patient

An increasing number of medical professionals are playing with their cell phones, iPads, and other technological devices while also tending to patients, a situation that might result in dangerous medical mistakes due to inattention, according to a recent article in Information Week. Recently, The New York Times cited several examples of doctors, nurses, and other professionals using gadgets for personal reasons wh [...]

An Eastern Shore cardiologist convicted of healthcare fraud, among other charges, by a federal jury in July has been sentenced to 8 years in prison by a United States District Court. The now retired doctor was convicted for implanting needless cardiac stents in patients at Salisbury’s Peninsula Regional Medical Center, falsifying patient records, and then billing private and public insurers hundreds of thousands [...]

With the shift toward computerized medical records to reduce medical malpractice, this story in The Los Angeles Times shows that human error can still influence a patient’s outcome. A baby was born 16 weeks premature in a hospital in Park Ridge, Illinois, when a pharmacy technician typed the wrong information into a computer screen. The baby received an automatic intravenous solution of sodium chloride – mo [...]

Are electronic medical records the answer to reducing medical errors and increasing patient safety? Almost two years ago, President Obama promised $19 billion to help the nation’s hospitals change over to a paperless system but it still hasn’t happened, and now there are some doubts whether or not electronic records are really an improvement over paper ones. The Institute of Medicine created a 16-member panel [...]

Treating the pain of burn victims is a tricky situation. Not only does the burn patient experience pain simply from the burn, but often the cleaning and redressing of the wound will cause even more pain. Current narcotics administered via IV may be woefully inadequate. Information on WebMd.com indicates that more research needs to be conducted on pain management in burn victims. Other treatment methods may in [...]

Misdiagnoses and mistakes happen often. Doctors get busy and sometimes they don’t remember all the details of a patient’s case or have all the necessary information for a complete diagnosis. So when the doctor says grandpa or grandma has Alzheimer’s, it may not really be so. Some medications can mimic the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. It is important to make sure your doctor is aware of all t [...]

The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority provides detailed information on healthcare providers throughout Pennsylvania, including hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and nursing homes. If you or a loved one needs medical care or will be staying in a nursing home, the Patient Safety Authority provides the following tips for choosing the best facility for your needs. The Patient Safety Authority and other regulatory [...]

Frances Miller of Fayette County, PA has filed a lawsuit against Highlands Hospital, claiming she was paralyzed after a bacterial spine infection was misdiagnosed when she visited the hospital’s ER. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that an on-call doctor didn’t discover her infection until more than 24 hours later, which was too late. Tragedies like these are not uncommon. An article in the Journal of the [...]

The Delaware County Times reports that a PA appeals court denied an appeal from a plastic surgeon from King of Prussia in a Pennsylvania medical malpractice case. The family of Amy Fledderman was awarded $20.5 million after they filed a suit against Richard P. Glunk. Fledderman died from complications from liposuction surgery and the jury found Glunk liable for Pennsylvania medical malpractice. Surgical errors ar [...]

According to this article on Maineville.com, a Mayo Regional patient received 10 times the needed epinephrine. The article reported that Timothy Harvey, 51, went to the hospital’s emergency room on June 4. He was suffering from an allergic reaction and died early the next morning from a massive overdose of medication mistakenly administered by hospital staff. The hospital’s CEO said it takes full responsibi [...]