain painkillers linked to increased risk for heart attacks and strokes
ATTORNEY HAROLD HARPER: JANUARY 18TH, 2011
A study recently published in the British Journal of Medicine suggests links between the use of common painkillers and an increased risk of heart attack or stroke. According to a report by CNN’s medical unit “the analysis spanned studies including a total of more than 116,000 patients and looked at nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, also known as NSIDs, and the medical side effects that can develop when they are used repeatedly. NSIDs include many common anti-pain medications such as ibuprofen (in both its brand-name identity as Advil and as a generic) and Celebrex. The study also looked at several medications which are not sold in the United States and at one (Vioxx) which has been withdrawn from sale in this country.
According to both CNN and Bloomberg the study found a wide range of risks across the drugs studied. The researchers focused on whether, and to what extent, the possibility of a stroke or heart attack increased with long-term use of prescription-strength versions of the drug.
The most worrisome element of the paper is the researchers’ conclusion that among the drugs studied ibuprofen poses the greatest risk of medical complications. It would be easy to dismiss this on the grounds that the study looked only at long-term use of prescription-strength versions of the drug, but we all know that ibuprofen is also available over-the-counter, that many people use it frequently without even thinking of consulting a doctor, and that prescription-strength concentrations of the drug can be obtained by simply taking more of the over-the-counter pills at one time.
As Indiana medical malpractice lawyers it is difficult for us not to be disturbed by these findings, and to wonder whether drug companies and doctors alike are making patients sufficiently aware of them. Bloomberg quotes the head of Britain’s Pharmacological Society saying that the paper “adds to the growing body of evidence” linking regular painkiller use with increased dangers to the heart.
If you believe you or a loved one have been the victim of a heart attack or stroke and believe that repeated use of over-the-counter or prescription painkillers may have played a role in the tragedy, you owe it to yourself to seek the advice of a Northwest Indiana medical malpractice attorney. Complications from Indiana medical malpractice can include long-term incapacitation or even wrongful death. Consulting a lawyer can be the first step toward achieving justice, and the compensation you deserve.
CNN: Risk of NSAIDs backed in new study http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/11/risks-of-nsaids-backed-in-new-study/
Bloomberg: Generic painkillers may raise heart attack, stroke risk, review says http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-11/generic-painkillers-may-raise-heart-attack-stroke-risk-review-says.html
