Medical Malpractice

• The Emotional Toll of Medical Malpractice

  Dan Frith | October 29, 2007 8:38 AM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  We all know the physical effects of medical negligence. It can mean the loss of the ability to walk or work. It can mean a lifetime of pain. It can mean death! One well-known study estimated that as many as 98,000 hospital deaths a year stem from mistakes by health care workers. A recently published article discusses how these act of medical negligence can affect our emotions. The New...

• Patients get a Voice

  Lauren Ellerman | October 27, 2007 9:15 AM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  Our business has made everyone in our office, opinionated on health care. What I mean is that we are proactive - ask questions of our physicians, get second opinions, question medications, research procedures and hospitals. Some would say this is a luxury, but it shouldn't be. Patients should be in charge of their own health care.Washington Post writer Shannon Brownless reports increase in...

• Patient Safety Blog - a Good Read!

  Dan Frith | October 25, 2007 2:48 PM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  I was killing some time recently reading through articles on the Internet and ran across the Patient Safety Blog. The blog is written by Ken Farbstein who advises patients and their families on living longer, healthier lives, and preventing medical errors. His most recent post is on electronic patient records and how they can save lives!Nationally, only about 20% of physician offices are...

• Cluster Cancer Outbreaks

  Lauren Ellerman | October 25, 2007 9:01 AM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  Did you see the movie Erin Brokovitch? The Julia Robert's movie where small plaintiff firm takes on polluter because children in a small town are getting cancer at alarming rates. It was based on a true story, and it seems we haven't learned our lesson. Today the AP printed an article on Cancer in community north of Philadelphia. Elevated Cancer Level Found in Pa. MICHAEL RUBINKAM writes The...

• Medical Malpractice Insurance: What is Happening in Florida

  Dan Frith | October 24, 2007 2:25 PM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  Talk with almost any doctor and they will quickly tell you that they are forced to practice defensive medicine due to the fear of being sued. With the next breath they will tell you the cost of their malpractice coverage is outrageous and the result of greedy patients and their medical malpractice lawyers who are too quick to sue! Take these complaints with a grain of salt!Let's look at...

• Sex Offenders in Nursing Homes - You Have To Be Kidding!

  Dan Frith | October 23, 2007 1:58 PM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  I cannot believe it! We place our elderly and infirm family members in a nursing home so they will be watched over and taken care of in a safe and supportive environment. No one would ever think that those same family members are at risk for being sexually assaulted! Right? Unfortunately, I'm wrong!Convicted sex offender Dennis Strong will spend at least his next eight months in far less...

• Hospital and Nursing Home Residents at Greatest Risk for MRSA Infections

  Dan Frith | October 22, 2007 8:54 AM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  A study released earlier this week suggests that most invasive, severe disease from MRSA infection is associated with health care delivery and occurs in people with underlying illness. The study's publication in the Journal of the American Medical Association coincided with news accounts of MRSA infections in schools around the nation, often among student athletes.The MRSA study suggests the...

• MRSA Is a Dangerous Infection!

  Dan Frith | October 18, 2007 4:08 PM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  Lauren wrote an article yesterday about a 16 year old boy who lived near our city and died from a MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) infection. Today in our local newspaper (The Roanoke Times), another family came forward to tell the tragedy of another child (this time 15 years old!) who died of the same infection. These two reports days apart got me thinking...and worrying! ...

• Infection Control In Medical Facilities

  Lauren Ellerman | October 17, 2007 2:57 PM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  Lead story on NBC Nightly News last night www.nbc.com was about a high school boy that died yesterday of MRSA, a staph infetcion he likely picked up in the hospital. The cover our local paper today, www.roanoke.com was the same story. New York Times today, lead with a story on hospital infections. We have had numerous infection control or infection disease cases in long term care facility...

• The "Costs" of Healthcare

  Lauren Ellerman | October 08, 2007 11:22 AM | 0 CommentsRoanoke, VA

  I couldn't begin to explain the "costs" of healthcare in the United States... You have the costs of not providing care to those in need; the costs that for profit healthcare companies try to reduce in order to maximize profits; the actual cost of having to obtain care without insurance, and or a supplemental program. The truth is, the costs of healthcare are too extensive, and complicated to...