malpractice ?!
Question: my son recieved a lumbar puncture that was done wrong from an er doctor. he did the puncture in the middle of his back not the lumbar area. a mri showed that there was blood around his spinal cord. his chart states that he was stuck 17 times. a specialist htat looked after him said it was in the wrong place and it should have not been done that many times. he lost use of both legs and bladder function. it has been two weeks and he now has full use of his bladder but can not walk. one leg seems to be working while the other does not. My question is -- How should i go about getting help and representation for my son?
Answers:
I am sorry to hear about your son's situation. You definitely need to consult with a malpractice attorney. However, there is plenty of time for that. Right now, it may be best to focus your time and energy (and love) on helping your son to heal and recover.
Best wishes and good luck!
Other Answers:
It is always worth finding out. I would check. A lawyer will usually offer a free consult to tell you if you have a case
Go to a malpractice attorney. You should have a case for gross negligence.
Any lawyer should take that case. You have shown both criteria for a case a wrongdoing and a negative affect of the wrongdoing. I had a similar incident when my wife was giving birth the anesthesiologist came in and was trying to watch TV while doing the epi. I turned the TV off and he was like hey I was watching that-I was like NO do your job. I asked but since there was no negative outcome for my wife, they wouldn't represent. I would be confident that you would have a rock solid case, but you need the testimony from the specialist or it could get sticky. One other thing you would like to consider is where did the ER doc get his training and when was this? Has he ever done this before, was he supposed to be supervised for x amount of punctures and what is the hospitals protocol for lumbar punctures? This may be your most prized possession, because more than likely you will have two cases, since Doctors very rarely work for the hospitals anymore-they have their own groups. So basically you would have the hospital for not enforcing its policies and ensuring that those providing care are certified and the Doc/Group for his negligence. Hope your son gets better.
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