Boston Medical Malpractice Twitter Bot

by Erica Dumore

About

I currently work as a law clerk at a medical malpractice law firm in the Greater Boston area. Enjoying my work and the area of law, I decided to create a Twitter Bot, @Boston_MedMal, that would tweet out updates on current medical malpractice legal issues. The twitter bot does this by scraping posts from two Boston legal blogs. Whenever the blogs release a new post relating to medical malpractice, whether it is a current case decision, a settlement award, or discussing an ongoing issue, the twitter bot will tweet out the title of the blog article and a link that viewers are able to click to read the full blog article.

My goal for this twitter bot is to make it easy for those interested in this area of the law to be able to stay up to date on the current issues and decisions in medical malpractice in the Greater Boston area.

Google Spreadsheet

For this project I had to create a google spreadsheet using microsoft excel. After creating the spreadsheet I had to generate a document ID key (1-sYU2ur4kpERjl0dFr_ZcpsVRMWG_J1n98r9ExDOClE) that would allow me to link my spreadsheet to my twitter bot. My spreadsheet,My Twitter Bot, allows my twitter bot to scrape the two blog websites for new article posts and records the posts to twitter through timestamps to ensure each blog article is only tweeted once.

Process

Before creating my twitter bot I brainstormed different ways to gather information to be tweeted. I had the idea of what I wanted my twitter bot to relate to, the area of medical malpractice, but I was not sure what I wanted my bot to scrape. After some hunting online I found blawg, a legal blog search engine. From there I found two legal blogs that published articles that related to medical malpractice in the Boston area. The two blogs can be found in the links below:

Blog 1

Blog 2

After finding what I wanted my twitter bot to scrape and checking to make sure these two blogs were able to be scraped without violating any federal laws (they both were!), I began the process of creating the twitter bot's twitter account, @Boston_MedMal.

After creating the account and the google spreadsheet discussed above, I linked the twitter account, my code, and the spreadsheet using the generated documentation key, two additional private keys, and two tokens (API's). Theses API's allowed my code to access twitter and my spreadsheet so that it could scrape the two blog sites and gather the information, the article title and link, to be tweeted out.

Once my code was set up to link the three processes together to be able to generate a tweet, I had to write code so that my twitter would know what to tweet. Because I was gathering information from legal blogs, I was able to use the blogs feeds to gain the blogs code. Once I had the blogs code I looked for the expressions that came before the title of the article and before the link that I wanted to tweet. Then, using regular expressions I placed the code I wanted my twitter bot to search for between the appropriate brackets. This told my bot that whenever it saw white space and then a title or a link, followed by additional white space, it should tweet.

After a few trial and errors on getting the proper expression I was able to get the code to generate the appropriate title and link which told me I was on the right track to tweeting! Because I was using two different legal blogs I had to write code that would tell my bot to tweet from one blog if it could scrap new information or if it did not find new information to tweet from the second blog if it could scrap new information from that blog. Although this stage gave me the most hiccups, I was able to get my bot to tweet from both blogs!

The biggest hiccup I encountered in the above mentioned stage was making sure that all of my output numbers corresponded to the appropriate website. Once I was able to get the outputs sorted out and all of my regular expressions were working, my bot scrapped information and tweeted the latest two articles posted by each blog.

To ensure everything was continuing to work correctly, I deleted my tweets and cleared my spreadsheet multiple times. I ran into a problem after clearing my spreadsheet and generating my second blogs code. Because I had made the mistake of not adding additional columns to my excel spreadsheet no information was being saved in the spreadsheet, even though the blog articles were being tweeted. Once I added the additional columns so that both blogs had space to generate the information in the spread sheet, cleared my tweets and reset my code, I was able to tweet the latest blog posts of both blogs and have the information saved into my spreadsheet ensuring these articles would not be scraped and posted to my twitter account again.

I then cleared my spreadsheet and deleted my twitter bots tweets once more to make certain my twitter bot was able to tweet. The tweets that appear on @Boston_MedMal today are a result of this process.

This project was adapted from the notebook found at How to Build a Law Bot.

In [22]:
# Load the module for visiting and reading websites.
import urllib.request
# Load the module for running regular expressions (regex).
import re 
# Load the module for date and time stuff.
import datetime
# Define the variable now as equal to the current date and time.
now = datetime.datetime.now()
In [23]:
# Set the URL you want to scrape.
#url_1 = "https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/category/medical-malpractice"
url_1 ="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/category/medical-malpractice/feed"
url_2 = "https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/category/medical-malpractice/feed"

# If you want to scrape data from multiple pages, you can, 
# just replicate the above and below but change url_1 to url_2 et al.
In [24]:
# Load the module for accessing Google Sheets.
import gspread
# Load the module needed for securely communicating with Google Sheets.
from oauth2client.service_account import ServiceAccountCredentials
# The scope for your access credentials
scope = ['https://spreadsheets.google.com/feeds']

# Your spreadsheet's ID
document_key = "1-sYU2ur4kpERjl0dFr_ZcpsVRMWG_J1n98r9ExDOClE" 
#              ^^^^^^^^^^^ SWAP OUT FOR YOUR DOCUMENT ID/KEY
# Your Google project's .json key
credentials = ServiceAccountCredentials.from_json_keyfile_name('../../../../../CodingProject2-517c5ae88a4a.json', scope)
#                                                                              ^^^^^^^^ SWAP OUT FOR YOUR JSON KEY
# Use your credentials to authorize yourself.
gc = gspread.authorize(credentials)
# Open up the Sheet with the defined ID.
wks = gc.open_by_key(document_key)

#########################################
#
#  NOTE: The name of the sheet you are 
#  trying to access should be in the 
#  parenthetical below (e.g., Data). By
#  Default this is probably "Sheet1".
#
#########################################
worksheet = wks.worksheet("Sheet1")

# Count the number of rows in your Sheet &
# resize to remove blank rows.
worksheet.resize(worksheet.row_count)
In [26]:
# Import the relevant Twitter libraries so you can use Twitter.
import twitter
from twitter import TwitterError

# create the following four text files and add them to the same diretctry as you 
# Google API key. In each file add the appropriate value found when retrieving your 
# Twitter credentials

with open('../../../../../key.txt', 'r') as myfile:
    key=myfile.read()
    
with open('../../../../../secret.txt', 'r') as myfile:
    secret=myfile.read()
    
with open('../../../../../token_key.txt', 'r') as myfile:
    token_key=myfile.read()

with open('../../../../../token_secret.txt', 'r') as myfile:
    token_secret=myfile.read()

# Set you Twitter API credentials.
api = twitter.Api(consumer_key=key,
                  consumer_secret=secret,
                  access_token_key=token_key,
                  access_token_secret=token_secret)

Read the contents of your first webpage

When you run the next cell, your program will visit the first URL you defined above. It will then print out that page's HTML.

In [27]:
p_1 = urllib.request.build_opener(urllib.request.HTTPCookieProcessor).open(url_1).read()
print(p_1)
b'<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"\n\txmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"\n\txmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"\n\txmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"\n\txmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"\n\txmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"\n\txmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"\n\t>\n\n<channel>\n\t<title>medical malpractice &#8211; Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</title>\n\t<atom:link href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/category/medical-malpractice/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />\n\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com</link>\n\t<description>Published by Boston, Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawyer \xe2\x80\x94 Jeffrey S. Glassman</description>\n\t<lastBuildDate>Tue, 10 Oct 2017 16:45:06 +0000</lastBuildDate>\n\t<language>en-US</language>\n\t<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>\n\t<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>\n\t\n<site xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">97230438</site>\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Medical Malpractice Cases and Medical Battery</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/08/medical-malpractice-cases-medical-battery.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Tue, 01 Aug 2017 11:43:16 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Personal Injury]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice attorney]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2708</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>When we are dealing with a medical malpractice cases, we are typically dealing with action founded under a theory of negligence. In a standard negligence case, the elements of the tort are duty, breach, causation, and damages. The duty is a duty of due care to act as a reasonable and prudent person so as [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/08/medical-malpractice-cases-medical-battery.html">Medical Malpractice Cases and Medical Battery</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When we are dealing with a medical malpractice cases, we are typically dealing with action founded under a theory of negligence. In a standard negligence case, the elements of the tort are duty, breach, causation, and damages. The duty is a duty of due care to act as a reasonable and prudent person so as to prevent a foreseeable injury to foreseeable persons and property.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2370" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg" alt="Boston medical Malpractice " width="300" height="287" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-125x120.jpg 125w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg 460w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>In the case of medical malpractice, we use the same standard, but instead of the reasonable and prudent person, we use a reasonable and prudent medical professional performing that same procedure. For example, in the case of heart surgeon preforming an operation, a surgeon is supposed to act as reasonable and prudent heart surgeon would act in performing the same procedure.<span id="more-2708"></span>As our Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">medical malpractice</a> lawyers can explain, there was originally much disagreement over whether we used a local or national standard for that duty of due care for medical professionals.\xc2\xa0 Let\xe2\x80\x99s say we have a case where person in a small town in South Dakota needed a medical procedure 50 years ago, and the town doctor was the only medical professional available. While he is very competent as a physician, he may not have the same equipment and experience as someone who worked in a major city like Boston or New York would have.\xc2\xa0 There was a time not too long ago when pregnant women who need to schedule a cesarean section (C Section) would need to go to a larger hospital in the city because their local hospital was not equipped to do the procedure unless it was an emergency and they had no choice.</p>\n<p>There were some cases that argued that it should be local standard of care in medical malpractice cases, meaning that the small town doctor would not have to be held to the same standard of care as the doctor in a major city hospital. There were others who argued that the doctors should all be trained up to a national standard and should not be given a lower standard of care simply because they were practicing in a small town.</p>\n<p>However, in a large city such as Boston, this is not generally the case.\xc2\xa0 We have some of the finest hospitals in the world that are affiliated with some of the finest medical schools in the world, so whether their doctors are held to a national or local standard of care, there will not be any breaks for the doctor merely because they work in Boston.\xc2\xa0 In fact, the exact opposite might be the result and a jury would hold them to a relatively higher standard of care.</p>\n<p>In addition to negligence as a cause of action in medical malpractice cases, there is also the concept of medical battery.\xc2\xa0 The crux of this cause of action deals with the issue of informed consent.\xc2\xa0 When you have a medical procedure such as surgery, you are required to give your informed consent. This means you are told about all the benefits and risks and still decide to have the medical procedure.\xc2\xa0 Before you have surgery, you must give your informed consent.\xc2\xa0 Informed consent is a defense to the tort of battery, and battery is an intentional tort.</p>\n<p>First let\xe2\x80\x99s define the tort of battery.\xc2\xa0 Battery is defined as the harmful or offensive non-permissive touching of another.\xc2\xa0 If you are walking down the street and someone punches you in the face, that is not only a crime of assault and battery, but it is also the tort of battery, or assault and battery, depending on the circumstances.\xc2\xa0 That was a harmful or offensive touching for which you did not give your consent.\xc2\xa0 If you were in a boxing match for example, you would have implicitly or explicitly given your consent to enter into the fight and be punched in the fact. You could not file a lawsuit for battery for being punched in a sanctioned boxing match.\xc2\xa0 However, if the defendant exceeds the scope of the consent, you could have a tort case.</p>\n<p>For example, if the boxer put a weight in his or her glove and hit you with that, you would not have consent to the illegal move and consent would not be a defense.\xc2\xa0 At the same time, when you go to the doctor to have knee surgery on your left knee, you are giving consent to have the doctor take a knife (scalpel) and cut into our knee.\xc2\xa0 If someone on the street cut you in the knee this would be assault, but not for a doctor with an informed consent signed. However, if the doctor accidentally performed the operation on your right knee, that could be medical malpractice and a medical battery, because you never gave consent to have the surgery performed on that leg.\xc2\xa0\xc2\xa0 You may recall the series of cases that made big news in the 1990s when doctors allegedly amputated the wrong leg of several patients leaving them with no legs instead of the one good leg they were supposed to have. These cases were filed under a theory of negligence and medical battery.</p>\n<p>In <a href="https://injurylawopinions.justia.com/2017/07/27/allison-v-brown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Allison v. Brown</em></a>, a case from the Supreme Court of Virginia, plaintiff filed medical malpractice case and argued that there was medical malpractice and medical battery. The trial court granted the defendant\xe2\x80\x99s motion to set aside the verdict in favor of the plaintiff. While there is typically a desire to honor the jury\xe2\x80\x99s verdict, but there can be a motion filed that essentially says that a reasonable jury should not have been able to make such a decision based upon the evidence that was submitted in the case. This does not happen all that often but it was what happened here.</p>\n<p>The reason for this motion being granted was the jury apparently relied upon a theory of medical battery, but that medical battery claim was not argued during trial. On appeal, the court of appeals agreed with this determination but also found that to set aside the entire verdict was not proper. For this reason, the case was remanded for a new trial.\xc2\xa0 In many cases such as this, the defendant will be more likely to settle, since they know how a jury will find and the plaintiff might be able to introduce evidence of medical battery at the second trial.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment \xe2\x80\x94 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="https://injurylawopinions.justia.com/2017/07/27/allison-v-brown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Allison v. Brown</em></a>, July 27, 2017, Supreme Court of Virginia</p>\n<p><strong>More Blog Entries:</strong></p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/04/slip-and-fall-injury-suffered-by-child-litigated-years-later.html">Slip-and-Fall Injury Suffered by Child Litigated Years Later</a>, April 2, 2017, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/08/medical-malpractice-cases-medical-battery.html">Medical Malpractice Cases and Medical Battery</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2708</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Boston Medical Malpractice Claims Against OB/GYNs Must Be Filed Within Statute of Limitations</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/06/boston-medical-malpractice-claims-against-obgyns-must-be-filed-within-statute-of-limitations.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jun 2017 13:20:31 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2694</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>One of the more complex types of Boston personal injury litigation is medical malpractice. \xc2\xa0It occurs any time we go to the doctor as a serious illness could be misdiagnosed leading to serious personal injury or even death.\xc2\xa0 However, many medical malpractice cases result from incidents that occur in a hospital setting. What people may [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/06/boston-medical-malpractice-claims-against-obgyns-must-be-filed-within-statute-of-limitations.html">Boston Medical Malpractice Claims Against OB/GYNs Must Be Filed Within Statute of Limitations</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>One of the more complex types of Boston personal injury litigation is medical malpractice. \xc2\xa0It occurs any time we go to the doctor as a serious illness could be misdiagnosed leading to serious personal injury or even death.\xc2\xa0 However, many medical malpractice cases result from incidents that occur in a hospital setting.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctorpatientrelationship-1.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2557" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctorpatientrelationship-1-300x221.jpg" alt="Boston Medical Malpractice" width="300" height="221" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctorpatientrelationship-1.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctorpatientrelationship-1-163x120.jpg 163w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>What people may not realize is that when we seek treatment at a hospital, we are in fact trusting our care to many different people &#8211; some of whom we may never see &#8211; and that there is ample opportunity for circumstances to go horribly wrong. Health care providers frequently found liable for medical malpractice are those who assist women in childbirth. In fact, one <a href="http://www.medscape.com/features/slideshow/malpractice-report-2015/obgyn#page=2" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Medscape survey</a> in 2015 noted that 85 percent of OB/GYN physicians will be sued for medical malpractice at some point in their careers.</p>\n<p>That same survey indicated the most common reasons OB/GYNs are sued are because of:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Patient suffering abnormal injury;</li>\n<li>Failure to diagnose;</li>\n<li>Failure to treat;</li>\n<li>Poor documentation of patient instruction/ education;</li>\n<li>Improperly obtaining/ lack of informed consent;</li>\n<li>Failure to follow safety procedures;</li>\n<li>Medication errors.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>These mistakes can occur during pregnancy, or at some point during labor or in the course of delivery. The impact of a medical mistake on the mother and child can be devastating and lifelong. However, the amount of time you have to file a claim is not infinite. The statute of limitations limits the amount of time you have to assert a claim.</p>\n<p><span id="more-2694"></span></p>\n<p>When you go to the hospital after going into labor, you are transferred to a birthing suite and assigned a nurse and various nursing assistants. These medical professionals monitor your vital signs, start IVs and administer medication pursuant to orders from an obstetrician.\xc2\xa0 You are relying on every one of these individuals to do their jobs\xc2\xa0according to the applicable standard of care. If something goes wrong, or the doctor otherwise decides you need to have a cesarean section (C-section), you will be taken into an operating room on the labor and delivery ward.\xc2\xa0 Prior to having surgery, an anesthesiologist will insert a spinal block of some kind.\xc2\xa0 He or she may or may not use a fluoroscope.\xc2\xa0 There will be various people in the emergency room, including one who will be responsible for counting every tool, sponge, and piece of gauze used to make sure one is not left in the patient.</p>\n<p>As our Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">medical malpractice</a>\xc2\xa0attorneys\xc2\xa0can explain, if an instrument of any other material from the hospital is left inside a patient, this is known as a foreign objects medical malpractice case.</p>\n<p><strong>Foreign Objects Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations</strong></p>\n<p>Pursuant to <a href="https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleV/Chapter260/Section4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Section 4 of Chapter 260</a> of the Massachusetts General Laws (MGL), the statute of limitations is three years in most cases.\xc2\xa0 This means that a civil personal injury medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed within three years from the date the cause of action accrued.\xc2\xa0 This means the day when the medical procedure was performed.</p>\n<p>However, in some cases, it is not possible for a patient to know that the injury has occurred until sometime after the date the medical procedure was performed.\xc2\xa0 In these cases, there can be a case filed in no more than seven years from date the injury occurred. However, there is one additional statute of limitations for medical malpractice cases \xe2\x80\x93 this involves the foreign objects medical malpractice case.</p>\n<p>There has been a lot of change in this area of medical malpractice law in Massachusetts over the past several decades.\xc2\xa0 One of the initial landmark legal decisions (that has since be overturned, but for reasons the exception to the statute of limitations created was too narrow), is <a href="http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/350/350mass450.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Pasquale v. Chandler</em></a> (1966).\xc2\xa0 In this case, a patient went to his doctor in the 1950s complaining of stomach pain and weight loss. He was told that he would need to have surgery and a radical removal of most of the stomach was performed.\xc2\xa0 During this procedure, his surgeon used more than 50 Kelly clamps.\xc2\xa0 A Kelly clamp looks like a pair of scissors and is very similar to a hemostat.\xc2\xa0 The Kelly clamp has interlocking teeth at curved tip a ratchet locking mechanism to clamp it shut on tissue or large blood vessels.</p>\n<p>In this case, the surgery was performed and the clip was left inside the patient. He complained about heart burn years later and they couldn\xe2\x80\x99t figure out what was wrong until they took an x-ray. This was before the days of MRIs and computer assisted imaging so all they could see was a foreign object.\xc2\xa0 When they performed surgery to remove it, they found a rusted Kelly clamp that had become lodged in his intestines.\xc2\xa0 He did slightly better immediately following the surgery but died soon after.</p>\n<p>The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC), which is our state supreme court, decided that there could be an exception to the then three-year statute of limitations on medical malpractice cases, but only in foreign objects cases.</p>\n<p>This case was later overturned in a case entitled <em>Franklin v. Albert</em> (1980). In this case, the court decided that the earlier court (still the SJC) had been too focused on the legislative history of the statute and less on due process clause the reasonableness of the conclusion.\xc2\xa0 The court determined that the plaintiff should have a reasonable time to discover that he or she was injured.\xc2\xa0 This however, was further changed when the legislature added the exception that there is no time limit for cases involving foreign objects.</p>\n<p><strong>Medical Malpractice Tribunals in Boston Personal Injury Cases</strong></p>\n<p>One other thing that makes medical malpractice cases somewhat different than other personal injury cases, as we have discussed in our Resources for Injured Patients section entitled \xe2\x80\x9c<a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/do-i-have-a-medical-malpractice-case.html"><em>Do I Have a Medical Malpractice Case?</em></a>\xe2\x80\x9d is the use of medical malpractice tribunals.</p>\n<p>As we discussed in that resource page, <a href="https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleII/Chapter231/Section60B" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Massachusetts G.L. c. 231 Section 60B</a>, establishes the requirement for a tribunal for malpractice cases against healthcare providers.\xc2\xa0 We use the term medical malpractice, and many people think of doctors, but we can also be talking about various other healthcare providers.</p>\n<p>Prior to filing a case in the Suffolk Superior Court, which is the court of general jurisdiction for civil personal injury claims in Boston, the case must go before a medical malpractice tribunal.\xc2\xa0 This panel is meant to serve as a gatekeeper to keep frivolous claims out of court in an attempt to reduce medical malpractice premiums for medical providers.</p>\n<p>The panel is to consist of one judge from the superior court, a doctor licensed to practice medicine in Massachusetts, as well as an attorney licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth. At this hearing, the plaintiff, through his or her attorney, is required to present a proffer also known as an order of proof to determine if the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, would be enough to raise a legitimate question of liability.\xc2\xa0 While this is generally not considered a very high standard, it is essential to ask your attorney if he or she has had experience going before these medical malpractice tribunals in Boston and had successful results in the past.</p>\n<p>One thing to keep in mind is that if you do not make it past a medical malpractice tribunal, you do not have a valid medical malpractice claim. On the other hand, just because you are successful at a tribunal does not mean you will win your case.\xc2\xa0 You still want an experienced medical malpractice attorney in Boston fighting for your right to a full and appropriate financial recovery.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment \xe2\x80\x94 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/350/350mass450.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Pasquale v. Chandler</em></a> (1966), Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/04/slip-and-fall-injury-suffered-by-child-litigated-years-later.html">Slip-and-Fall Injury Suffered by Child Litigated Years Later</a>, April 2, 2017, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/06/boston-medical-malpractice-claims-against-obgyns-must-be-filed-within-statute-of-limitations.html">Boston Medical Malpractice Claims Against OB/GYNs Must Be Filed Within Statute of Limitations</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2694</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Medical Malpractice for a Lost Chance of a Better Outcome</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/03/medical-malpractice-lost-chance-better-outcome.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Wed, 15 Mar 2017 08:18:43 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice attorney]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice lawyer Boston]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2578</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>In Massachusetts medical malpractice law, the &#8220;loss of chance&#8221; doctrine permits recovery of damages for the destruction or reduction of the prospect of achieving a more favorable outcome. Plaintiffs are the ones who bear the burden in these cases of showing that the physician or other medical professional: Deviated from the accepted standard of care; [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/03/medical-malpractice-lost-chance-better-outcome.html">Medical Malpractice for a Lost Chance of a Better Outcome</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In Massachusetts medical malpractice law, the &#8220;loss of chance&#8221; doctrine permits recovery of damages for the destruction or reduction of the prospect of achieving a more fa<a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctors.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2580" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctors-193x300.jpg" alt="doctors" width="193" height="300" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctors-193x300.jpg 193w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctors-77x120.jpg 77w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2017/02/doctors.jpg 283w" sizes="(max-width: 193px) 100vw, 193px" /></a>vorable outcome.</p>\n<p>Plaintiffs are the ones who bear the burden in these cases of showing that the physician or other medical professional:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Deviated from the accepted standard of care;</li>\n<li>Deviation proximately caused the injury (i.e., the loss was a foreseeable consequence of negligence and the negligence was a but-for cause of the loss of harm).</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Causation of injuries in medical malpractice lawsuits is always proven through expert witness testimony.\xc2\xa0The loss of chance doctrine is usually applied to cases wherein plaintiff had a 50 percent or less\xc2\xa0chance of survival or some better outcome prior to the alleged\xc2\xa0negligence of the doctor. In cases where a plaintiff had a 50 percent or greater chance of survival/ better outcome prior to the alleged wrongful act, courts will usually apply the &#8220;more likely than not&#8221; standard. That requires\xc2\xa0plaintiff to prove it is &#8220;more likely than not&#8221; he or she\xc2\xa0would have had a better outcome were it not for defendant&#8217;s actions. The reason is under traditional concepts of causation, a plaintiff with less than 50 percent chance of a positive outcome wouldn&#8217;t have grounds for a claim. The loss of chance doctrine gives them a platform.<span id="more-2578"></span></p>\n<p>A <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/washington/supreme-court/2017/91374-9.html" target="_blank">recent case</a> out of Washington state dealt with this issue.</p>\n<p>In that case, plaintiff visited his primary care provider in 2011 for a lesion that had developed on his left foot after he suffered a puncture wound. His primary care doctor referred him to a podiatrist, who saw him the same day and diagnosed him as having a non-cancerous lesion. Podiatrist recommended two possible courses of treatment: The first surgery or the second cryotherapy. Plaintiff chose the more conservative treatment, which was administered that day. Plaintiff was instructed to return in 10 days.</p>\n<p>When plaintiff returned, the lesion still had not gone away. The doctor this time recommended surgery, but also gave plaintiff the option of a more conservative course of treatment, and plaintiff chose the latter. That treatment was administered and instructions were given for plaintiff to return in 10 days. However, plaintiff did not come back as scheduled. Then two months later, plaintiff contacted the doctor to complain of soreness and asked for an MRI. The following day, the podiatrist saw that the lesion had gotten bigger and recommended a biopsy, though he did not suspect cancer.</p>\n<p>Plaintiff sought a second opinion, and that doctor also diagnosed the legion as benign. That doctor too recommended surgery, but plaintiff chose the more alternative treatment.</p>\n<p>The next month, a dermatologist performed a biopsy and found the results positive for melanoma. Plaintiff underwent surgery and the cancer was removed, but it recurred. After unsuccessful chemotherapy and radiation, plaintiff&#8217;s left foot had to be removed.</p>\n<p>Plaintiff filed a <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">medical malpractice</a> lawsuit against\xc2\xa0the employer of the original podiatrist, alleging he was deprived of a 40 percent chance the cancer would not recur had a proper diagnosis and treatment been rendered at the time. Defendant argued plaintiff had been contributorily negligent in delaying follow-up care and seeking a second opinion.</p>\n<p>Trial court granted plaintiff&#8217;s motion to instruct the jury on the loss of chance doctrine, and found that a but-for causation standard was appropriate (rather than the substantial factor test, which is less stringent). The court also granted a partial summary judgment disallowing defendant from arguing contributory negligence in this action.</p>\n<p>In its review, the state supreme court ruled that the but-for cause analysis was the appropriate standard moving forward, and the defendant should be allowed to present evidence of contributory negligence. The case was remanded to trial for further proceedings.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/washington/supreme-court/2017/91374-9.html" target="_blank"><em>Dunnington v. Virginia Mason Med. Ctr</em></a>., Feb. 2, 2017, Washington State Supreme Court</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/02/special-verdict-in-medical-malpractice-lawsuit.html">Special Verdict in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit</a>, Feb. 4, 2017, Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/03/medical-malpractice-lost-chance-better-outcome.html">Medical Malpractice for a Lost Chance of a Better Outcome</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2578</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Special Verdict in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/02/special-verdict-in-medical-malpractice-lawsuit.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Sat, 04 Feb 2017 13:49:56 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2525</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>In a recent\xc2\xa0case from the Supreme Court of California, the case was tried before a jury, and jurors returned what is known as a special verdict. A normal verdict form is simply one that asks if the defendant is liable or not, and if the defendant is liable, then the jury is expected to also [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/02/special-verdict-in-medical-malpractice-lawsuit.html">Special Verdict in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In a <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2017/s227393.html" target="_blank">recent\xc2\xa0case</a> from the Supreme Court of California, the case was tried before a jury, and jurors returned what is known as a special verdict. A normal verdict form is simply one that asks if the defendant is liable or not, and if the defendant is liable, then the jury is expected to also decide the amount of damages (financial compensation) that should be awarded to the plaintiff.\xc2\xa0 If there is no finding of negligence, then there is obviously not a need to return an award of damages.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2370 size-medium" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg" alt="tool" width="300" height="287" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-125x120.jpg 125w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg 460w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>However, there can also be special verdict forms that ask jurors to separately decide on different elements of a tort ,such as negligence, because in some cases, additional elements must be established for certain penalties and monetary awards to be triggered.\xc2\xa0 In this case, the jury returned a special verdict that found defendant was negligent in treating defendant, but that their negligent treatment was not responsible for him becoming a quadriplegic.\xc2\xa0 <span id="more-2525"></span>Shortly following the verdict, plaintiff died, and an autopsy was preformed.\xc2\xa0 At this autopsy, additional evidence was discovered that plaintiff alleged was proof the jury could have used to find the negligence did cause the quadriplegia.\xc2\xa0 At that point, plaintiff, now his estate being administered by his surviving spouse, moved for a new trial based upon newly discovered evidence. However, it was determined that plaintiff did not pay a filing fee in a timely manner, and since the defendant did not object to the failure to timely pay the fee, a new trial was ordered.</p>\n<p>At this point, the defendant argued on appeal that the new trial should not have been granted, because the fee was not paid on time.\xc2\xa0 As our\xc2\xa0Boston\xc2\xa0<a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/personal-injury.html">personal injury </a>attorneys can explain, medical malpractice cases in particular can be very complex, and the best thing you can do during your initial consultation is to make sure your attorney has a considerable amount of experience representing plaintiffs in these types of cases.</p>\n<p>The court of appeals listened to the arguments from both sides and determined that the new trial was properly granted.\xc2\xa0 This has to do with a complex issue in appellate law pertaining to whether a litigant made a timely objection for the basis, and is therefore said to have preserved the issue for appeal.</p>\n<p>The way appellate courts works is that they review the record of the prior hearings and listen to arguments and read papers.\xc2\xa0 This means the court of appeals will read the transcript to get the record of a case and look at exhibits that are preserved on the docket.\xc2\xa0 The court of appeals will not listen to new evidence for the most part. The reason behind this is that the courts feel that the trial judge is the best position to evaluate the evidence, since these lower courts get a like view of the evidence.\xc2\xa0 This translates to issues on appeal, because if the objection was not made at trial or at the proper time, it is not in the record, and, therefore, the record does not speak to that issue.\xc2\xa0 If the record doesn\xe2\x80\x99t speak to something, it is not appealable in most cases.</p>\n<p><em>If you are injured in Boston, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2017/s227393.html" target="_blank"><em>Kabran v. Sharp Memorial Hospital</em></a>, January 19, 2017, California Supreme Court</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:<br />\n<a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2014/05/summer-swimming-pool-safety-in.html"><em>Summer Swimming Pool Safety in New England</em></a>, May 15, 2014, Boston Personal Injury Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/02/special-verdict-in-medical-malpractice-lawsuit.html">Special Verdict in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2525</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Parr v. Rosenthal: Medical Malpractice Cases</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/parr-v-rosenthal-medical-malpractice-cases.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Mon, 26 Sep 2016 18:04:41 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice attorney]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2369</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>In Parr v. Rosenthal, a case from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the plaintiffs had filed a medical malpractice case against the defendants in the Superior Court.\xc2\xa0\xc2\xa0 In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is our state supreme court and the Superior Court is our highest level trial court. In this case, [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/parr-v-rosenthal-medical-malpractice-cases.html">Parr v. Rosenthal: Medical Malpractice Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/supreme-court/2016/sjc-12014.html" target="_blank"><em>Parr v. Rosenthal</em></a>, a case from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the plaintiffs had filed a medical malpractice case against the defendants in the Superior Court.\xc2\xa0\xc2\xa0 In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is our state supreme court and the Superior Court is our highest level trial court.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2370" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg" alt="reflex-hammer-1421540" width="300" height="287" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-300x287.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540-125x120.jpg 125w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/09/reflex-hammer-1421540.jpg 460w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>In this case, plaintiff was born in 1994 with a large lump on his right calf.\xc2\xa0 His parents took him to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in downtown Boston to have this lump examined. After being examined, doctors referred the child to what they call the sarcoma group to have the lumped imaged and a biopsy taken.<span id="more-2369"></span></p>\n<p>The sarcoma group is made up of various cancer specialists who regularly treat patients with tumors. The team members meet with each other twice a week to discuss their cases so everyone was on the same page, according to court records.\xc2\xa0 The group made an initial diagnosis of the plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s lump as being a hamartoma.\xc2\xa0 A hamartoma is a benign tumor-like lump, but is not a malignant tumor.</p>\n<p>However, when the child was 8 years old, the lump had increased in size, and it caused the child to develop a limp. One of the doctors on the sarcoma team performed another biopsy at this point.\xc2\xa0 The doctor now determined the lump was covering most of his calf.\xc2\xa0 This included both the muscle and nerves and was the reason for the limp.\xc2\xa0 This time, they determined that the lump was what is known as a desmoid tumor.\xc2\xa0 This is a very rare tumor that is also benign.</p>\n<p>The reason these tumors are so dangerous is that, while they are not cancerous, they can destroy tissue that is otherwise healthy.\xc2\xa0 At this point, members of the cancer team decided to schedule an operation to remove the tumor.\xc2\xa0 However, the child\xe2\x80\x99s mother decided to look into other options, including the use of Radio Frequency Ablation (RFA).\xc2\xa0 One of the members of the team said that he actually invented the RFA procedure.\xc2\xa0 The group decided that RFA procedure would be appropriate.\xc2\xa0 There were serious risks associated with this procedure, but his parents signed a consent.</p>\n<p>During the procedure, things did not go exactly as planned, and more tissue was burned away than originally targeted.\xc2\xa0 The doctor called other doctors from the treatment team into the operating room, and they made a decision to stop doing the rest of the procedure. They told the parents that there were some problems, but that the child would heal okay following the procedure.\xc2\xa0 The child\xe2\x80\x99s mother said she was not told how serious the problem was or that the child had been burned so badly.</p>\n<p>Several weeks later, the child was in rehab, and the leg became necrotic and eventually had to be amputated. There were several more years of treatment, and eventually the parents filed a Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">medical malpractice lawsuit</a>.\xc2\xa0 It had been four years following the initial surgery. The defendants argued that the action was time barred because it was filed after the statute of limitations had run.\xc2\xa0 The court agreed and dismissed the cause of action.</p>\n<p>At this point the parents appealed, arguing that since he was under continuing treatment, the statute of limitations had not run.\xc2\xa0 Initially, the court of appeals agreed, but the SJC ultimately held that the statute of limitations was not tolled in this case.</p>\n<p><em>If you are injured in an accident in Boston, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/supreme-court/2016/sjc-12014.html" target="_blank"><em>Parr v. Rosenthal</em></a>, September 2, 2016, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2014/05/wilkins-v-city-of-haverhill-.html"><em>Wilkins v. City of Haverhill &#8211; Massachusetts Supreme Court Weighs Slip-and-Fall Claim</em></a>, May 23, 2014, Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/parr-v-rosenthal-medical-malpractice-cases.html">Parr v. Rosenthal: Medical Malpractice Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2369</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke: Personal Injury Cases</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/baptist-ventures-inc-v-hoke-personal-injury-cases.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Fri, 23 Sep 2016 18:02:47 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2367</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>In Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke, a personal injury appeal for the Supreme Court of Alabama, plaintiff was allegedly injured as a result of medical treatment she received from the defendants.\xc2\xa0 The defendants in this case run an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) medical practice. Plaintiff was a patient of defendants. In April 2011, plaintiff [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/baptist-ventures-inc-v-hoke-personal-injury-cases.html">Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke: Personal Injury Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/alabama/supreme-court/2016/1141401.html" target="_blank"><em>Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke</em></a>, a personal injury appeal for the Supreme Court of Alabama, plaintiff was allegedly injured as a result of medical treatment she received from the defendants.\xc2\xa0 The defendants in this case run an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) medical practice. Plaintiff was a patient of defendants.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/nurses.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2286" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/nurses-218x300.jpg" alt="nurses" width="218" height="300" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/nurses-218x300.jpg 218w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/nurses-87x120.jpg 87w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/nurses.jpg 451w" sizes="(max-width: 218px) 100vw, 218px" /></a>In April 2011, plaintiff went to defendants\xe2\x80\x99 medical clinic to have a procedure performed.\xc2\xa0 One day prior to the two-year anniversary of this doctor\xe2\x80\x99s visit, the plaintiff filed a medical malpractice lawsuit claiming that the defendants had provided care that fell below the acceptable standard of due care, and as a result of the breach of the duty of care, she was injured.<span id="more-2367"></span>As your Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">medical malpractice</a> attorney can explain, a medical malpractice case is a negligence case like any other, except the defendants are typically held to the standard of a care of a professional in the defendant\xe2\x80\x99s specialty or area of practice. In other words, in a normal negligence case, the defendant is held to the standard of acting as a reasonable and prudent person so as to avoid foreseeable injury to foreseeable persons and property.\xc2\xa0 \xc2\xa0However, in a medical malpractice case, the defendant is held to the standard of conducting himself or herself as a reasonable and prudent medical provider in the particular specialty anywhere else in the nation.\xc2\xa0 For example, if the defendant is a cardiologist, he or she must act as a reasonable cardiologist that is performing a procedure on a patient anywhere else in the country.</p>\n<p>In this case, plaintiff alleged that the cause of her injuries was a result of of medical professionals who treated her using latex gloves when they had been told she had a latex allergy.\xc2\xa0 If a patient is allergic to latex, doctors and nurses will typically use a vinyl, nitrile, or polyurethane glove, since they do not contain natural latex. Latex allergies can be quite severe and can cause a patient to go into anaphylactic shock, so this is a big deal.\xc2\xa0 To avoid this risk, many healthcare providers now use non-latex gloves as standard practice. Plaintiff alleged that defendants\xe2\x80\x99 failing to provide her with a latex free environment during treatment caused her to suffer an allergic reaction that resulted in severe personal injury.</p>\n<p>In this case, plaintiff hired an attorney who was not licensed in the jurisdiction, but that attorney associated with local counsel and appeared on what is known as a <em>pro hac vice </em>basis.\xc2\xa0 This is typically allowed and actually happens all the time.</p>\n<p>The problem was, as the defendants\xe2\x80\x99 argued, the <em>pro hac </em>motion had not been filed along with the complaint, as is normally required, so the attorney technically did not have a right to file the motion.\xc2\xa0 They also argued that the case should be dismissed, since this would mean that the complaint was not timely filed within the two-year statute of limitations.\xc2\xa0 The trial court did not agree and found that the action had been properly filed for the purposes of the statute of limitations and allowed the case to proceed.</p>\n<p>Later, the state supreme court found issues with the trial court\xe2\x80\x99s ruling based upon a statute relevant in that jurisdiction and remanded the case for further proceedings.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/alabama/supreme-court/2016/1141401.html" target="_blank"><em>Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke</em></a>, September 2, 2016, Alabama Supreme Court</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/07/eye-test-means-test-concussion-brain-injury.html">Eye Test as Means to Test for Concussion and Brain Injury, </a>July 23, 2016, Boston Brain Injury Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/09/baptist-ventures-inc-v-hoke-personal-injury-cases.html">Baptist Ventures, Inc. v. Hoke: Personal Injury Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2367</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>$53M Verdict to Birth Injury Victim, Mother, for Medical Malpractice</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/07/53m-verdict-birth-injury-victim-mother-medical-malpractice.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 14 Jul 2016 19:51:49 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice attorney]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice lawyer]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2261</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>When a soon-to-be mother went to the hospital at 2 a.m., her pregnancy full-term, she knew something wasn&#8217;t right. Her baby boy wasn&#8217;t moving as he had in the days and hours before. But when she got there, student resident doctors at The University\xc2\xa0of Chicago Medical Center didn&#8217;t take immediate action, even when a fetal [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/07/53m-verdict-birth-injury-victim-mother-medical-malpractice.html">$53M Verdict to Birth Injury Victim, Mother, for Medical Malpractice</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When a soon-to-be mother went to the hospital at 2 a.m., her pregnancy full-term, she knew something wasn&#8217;t right. Her baby boy wasn&#8217;t moving as he had in the days and hours before. But when she got there, student resident doctors at The University\xc2\xa0of Chicago Medical Center didn&#8217;t take immediate action, even when a fetal heart monitor immediately showed distress. For 12 hours, no action was taken. For 12 hours, that child was slowly suffocating.\xc2\xa0<a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/pregnantwoman.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2262" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/pregnantwoman-300x200.jpg" alt="pregnantwoman" width="300" height="200" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/pregnantwoman-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/pregnantwoman-180x120.jpg 180w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/07/pregnantwoman.jpg 425w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a></p>\n<p>When doctors finally did initiate an emergency Cesarean section, the baby boy wasn&#8217;t breathing. He was revived and then rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit and placed on life support. There, he stayed for weeks. But the damage to his brain over the course of those hours was irreversible. He was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. He can&#8217;t walk. He can&#8217;t bathe himself. He can&#8217;t feed himself. He requires around-the-clock care, provided almost exclusively by his single mother.</p>\n<p>Now, a jury in Cook County, Ill. has awarded $53 million to him and his mother, which will not only ensure his health care is covered for the next 65 years of his life, but will help to compensate the family for the pain and suffering they have endured and will endure for the rest of their lives. Some will look at a damage award of this size and characterize it as excessive. But one must consider that not only will his future medical bills top $30 million over the course of his life, but mother and son will never have a normal relationship. This boy will never have a normal life of his own.\xc2\xa0<span id="more-2261"></span></p>\n<p>These life-altering consequences were avoidable. Had the doctors and hospital offered an appropriate standard of care, this story might have turned out very differently.</p>\n<p>Soon after the boy&#8217;s birth, doctors diagnosed him with hypoxia, which is injury caused by lack of oxygen to the brain. However, they never told his mother what caused the hypoxia or who might be responsible. Later, after she filed a lawsuit, the defense contended the mother and baby were treated for an infection, and that infection is a known cause of cerebral palsy in newborns.</p>\n<p>Plaintiff&#8217;s attorney discounted that theory. Every doctor who has seen him in 12 years has diagnosed him with the same thing: The <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/birth-injuries.html">birth injury </a>of asphyxia, meaning that he was suffocated at birth. For the defense to come forward years later and claim there was an infection &#8211; about which the mother didn&#8217;t know and there are no clear records &#8211; is preposterous.</p>\n<p>Following four hours of deliberation, jurors awarded the boy $2.7 million for disfigurement, $2.7 million for loss of a normal life, $2.7 million for a life expectancy shortened, $2.7 million for past and future pain and suffering, $2.7 million for emotional distress and more for past medical expenses, future medical expenses and future caretaking expenses. Loss of future earning capacity is also factored into the damage award.</p>\n<p>As the plaintiff&#8217;s lawyers explained, this is by no means a windfall. This was about holding the hospital accountable and also ensuring this boy and his mother have the financial means to cope with the lifelong damage inflicted on them by no fault of their own.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-u-of-c-malpractice-verdict-0701-biz-20160630-story.html" target="_blank">Jury hits U. of C. hospital with $53 million malpractice verdict</a>, June 30, 2016, Chicago Tribune</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/06/report-1-5-hospitals-falls-short-never-events.html">Report: 1 in 5 Hospitals Falls Short on &#8220;Never Events,&#8221; </a>June 30, 2016, Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/07/53m-verdict-birth-injury-victim-mother-medical-malpractice.html">$53M Verdict to Birth Injury Victim, Mother, for Medical Malpractice</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2261</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Report: 1 in 5 Hospitals Falls Short on &#8220;Never Events&#8221;</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/06/report-1-5-hospitals-falls-short-never-events.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jun 2016 13:18:05 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Boston medical malpractice lawyer]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice attorney Boston]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2240</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>In Boston medical malpractice cases, sometimes the term &#8220;never events&#8221; gets thrown around. It&#8217;s a reference to the types of medical errors that health professionals agree should never happen. And yet, they do. Some examples: Retained surgical instruments (surgical tools, sponges, etc. being left inside a patient after a procedure); Wrong surgery site (a surgeon [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/06/report-1-5-hospitals-falls-short-never-events.html">Report: 1 in 5 Hospitals Falls Short on &#8220;Never Events&#8221;</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In Boston medical malpractice cases, sometimes the term &#8220;never events&#8221; gets thrown around. It&#8217;s a reference to the types of medical errors that health professionals agree should <strong>never</strong> happen. And yet, they do. Some examples:<a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/06/doctor5.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-2242" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/06/doctor5-300x217.jpg" alt="doctor5" width="300" height="217" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/06/doctor5-300x217.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/06/doctor5-166x120.jpg 166w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2016/06/doctor5.jpg 620w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a></p>\n<ul>\n<li>Retained surgical instruments (surgical tools, sponges, etc. being left inside a patient after a procedure);</li>\n<li>Wrong surgery site (a surgeon performs surgery on the wrong limb, body part, person, etc.);</li>\n<li>Urinary tract infection from a catheter;</li>\n<li>Pressure ulcers (Stage III and IV);</li>\n<li>Falls and trauma;</li>\n<li>Surgical site infections;</li>\n<li>Medication error fatalities;</li>\n<li>Administration of incompatible blood;</li>\n<li>Air embolisms.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Now, a recent study by <a href="http://www.leapfroggroup.org/sites/default/files/Files/Castlight-Leapfrog_Never_Events_Final.pdf" target="_blank">Castlight-Leapfrog</a>\xc2\xa0reveals not only are these events occurring, they are happening with alarming frequency.\xc2\xa0Although there is always some risk a patient incurs with every type of medical treatment. And just because someone suffers a poor health outcome doesn&#8217;t necessarily mean medical malpractice is to blame. However, these &#8220;never events&#8221; are so egregious for the fact that they are deemed entirely preventable. We know what causes them. We know how to stop them. And hospitals should have procedures and policies in place that are strictly followed by staffers to ensure these kinds of things never happen.<span id="more-2240"></span></p>\n<p>And still, they do.</p>\n<p>You may recall six years ago the high-profile <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/medical-malpractice_2.html">Boston medical malpractice </a>case involving a Massachusetts General Hospital hand and arm surgeon who went public with details about how he incorrectly operated on the incorrect hand of a 65-year-old woman. Such forthrightness isn&#8217;t common. In fact, he issued a seven-page apology to his patient &#8211; which is essentially another kind of &#8220;never event.&#8221; Physicians with the medical industry standard setting organization National Quality Forum praised the doctor&#8217;s willingness to come forward.</p>\n<p>A landmark study in 1999 by the Institute of Medicine titled, &#8220;<a href="https://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/~/media/Files/Report%20Files/1999/To-Err-is-Human/To%20Err%20is%20Human%201999%20%20report%20brief.pdf" target="_blank">To Err is Human</a>,&#8221; opined that between 44,000 and 98,000 people die in hospitals across the country every year in &#8220;never event&#8221; medical errors, costing between $17 billion and $29 billion. Subsequent research suggests the latest figures may be double that, despite the fact that we have an even better understanding and greater awareness today of these kind of events.</p>\n<p>The Castlight-Leapfrog researchers asserted that when hospitals take a proactive approach to managing these types of events, they are far less likely to occur and may even be eliminated.</p>\n<p>The good news is that the agency reported 80 percent of hospitals do have strict protocol in place for how to respond when a &#8220;never event&#8221; does occur. Those require that hospitals:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Apologize;</li>\n<li>Report error to an outside agency;</li>\n<li>Perform a root-cause analysis;</li>\n<li>Waive related costs;</li>\n<li>Make the policy available.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Massachusetts in particular has a good reputation for this, with 90 percent or more hospitals meeting the industry standards for &#8220;never event&#8221; policies as of 2015. Nationally, there has been a significant increase in the number of hospitals meeting this standard. It jumped from 53 percent in 1992 to 79 percent in 2012.</p>\n<p>Still, sometimes even when a facility has that policy in place, it&#8217;s not always followed. Too often, the first concern is shielding the agency from liability from medical malpractice litigation. The concern is that an apology is an admission of liability, which is why many doctors and facilities refrain.</p>\n<p><em>If you have suffered personal injury in Massachusetts, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/healthcare/one-5-hospitals-fall-short-never-events" target="_blank">One in five hospitals falls short on &#8220;never events,&#8221; </a>June 9, 2016, By Zack Budryk, Fierce Health Care</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/06/family-sues-ymca-teen-drowns.html">Family Sues YMCA After Teen Drowns</a>, June 2, 2015, Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/06/report-1-5-hospitals-falls-short-never-events.html">Report: 1 in 5 Hospitals Falls Short on &#8220;Never Events&#8221;</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2240</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson: Discovery Requirements in Personal Injury Cases</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/sharkey-issaquena-community-hospital-v-anderson-discovery-requirements-personal-injury-cases.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Fri, 15 Jan 2016 15:48:34 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Personal Injury]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2042</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson, a case from the Supreme Court of Mississippi, involved a patient who had a stroke and was seen at defendant\xe2\x80\x99s emergency room. However, plaintiff contends that hospital did not properly diagnose the stroke and discharged him with instructions to see his primary care physician within three days. As a [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/sharkey-issaquena-community-hospital-v-anderson-discovery-requirements-personal-injury-cases.html">Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson: Discovery Requirements in Personal Injury Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/mississippi/supreme-court/2015/2014-ia-00465-sct.html" target="_blank"><em>Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson</em></a>, a case from the Supreme Court of Mississippi, involved a patient who had a stroke and was seen at defendant\xe2\x80\x99s emergency room. However, plaintiff contends that hospital did not properly diagnose the stroke and discharged him with instructions to see his primary care physician within three days.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/medical-equipment-1342025-m1.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-640"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-640" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/medical-equipment-1342025-m1-300x201.jpg" alt="medical-equipment-1342025-m" width="300" height="201" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/medical-equipment-1342025-m1.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/medical-equipment-1342025-m1-179x120.jpg 179w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>As a result of not being given immediate treatment for his stroke, he suffered permanent brain injury and nervous system damage, including loss of function, loss of enjoyment of life, medical bills, and pain and suffering. There were also special damages alleged as part of plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s action.<span id="more-2042"></span></p>\n<p>Defendant filed an affirmative defense as part of its answer. An affirmative defense generally involves a theory that even if everything plaintiff has alleged is true, the defendant would be not be labile for any damages. At this point, the parties agreed to a scheduling order with all dates listed until the date of trial. A scheduling order will include dates for the close of discovery, dates when expert witness information must be exchanged, and dates of other important things that occur during the pretrial phase of any litigation.</p>\n<p>In this case, experts were to be designated on November 30, 2013. However, the plaintiff failed to designate an expert by the appropriate date. In medical malpractice cases, expert witnesses are generally necessary, because a jury is not generally able to understand if a hospital or doctor breached the applicable standard of care for patients presenting with the same or similar symptoms without expert testimony.</p>\n<p>At this point, plaintiff filed a motion for a continuance and asked for more time before trial and the ability to file an expert notice after the deadline. The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment on the same day, asking that the case be dismissed on grounds that plaintiff cannot prove their case as a matter of law, because they had not designated an exert witness. After receiving the motion to continue, defendants filed an opposition to this motion. The defendant claimed they were harmed by the three-month delay in not receiving expert notice from plaintiff, and the motion should be denied. This would mean that the case would be dismissed. The court denied defendant\xe2\x80\x99s motion for summary judgment and granted plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s motion to continue the trial and late file discovery, including expert witness information.\xc2\xa0\xc2\xa0 Plaintiff filed an interlocutory appeal, asking the trial judge be deemed to have erred as a matter of law in granting the plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s motion to continue.</p>\n<p>An interlocutory appeal is an appeal that is made before a final judgment is rendered in the case. Typically, litigants must wait until the matter is concluded, but there are certain issues than be raised as an interlocutory appeal. This is a complicated issue, and your Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/personal-injury.html">personal injury</a> attorney can discuss how this would apply in your particular case should the need arise.</p>\n<p>In this case, when defendants appealed, the court reviewed the record from the case and determined that trial court did not err as a matter of law and affirmed trial court\xe2\x80\x99s original ruling. This allowed the case to proceed to trial with the judge allowing plaintiff to introduce an expert witness notice.</p>\n<p><em>If you are injured in an accident in Boston, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/mississippi/supreme-court/2015/2014-ia-00465-sct.html" target="_blank"><em>Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson</em></a>, December 17, 2015, Supreme Court of Mississippi</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2014/05/wilkins-v-city-of-haverhill-.html"><em>Wilkins v. City of Haverhill &#8211; Massachusetts Supreme Court Weighs Slip-and-Fall Claim</em></a>, May 23, 2014, Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/sharkey-issaquena-community-hospital-v-anderson-discovery-requirements-personal-injury-cases.html">Sharkey Issaquena Community Hospital v. Anderson: Discovery Requirements in Personal Injury Cases</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2042</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Harrison v. Roitmanm: Infliction of Emotional Distress</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/harrison-v-roitmanm-infliction-emotional-distress.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2016 15:48:03 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[medical malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Personal Injury]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/?p=2044</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[<p>Harrison v. Roitmanm involved a heavily contested divorce proceeding. As part of his case, husband hired a psychiatrist as an expert to provide a psychiatric analysis of his wife. Even though the doctor had never personally examined or even met plaintiff, the doctor submitted a written report to the judge in which plaintiff was diagnosed [&#8230;]</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/harrison-v-roitmanm-infliction-emotional-distress.html">Harrison v. Roitmanm: Infliction of Emotional Distress</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/nevada/supreme-court/2015/64569.html" target="_blank"><em>Harrison v. Roitmanm</em></a> involved a heavily contested divorce proceeding. As part of his case, husband hired a psychiatrist as an expert to provide a psychiatric analysis of his wife. Even though the doctor had never personally examined or even met plaintiff, the doctor submitted a written report to the judge in which plaintiff was diagnosed with a personality disorder and noted she had serious mental health issues and was not likely to improve.</p>\n<p><a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/stethascope1.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-588"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-588" src="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/stethascope1-300x225.jpg" alt="stethascope1" width="300" height="225" srcset="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/stethascope1.jpg 300w, https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/files/2015/06/stethascope1-160x120.jpg 160w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>Following this report, plaintiff filed a lawsuit against doctor in which she alleged that doctor committed medical malpractice by making such a negative diagnosis without ever having met plaintiff. She claimed this diagnosis caused her to suffer emotional distress. In this case, it was both negligent infliction of emotional distress and intentional infliction of emotional distress, as well as one claim of civil conspiracy. She claimed that making such a diagnosis without have personally conducted any sort of examination or even reviewing other doctors\xe2\x80\x99 records was a breach of the applicable standard of care for a medical health professional in the psychiatric field.<span id="more-2044"></span></p>\n<p>In response to plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s filing of a cause of action, defendant filed a motion to dismiss on grounds that a doctor testifying as an expert witness has immunity from causes of action based upon their testimony. This concept of immunity comes from a desire to have witnesses not be afraid to testify at trial. However, we are normally dealing with the issue of defamation and not an intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress. The trial court found that defendant did have an absolute privilege of immunity in this matter and dismissed the case against her. At this point, plaintiff appealed the dismissal on grounds that her privilege only applied to defamation claims, which she had not filed in this case.</p>\n<p>In this type of appeal, the court looked at the facts in the light most favorable to the not moving party. This means that court will accept all of plaintiff\xe2\x80\x99s facts as true for the purpose of the appeal. The only way an appeal can succeed is in the case where, even if everything plaintiff says is true, she would still not have a case in which a jury could reasonably find for the defendant.</p>\n<p>The court then looked at the issue of whether an absolute immunity defense applied to claims of intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress instead of simply defamation claims as the privilege was originally intended. The court concluded that state law limited absolute immunity for a testifying witness to claims of defamation and not the intentional infliction of emotional distress or the negligent infliction of emotional distress. The case was reversed and remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.</p>\n<p>It should be noted that negligent or intentional infliction of emotional distress claims are hard to prove, and just because the court reversed the trial judge\xe2\x80\x99s dismissal, it does not mean that she automatically wins the case. It means that she will be able to proceed with the case and eventually a jury can determine if defendant is liable to plaintiff for intentional infliction of emotional distress or negligent infliction of emotional distress, or not at all. Emotional distress claims can be very complicated, and you should speak with an experienced Boston <a href="https://www.jeffreysglassman.com/personal-injury.html">personal injury</a> lawyer about the facts of your particular cause of action.</p>\n<p><em>If you are injured in Boston, call the Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Glassman for a free and confidential appointment &#8212; 1-888-367-2900.</em></p>\n<p>Additional Resources:</p>\n<p><em><a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/nevada/supreme-court/2015/64569.html" target="_blank">Harrison v. Roitmanm</a></em>, December 17, 2015, Supreme Court of Nevada</p>\n<p>More Blog Entries:<br />\n<a href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2014/05/summer-swimming-pool-safety-in.html"><em>Summer Swimming Pool Safety in New England</em></a>, May 15, 2014, Boston Personal Injury Lawyer Blog</p>\n<p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2016/01/harrison-v-roitmanm-infliction-emotional-distress.html">Harrison v. Roitmanm: Infliction of Emotional Distress</a> appeared first on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com">Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog</a>.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2044</post-id>\t</item>\n\t</channel>\n</rss>\n\r\n<!-- Performance optimized by W3 Total Cache. Learn more: https://www.w3-edge.com/products/\r\n\r\nPage Caching using disk: enhanced (Requested URI is rejected)\r\n\r\n Served from: www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com @ 2017-10-24 13:11:39 by W3 Total Cache -->'
In [28]:
p_2 = urllib.request.build_opener(urllib.request.HTTPCookieProcessor).open(url_2).read()
print(p_2)
b'<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"\n\txmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"\n\txmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"\n\txmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"\n\txmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"\n\txmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"\n\txmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"\n\t>\n\n<channel>\n\t<title>Medical Malpractice &#8211; Boston Injury Lawyer Blog</title>\n\t<atom:link href="https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/category/medical-malpractice/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />\n\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com</link>\n\t<description>Published by Boston, Massachusetts Personal Injury Attorneys \xe2\x80\x94 Altman &#38; Altman</description>\n\t<lastBuildDate>Tue, 24 Oct 2017 13:50:21 +0000</lastBuildDate>\n\t<language>en-US</language>\n\t<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>\n\t<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>\n\t\n<site xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">87464274</site>\t<item>\n\t\t<title>$3 Million Award in Delaware Birth Injury Case</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/10/3-million-award-delaware-birth-injury-case.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Wed, 04 Oct 2017 14:40:54 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Personal Injury]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=3307</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[In 2014, Monica Broughton filed a lawsuit against the doctor who delivered her son six years earlier. Amari Broughton-Fleming, now nine years old, suffered nerve damage during birth. During his delivery &#8211; which was induced &#8211; Amari\xe2\x80\x99s shoulder became trapped behind his mother\xe2\x80\x99s pelvic bone. The doctor dislodged the arm by tugging on the infant\xe2\x80\x99s [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In 2014, Monica Broughton filed a lawsuit against the doctor who delivered her son six years earlier. Amari Broughton-Fleming, now nine years old, suffered nerve damage during birth. During his delivery &#8211; which was induced &#8211; Amari\xe2\x80\x99s shoulder became trapped behind his mother\xe2\x80\x99s pelvic bone. The doctor dislodged the arm by tugging on the infant\xe2\x80\x99s head. Following Amari\xe2\x80\x99s birth, doctors discovered that his right arm was paralyzed, and that some of the <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/birth-injuries.html">nerve damage</a> was permanent.</p>\n<p>Multiple surgeries have improved Amari\xe2\x80\x99s condition, but he still has difficulty with even the most basic tasks, such as zipping his pants, riding a bike, and playing sports. Some of his fingers twitch when his arm is at rest, and the damaged arm is four inches shorter than its healthy counterpart. In addition to the physical challenges, Amari has also suffered emotional trauma. &#8220;He asks if his arm is ever going to be normal,&#8221; said Broughton. &#8220;He wants it to grow.\xe2\x80\x9d</p>\n<p>A pediatric neurologist diagnosed the permanent nerve damage, saying that two of the five main nerves had been torn in half. Broughton claims that the nerve damage is the result of her doctor\xe2\x80\x99s negligence. She believes that the OB-GYN\xe2\x80\x99s forceful pulling of her son\xe2\x80\x99s head caused the damage, and that he never told her about the potential risks of such a procedure. Apparently, the New Castle County, Delaware jury agreed with Broughton, because they awarded her $3 million. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">MA birth injury lawyer</a> can help you obtain the compensation you deserve if medical negligence harmed you or your child.</p>\n<h2>Common Types of Birth Injuries</h2>\n<p>When birth injuries are life-altering, juries are often quite sympathetic to the victim(s). The following birth injuries are commonly linked to medical negligence:</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Brachial plexus injury: Also known as Erb\xe2\x80\x99s palsy or Klumpke\xe2\x80\x99s palsy, this birth injury occurs in about one out of every 1,000 births. In many cases, this injury is the result of improper practices during labor and delivery. Nerve damage can be minor and can heal on its own, or nerves can be completely torn from their root, resulting in total or partial paralysis.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cerebral palsy: This permanent condition is characterized by impaired movement and motor skills. It may be caused by oxygen deprivation or trauma during labor.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Premature birth and neural tube disorders can occur due to overdosing with folic acid, a supplement commonly given to pregnant women.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cerebral ischemia (reduced blood flow) can lead to brain damage in minutes. This condition can be caused by maternal overmedication, infection, and shoulder dystocia. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Boston birth injury lawyer</a> can help you determine how to proceed if your child has been injured due to medical negligence.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cephalohematoma (bleeding between the skull and brain) is often caused by improper use of forceps and other tools used to forcefully extract an infant. Fortunately, this condition usually heals on its own with time.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Spinal cord injuries: These are significantly more rare than the other birth injuries mentioned. Although spinal cord injuries involve varying degrees of cord disruption, most are quite serious. Spinal cord injuries may result in total paralysis, and even death. Trauma during labor, often involving breech births, is usually a factor in this type of birth injury.</li>\n</ul>\n<p><span id="more-3307"></span></p>\n<h2>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Birth Injury Lawyers Serving Boston and the Surrounding Areas</h2>\n<p>If you or your child were injured during the birth process, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. Our compassionate, knowledgeable attorneys understand the emotional complexities surrounding birth injury cases. We will do everything in our power to get you the compensation you deserve so that you can focus on physical and emotional healing. Don\xe2\x80\x99t go through this difficult time alone. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a> for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3307</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>When is a Medication Error Medical Negligence?</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/09/medication-error-medical-negligence.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Tue, 12 Sep 2017 18:10:02 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Personal Injury]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=3292</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[When we\xe2\x80\x99re given a prescription, we have little choice but to trust that the prescribing doctor knows what\xe2\x80\x99s best for us. Unfortunately, doctors are humans and humans make mistakes. Maybe your doctor is having a bad day, or maybe she\xe2\x80\x99s feeling ill. She inadvertently overlooks that you are currently taking a drug that is contraindicated [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When we\xe2\x80\x99re given a prescription, we have little choice but to trust that the prescribing doctor knows what\xe2\x80\x99s best for us. Unfortunately, doctors are humans and humans make mistakes. Maybe your doctor is having a bad day, or maybe she\xe2\x80\x99s feeling ill. She inadvertently overlooks that you are currently taking a drug that is contraindicated for use with the drug she is prescribing. If this mistake causes you injury, can your doctor be liable for those injuries? Is this an example of <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/medical-malpractice.html">medical negligence</a>, or just an honest mistake?</p>\n<h2>Common Medication Errors</h2>\n<p>Medication errors can result in serious injury, and even death. A patient may suffer an overdose, an allergic reaction, or a delay in care due to a medication error. And these errors are shockingly common. In fact, medication errors injure about 1.3 million people and are responsible for nearly 700,000 emergency room visits annually in the United States. Maybe we shouldn\xe2\x80\x99t be so surprised, considering that about one-third of American adults take at least five medications. Common medication errors include:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Incorrect dosage</li>\n<li>Wrong medication</li>\n<li>Interference with other medications due to failure to check already prescribed meds</li>\n<li>Allergic reactions due to failure to check patient\xe2\x80\x99s allergies</li>\n<li>Adverse reactions due to failure to check past prescription use</li>\n<li>Failure to warn about side effects and risks</li>\n<li>Failure to provide dosing instructions</li>\n</ul>\n<p>All of the above scenarios can be a result of medical negligence, but proving negligence is rarely an easy task. To prove negligence, you must first show that a \xe2\x80\x9cduty of care\xe2\x80\x9d existed and that a medical professional breached that duty. In order for a duty of care to exist, there must be a contractual relationship between patient and doctor at the time of the injury. Further, the medical professional must have done something that falls outside of what a qualified medical professional would have done under the same or similar circumstances. An experienced <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">MA medical negligence attorney</a> can help you prove that your injury is the direct result of a breach of duty on the part of a medical professional.</p>\n<h2>How to Prevent Medication Errors</h2>\n<p>If you are given a prescription, don\xe2\x80\x99t just assume that your doctor knows best. Ask the following questions:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>What is the name of the drug?</li>\n<li>What is the correct dosage?</li>\n<li>What is the purpose of the drug?</li>\n<li>How long should I use the drug?</li>\n<li>What is the proper method of storage for the drug?</li>\n<li>Will it interact with any of the medications or vitamins I am currently on? (List these for your doctor, including over-the-counter meds, herbs, and dietary supplements)</li>\n<li>How will this drug affect my other medical conditions? (If you have other health problems, list them for your doctor)</li>\n</ul>\n<p>In addition to the above questions, tell your doctor if you have ever had an allergic or adverse reaction to any drug, herb, or supplement. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Boston injury attorney</a> can help you recover damages if you\xe2\x80\x99ve been injured due to another\xe2\x80\x99s negligence.<span id="more-3292"></span></p>\n<h2>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Boston\xe2\x80\x99s Premier Medical Negligence Law Firm</h2>\n<p>If you have been injured due to another\xe2\x80\x99s negligence, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. We have been protecting the rights of accident and injury victims for more than 50 years. If you have been harmed, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other associated costs. Our experienced, knowledgeable attorneys will ensure that you fully understand your rights and options before moving forward. It is our goal to get you the compensation you deserve so that you can get on with your life. Don\xe2\x80\x99t go through this difficult time alone. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a> for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3292</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Birth Injuries to Children During Labor and Delivery Process</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/08/birth-injuries-children-labor-delivery-process.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 31 Aug 2017 18:36:11 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Children\'s Injuries]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=3284</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[A birth injury is different from a birth defect. Birth injuries typically occur during the labor and delivery process and are often due to a medical mistake. Birth defects usually develop during pregnancy, beginning in utero. When a child suffers a preventable birth injury, the emotional and financial toll can be devastating for the family. [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p class="Body">A birth injury is different from a birth defect. <span class="Hyperlink0"><a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/birth-injuries.html">Birth injuries</a></span> typically occur during the labor and delivery process and are often due to a medical mistake. Birth defects usually develop during pregnancy, beginning in utero. When a child suffers a preventable birth injury, the emotional and financial toll can be devastating for the family. Some birth injuries are minor and heal on their own with time. However, more serious birth injuries can cause permanent mental, physical and emotional damage.</p>\n<p class="Body">A <span class="Hyperlink0"><a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Boston birth injury lawyer</a></span> can help you determine how to proceed if your child has suffered due to medical negligence. Birth injuries can be minor or severe, and they may or may not be caused by medical negligence. The most commonly-cited birth injuries include:</p>\n<h2>Brachial Plexus Injuries (BPI)</h2>\n<p class="Body">When the bundle of nerves originating from the upper spine are damaged during labor and delivery, the child may suffer a BPI. This injury can be temporary or permanent. A neuroma is one type of BPI in which a torn nerve fails to heal properly. Avulsion &#8211; the most serious type of BPI &#8211; occurs when the nerves are completely torn from the spine, resulting in total paralysis.</p>\n<h2>Bone Fractures</h2>\n<p class="Body">One of the most common birth injuries, bone fractures usually heal on their own. Bone fractures can be caused by medical negligence, but often they are the result of a difficult or complicated delivery. The most commonly-fractured bone in a newborn is the clavicle (collar bone), which may need to be broken if the infant\xe2\x80\x99s shoulders are too wide to safely fit through the birth canal.</p>\n<h2>Perinatal Asphyxia</h2>\n<p class="Body">When a newborn doesn\xe2\x80\x99t receive enough oxygen during the delivery process, he may suffer from perinatal asphyxia. Depending on the severity and length of oxygen deprivation, the child may be perfectly fine or he could have permanent damage to the brain.</p>\n<h2>Cerebral Ischemia</h2>\n<p class="Body">A newborn can suffer severe brain damage when there is a reduction in blood flow during labor and delivery. Cerebral ischemia may be caused by infection, shoulder dystocia, and overmedication of the mother.</p>\n<h2>Spinal Cord Injuries</h2>\n<p class="Body">Spinal cord injuries are generally severe and often result in permanent damage. The use of forceps is frequently a factor in cases involving spinal cord injuries in newborns. In addition to complete paralysis, spinal cord injuries can often cause neurologic problems. A <span class="Hyperlink0"><a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">MA birth injury lawyer</a></span> can help you recover damages if your child has been injured during the labor and delivery process.</p>\n<h2>Cephalohematoma</h2>\n<p class="Body">A condition that generally occurs during the labor and delivery process, cephalohematoma is often linked to the use of forceps. Pooling of blood between the skull bone and inner layers of skin may result in a hematoma, which typically looks much worse than it is. In most cases, this condition is harmless and will heal on its own. However, if your child exhibits additional symptoms, such as anemia, jaundice, infection or unnatural bulging on the head, you should consult with your doctor immediately.<span id="more-3284"></span></p>\n<h2>Cerebral Palsy</h2>\n<p class="Body">Characterized by weak muscles, muscle spasms and problems with motor skill development, cerebral palsy affects about three in 1,000 children. There is no cure for this life-long medical condition, and the effects can be debilitating.</p>\n<h2>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Birth Injury Lawyers Serving All of MA</h2>\n<p class="Body">If your child has been injured due to medical negligence, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. We have been protecting the rights of accident and injury victims for more than 50 years, and we have extensive experience with birth injuries. Our compassionate, knowledgeable attorneys understand the emotional complexities of cases involving young children. We will be by your side throughout the entire process. It is our goal to get you the compensation you deserve so that you can get on with your life. <span class="Hyperlink0"><a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a></span> for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n<p class="Body">\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3284</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Was Your Illness Misdiagnosed?</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/05/was-your-illness-misdiagnosed.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Fri, 05 May 2017 14:52:19 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=3219</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[When a physician\xe2\x80\x99s diagnostic error results in improper or delayed treatment, the patient\xe2\x80\x99s condition can worsen, causing painful or irreversible medical complications, and even death. When a misdiagnosis results in injury, the victim may bring a medical malpractice lawsuit against the hospital, physician, or other medical personnel. A Boston injury lawyer can help you obtain [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>When a physician\xe2\x80\x99s <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/failure-to-diagnose-delayed-diagnosis-and-misdiagnosis.html">diagnostic error</a> results in improper or delayed treatment, the patient\xe2\x80\x99s condition can worsen, causing painful or irreversible medical complications, and even death. When a misdiagnosis results in injury, the victim may bring a medical malpractice lawsuit against the hospital, physician, or other medical personnel. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Boston injury lawyer</a> can help you obtain the compensation you or a loved one deserves if you have been harmed by a misdiagnosis.</p>\n<h2>Diagnostic Errors</h2>\n<p>Not all diagnostic errors are created equal. Three factors must be present to justify a malpractice lawsuit following a misdiagnosis. These factors are:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>The existence of a doctor-patient relationship.</li>\n<li>Negligence &#8211; the physician did not provide the level of treatment that a competent physician would have provided under similar circumstances.</li>\n<li>The negligence resulted in injury.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>If, for example, the first two factors were present but the misdiagnosis did not cause a measurable injury, a successful malpractice lawsuit is unlikely. Similarly, if the physician provided an exceptional standard of care, he or she probably won\xe2\x80\x99t be found liable for malpractice, even if an injury occurred. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">MA injury attorney</a> can help you determine if you have a viable malpractice case.</p>\n<h2>Did Negligence Play a Role?</h2>\n<p>A misdiagnosis is not evidence of negligence on its own. Even a highly-skilled, competent physician can make diagnostic mistakes. The real question is: did the physician act competently? To determine this, the court will look at the steps the doctor took to arrive at the diagnosis. What did the doctor do, and what did the doctor <em>not </em>do? This involves an evaluation of the doctor\xe2\x80\x99s differential diagnosis, which is the method used to identify a patient\xe2\x80\x99s medical condition.</p>\n<p>Following a preliminary evaluation, the physician will list possible diagnoses in their order of probability. Next, the physician considers each potential diagnosis and conducts additional observations of the patient to determine the probability of that particular diagnosis. To do so, he or she will order tests, request the opinion of specialists, and obtain the patient\xe2\x80\x99s medical history.\xc2\xa0\xc2\xa0 The goal is to rule out multiple potential diagnoses, whittling the list down to &#8211; hopefully &#8211; only one likely candidate.</p>\n<p>Of course, it doesn\xe2\x80\x99t always work out this way. In order to win a malpractice lawsuit, one of two things will have to be proven: a) the correct diagnosis didn\xe2\x80\x99t appear on the differential diagnosis list, and a competent doctor would have included it, or b) the correct diagnosis appeared on the list, but the doctor failed to perform necessary tests.</p>\n<h2>Other Forms of Negligence</h2>\n<p>Even if the doctor isn\xe2\x80\x99t liable for malpractice, someone else\xe2\x80\x99s negligence may have injured a patient. For example, if a tech accidentally contaminated samples because he arrived at work late and was trying to complete a task too quickly. A third party can also be liable; for instance, a manufacturer may be on the hook if faulty equipment lead to a misdiagnosis.</p>\n<h2>Did the Misdiagnosis Harm the Patient?</h2>\n<p>In order to bring a successful legal claim, it must be shown that the misdiagnosis caused the medical condition to advance beyond where it would have had the misdiagnosis not occurred, and that the progression of the condition negatively impacted the patient\xe2\x80\x99s treatment. If, for example, the patient had to undergo chemotherapy to treat cancer that advanced due to a misdiagnosis, the patient has a good chance of recovering damages. And if a physician misdiagnoses a patient with a life-threatening condition that he or she doesn\xe2\x80\x99t have, the physician may be liable for causing undue stress or anxiety.<span id="more-3219"></span></p>\n<h2>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Medical Malpractice Attorneys Serving All of MA</h2>\n<p>If you have been injured due to a misdiagnosis, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. We have been protecting the rights of accident and injury victims for more than 50 years. It is our goal to get you the compensation you deserve so that you can get on with your life. If you\xe2\x80\x99ve been harmed by another\xe2\x80\x99s negligence, we can help. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP</a> today for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3219</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>$42 Million Award in Traumatic Birth Injury Case</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/04/42-million-award-traumatic-birth-injury-case.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Tue, 25 Apr 2017 15:20:47 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Children\'s Injuries]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Train Accidents]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=3209</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[Last week, the family of a child who was severely injured at birth was awarded a $42 million verdict for future medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost earning capacity, among other damages. A Pennsylvania judge awarded the multi-million dollar verdict due to the extent of the child\xe2\x80\x99s injuries and the likelihood that he will [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Last week, the family of a child who was severely injured at birth was awarded a $42 million verdict for future medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost earning capacity, among other damages. A Pennsylvania judge awarded the multi-million dollar verdict due to the extent of the child\xe2\x80\x99s injuries and the likelihood that he will require life-long care.</p>\n<p>The child, who is now five years old, was injured during the delivery process when the doctor allegedly used forceps prematurely to pull the infant from the birth canal. According to the lawsuit, the pressure from the forceps caused internal bleeding, which resulted in permanent injuries, including <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/birth-injuries.html">cognitive problems</a>, physical impairments, and an inability to express himself. As a result, he has suffered multiple brain and spine surgeries, and will require many more in the future. In fact, doctors do not expect that the child will ever read or write, and he may spend the rest of his life in an electric wheelchair.</p>\n<p>The birth of a baby is supposed to be a joyous occasion, when a doctor\xe2\x80\x99s negligence or medical malpractice results in painful or debilitating injuries to mother or child, this special day can forever be marred by trauma, sadness, and anger. In some cases, traumatic birth injuries lead to a lifetime of medical problems, and even death. Malpractice claims can be brought against doctors, other medical personnel, and hospitals. However, these types of claims are highly complicated and require the help of a skilled <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">MA birth injury lawyer</a>.</p>\n<h2>Types of Traumatic Birth Injuries</h2>\n<p>Any kind of birth-related injury can be classified as a traumatic birth injury, but some of the most common serious birth injuries include:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Broken bones and bruising: In many cases, these injuries will heal over a period of time, without the need for medical intervention. Broken bones and bruises are often caused by the use of forceps, vacuums, or natural physical stresses of the birth process. When an infant is tugged with too much force or medical personnel improperly use birth-assisting tools, these injuries can become more severe.</li>\n</ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Bell\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy: This injury is characterized by facial paralysis, and occurs when the infant\xe2\x80\x99s facial nerves are damaged during the birth process. The damage is often caused by extreme pressure on the infant\xe2\x80\x99s face, either from natural causes or from improper use of forceps during delivery. In most cases, Bell\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy improves without treatment. A <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Boston injury lawyer</a> can help you obtain the compensation you deserve if you were harmed due to medical negligence.</li>\n</ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Brachial Plexus injury: The brachial plexus is a bundle of nerves that connects the spine to the arms and hands. When the brachial plexus is injured during the birth process, the baby may temporarily lose the ability to move the arms. In most cases, this injury will heal over time, but brachial plexus injuries can be permanent if the nerves are actually torn. These injuries are most common in difficult births, especially when a doctor pulls too hard to extract an infant whose shoulder is stuck in the birth canal.</li>\n</ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Anoxia: A form of oxygen deprivation, anoxia can cause serious medical complications in a newborn. If the placenta separates prematurely or the umbilical cord is wrapped around the infant\xe2\x80\x99s neck, oxygen flow to the brain may be reduced to dangerous levels. If a baby is deprived of oxygen for too long, serious brain damage can result. In some cases, this oxygen deprivation causes a medical disorder called cerebral palsy (CP). Children with CP have difficulty controlling body movements and developing / maintaining muscle tone. CP is a serious, life-long and life-altering condition. In some situations, oxygen deprivation leads to death.</li>\n</ul>\n<p><span id="more-3209"></span></p>\n<h2>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Boston\xe2\x80\x99s Top Birth Injury Law Firm</h2>\n<p>If you or your child were injured due to medical negligence, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. Our experienced, compassionate lawyers understand the highly-emotional nature of these cases. It is our goal to help you obtain the compensation you deserve as quickly as possible so that you can focus on what matters &#8211; your child. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a> for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">3209</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Facts about Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy &#8211; When is it Negligence?</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/02/facts-erbs-palsy-accident-negligence.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 16 Feb 2017 19:18:51 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Children\'s Injuries]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=2854</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[The birth of a newborn baby is as natural of a miracle that we can observe in our world. A newborn baby represents hope, potential, and a clean start. Hundreds of thousands of births occur every single day, and unfortunately many of them have complications that result in various difficulties for the newborn baby and [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The birth of a newborn baby is as natural of a miracle that we can observe in our world. A newborn baby represents hope, potential, and a clean start. Hundreds of thousands of births occur every single day, and unfortunately many of them have complications that result in various difficulties for the newborn baby and its family.</p>\n<p>One form of complication, Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy, occurs in infants who sustain nerve damage in their brachial plexus, a cluster of nerves that root in the shoulder, near the neck, and flow down into the arms. These nerves can be injured in various ways, such as during a difficult or abnormally stressful breach birth or when the baby is excessively large.</p>\n<p>Sadly, one of the ways Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy can also happen is as a result of a doctor pulling on a baby too forcefully during a challenging birth. It most commonly manifests when a newborn\xe2\x80\x99s head is twisted too sharply in one direction, tearing or cutting off circulation to the nerve cluster. The condition can cause long-lasting or permanent physical disabilities in the child, from temporarily being unable to move its arms or fingers to having full limb paralysis throughout its life.</p>\n<div class="read_more_link"><a href="https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/02/facts-erbs-palsy-accident-negligence.html"  title="Continue Reading Facts about Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy &#8211; When is it Negligence?" class="more-link">Continue reading</a></div>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2854</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>The dangers of a MRSA outbreak, and why hospitals must follow all state mandated precautions.</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/01/dangers-mrsa-outbreak-hospitals-must-follow-state-mandated-precautions.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2017 18:15:19 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=2832</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[According to a recent investigation, thousands of deaths related to infections contracted in hospitals may have gone unreported. In one example, the death of a newborn was blamed on sepsis due to premature birth when the actual cause was an outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the hospital\xe2\x80\x99s neonatal ward. Whether the lack of [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>According to a recent investigation, thousands of deaths related to infections contracted in hospitals may have gone unreported. In one example, the death of a newborn was blamed on sepsis due to premature birth when the actual cause was an outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the hospital\xe2\x80\x99s neonatal ward. Whether the lack of reporting is due to poor tracking or a more ominous cover-up is not yet known. But the firing of a New Jersey nurse may reveal some answers.</p>\n<p>Catherine Tanksley-Bowe was a nurse at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, until she was fired in August of 2016. Tanksley-Bowe claims that her firing was in retaliation for her exposure of the hospital\xe2\x80\x99s mishandling of a staph infection outbreak in the infant intensive care unit. She claims the hospital did not take the proper, state-mandated precautions to prevent the spread of MRSA in the neonatal unit. According to the New Jersey Department of Health, two of the eight infants who contracted the infection later died. Following the incident, the state\xe2\x80\x99s inspection of the hospital uncovered \xe2\x80\x9cseveral infection control deficiencies.\xe2\x80\x9d If you have contracted an infection that you believe may be related to hospital cross-contamination, <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">contact a Boston injury lawyer today</a>.</p>\n<h2>What is MRSA?</h2>\n<p>This highly-contagious bacteria, known as a superbug, can cause infections in different parts of the body. Because it is resistant to many commonly used antibiotics, MRSA is much more difficult to treat than other infections. Symptoms vary depending on the infection site, but include sores or boils as well as more serious complications, such as lung and blood infections. When promptly identified and treated, MRSA infections are usually not life threatening. However, in cases such as the hospital outbreak above, when fear of legal action results in a lack of reporting and immediate treatment response, MRSA can be fatal. If you believe that another\xe2\x80\x99s negligence has caused you harm.</p>\n<h2>Was NJ Nurse Fired for Calling Attention to Hospital Deficiencies?</h2>\n<p>According to Tanksley-Bowe\xe2\x80\x99s lawsuit, on August 8 she informed the hospital\xe2\x80\x99s environmental service representative and administrator about the failure to follow state guidelines for cross-contamination prevention. She also claims to have told the hospital\xe2\x80\x99s Chief of Pediatrics that Cooper should stop accepting babies into the intensive care unit and inform other hospitals of the infection. Tanksley-Bowe says the hospital didn\xe2\x80\x99t heed her advice, and she was fired three days later.</p>\n<h2>What is Medical Malpractice?</h2>\n<p>If the Court believes Tanksley-Bowe\xe2\x80\x99s claims to be true, the hospital may be liable for wrongful termination as well as <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/medical-malpractice.html">medical malpractice</a>. However, for a medical malpractice claim to be successful, certain elements must be present. Simply making a mistake is not enough. If the elements below are all present, it may be wise to file a medical malpractice lawsuit:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>An established doctor-patient relationship</li>\n<li>Care that fell below the accepted standard</li>\n<li>A link between the medical negligence and the harm to the patient</li>\n<li>Quantifiable harm to the patient</li>\n</ul>\n<p><span id="more-2832"></span></p>\n<h3>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Personal Injury Law Firm Serving Boston and the Surrounding Areas</h3>\n<p>If you have been harmed due to medical malpractice or negligence, the skilled legal team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. We have been fighting for the rights of accident and injury victims for more than 50 years. If you believe that another\xe2\x80\x99s negligence has caused you harm, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and more. Our attorneys have an impressive track record of obtaining compensation for clients. If you\xe2\x80\x99ve been injured, we can help. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a> for a free and confidential consultation about your case.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2832</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Common Birth Injury Questions and Answers</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2016/12/common-birth-injury-questions-answers.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2016 16:28:48 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Children\'s Injuries]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=2799</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[In some situations, birth injuries and birth defects are unavoidable. However, when the negligence of your doctor, the medical staff, or a pharmaceutical company results in harm to you or your baby, the responsible party should be held accountable for their actions. If you think your baby\xe2\x80\x99s birth injuries may be a result of medical [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In some situations, birth injuries and birth defects are unavoidable. However, when the negligence of your doctor, the medical staff, or a pharmaceutical company results in harm to you or your baby, the responsible party should be held accountable for their actions. If you think your baby\xe2\x80\x99s birth injuries may be a result of medical negligence, <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">contact a Boston birth injury lawyer today.</a></p>\n<p><strong>Is a birth defect considered a birth injury? </strong></p>\n<p>A: No. A birth defect is a condition that occurs before birth. Birth defects can be related to something that happened before or during the pregnancy, or they can be a result of genetic defects. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/birth-injuries.html">Birth injuries</a>, on the other hand, occur during the actual delivery process.<br />\n<strong>When should I sue for a birth injury?</strong></p>\n<p>A: If you believe that your doctor\xe2\x80\x99s negligence caused birth injuries to you and/or your baby, you may want to file a birth injury claim. Consider the following example: For days, you couldn\xe2\x80\x99t feel your near-term baby moving. You called your doctor multiple times to explain the sudden lack of movement, but she dismissed these complaints, saying it was \xe2\x80\x9cjust nerves.\xe2\x80\x9d A few days later, your baby was born with Cerebral Palsy due to lack of oxygen to the brain. The cord was wrapped around his neck. In this situation, your doctor may be found liable for negligence.</p>\n<p><strong>What is my chance of success with a birth injury lawsuit? </strong></p>\n<p>A: Well, it depends on several factors. For starters, some birth injuries and defects are unavoidable. For example, a baby\xe2\x80\x99s collarbone may need to be broken if the birth canal is too narrow to allow the baby\xe2\x80\x99s shoulders to pass through. In a birth injury case, it all boils down to whether the doctor was negligent. Did he or she do what a competent doctor would have done in a similar situation? If the doctor, medical staff, or a pharmaceutical company failed to provide adequate and appropriate care during pregnancy or delivery, you will likely have a successful injury lawsuit.</p>\n<p><strong>Are birth injuries common?</strong></p>\n<p>A: Currently, in the United States, about five out of every 1,000 babies will be injured during the birth process. Birth defects are present in about seven percent of U.S. births.</p>\n<p><strong>If I bring a birth injury lawsuit, what evidence does a jury use to determine if my doctor is liable? </strong></p>\n<p>A: Evidence in birth injury lawsuits often focuses on expert testimony and medical records / reports. Typically, expert testimony will come from other doctors who explain why your doctor\xe2\x80\x99s actions did, or did not, fall below acceptable standards of care. If your doctor is a specialist, such as an obstetrician, he or she will be held to a higher standard of care than would a non-specialist.</p>\n<p><strong>What are </strong><strong>\xe2\x80\x9c</strong><strong>teratogens\xe2\x80\x9d and do they cause birth defects? </strong></p>\n<p>A: Over the years, many drugs that were intended to help a woman deal with pregnancy-related issues, were found to cause birth defects. These drugs, known as teratogens, include Delalutin &#8211; used to prevent miscarriages, and Bendectin &#8211; an antinausea medication.</p>\n<p><strong>What is Cerebral Palsy?</strong></p>\n<p>A: Cerebral palsy is actually a general term for multiple disorders that affect brain function. It is often a result of lack of oxygen to the baby during delivery, and can be caused by any type of injury to the baby\xe2\x80\x99s brain while still in the womb. Cerebral palsy can cause lifetime mobility and body movement issues, as well as cognitive impairments.</p>\n<p><strong>Who receives money in a successful birth injury lawsuit? </strong></p>\n<p>A: In almost all cases, any compensation awarded will go to the child. If the child is still a minor, the funds will typically go into a trust. However, parents can also receive compensation for pain and suffering due to emotional distress.<span id="more-2799"></span></p>\n<h3><em>Altman &amp; Altman, LLP &#8211; Birth Injury Lawyers Serving All of Massachusetts</em></h3>\n<p><em>If your child was injured during the birth process, and you believe negligence played a role, the skilled birth injury team at Altman &amp; Altman, LLP can help. We understand the highly-sensitive nature of injury cases involving children, especially babies. Birth is supposed to be a joyous time. When that joy is replaced with sadness and fear, the emotional impact can be overwhelming. If medical negligence or malpractice caused injury to you or your child, we can help. <a href="https://www.altmanllp.com/contact-us.html">Contact Altman &amp; Altman, LLP today</a> for a free and confidential consultation abo</em>ut your case.</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2799</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Surgical Errors in Boston Hospitals \xe2\x80\x93 Inexcusable and not as rare as you think</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2016/10/surgical-errors-boston-hospitals-inexcusable-not-rare-think.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Mon, 17 Oct 2016 14:27:10 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=2730</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[&#160; There\xe2\x80\x99s really no way to describe the feeling unless you\xe2\x80\x99ve been through it. You enter a hospital room somewhere in Massachusetts and are ushered through a series of procedures and given many different lectures about what is about to happen. Eventually, all that remains is your lingering remnants of consciousness as you slip off [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>There\xe2\x80\x99s really no way to describe the feeling unless you\xe2\x80\x99ve been through it. You enter a hospital room somewhere in Massachusetts and are ushered through a series of procedures and given many different lectures about what is about to happen. Eventually, all that remains is your lingering remnants of consciousness as you slip off into an anesthetic slumber, leaving your life in the hands of a surgeon who will proceed to cut into your body. \xc2\xa0The medical field of surgery is an undeniable testament to the progress of mankind\xe2\x80\x99s endless thirst for knowledge and our progress in being able to treat diseases and ailments that were, at one time, completely untreatable and debilitating. Over 26 million surgeries were performed in 2012, and that number steadily increased from 1992 by 17 percent.</p>\n<p>When dealing with a process as dangerous, complicated and unpredictable as surgery, patient deaths are an unfortunate certainty. What is most unsettling, though, is that a huge volume of patient deaths occur annually as a result of completely preventable mistakes, such as <a href="http://www.wcvb.com/news/hospital-faulted-for-removing-kidney-from-wrong-patient/42102930">operating on the wrong person</a>, or <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/23/health/yale-doctor-lawsuit/">performing the wrong procedure</a>, or something as careless as leaving a surgical device in somebody\xe2\x80\x99s body. \xc2\xa0Numbers for this tragic reality are hard to pin down, but recent investigations have revealed that anywhere between <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-many-die-from-medical-mistakes-in-us-hospitals/">210,000 and 440,000 patients die every year</a> due to preventable mistakes, which would make medical errors the third-leading cause of death in America behind only heart disease and cancer. Medical institutions take issue with this number, saying it is closer to 100,000. Realistically, any preventable death is a tragedy.</p>\n<p>Specifically related to surgery, John Hopkins University published a study in 2012 reporting that about 4,000 \xe2\x80\x9cnever events\xe2\x80\x9d \xe2\x80\x93 events that should never happen during happen surgery \xe2\x80\x93 happen annually in the United States. \xc2\xa0The study indicated that, every week in America, a surgeon leaves a surgical device such as a sponge or towel in a patient\xe2\x80\x99s body 39 times, performs the wrong surgery on a patient 20 times, and performs surgery on the wrong part of a patient 20 times a week. \xc2\xa0These \xe2\x80\x9cnever events\xe2\x80\x9d can have no consequences or life-threatening consequences, and are most likely underreported as some people will simply not be aware if the incident occurred unless something after the surgery goes wrong.<span id="more-2730"></span></p>\n<p>Never accept a surgical mistake</p>\n<p>When we go into surgery, we are quite literally putting our lives into the hands of a stranger. A medically-trained and experienced stranger, sure, but a stranger all the same. We have to be able to expect they are prepared, competent and responsible enough to perform their job without committing any unavoidable mistakes that can cost us irreparable harm or much worse. \xc2\xa0If you or somebody you love has been the victim of a surgical mistake, do not sit quietly and endure suffering that was entirely not your fault. You are entitled to compensation for your pain, suffering and any subsequent operations required to handle the surgeon\xe2\x80\x99s mistake.</p>\n<p>At Altman &amp; Altman LLP, our experienced legal team has over 40 years of experience litigating every different kind of medical malpractice suit imaginable. We are experts in pursuing settlements and taking more complicated matters to court when necessary. Negligence is never acceptable in a surgical setting. The stakes are simple too high. \xc2\xa0We will not rest until you receive the payment that you are legally entitled to and reserve. A consultation with one of our seasoned legal professionals is entirely free, and we don\xe2\x80\x99t earn a penny unless you are successful in your claim. Call us today at 617-492-3000 or toll-free at 800-481-6199. \xc2\xa0We are available 24/7.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2730</post-id>\t</item>\n\t\t<item>\n\t\t<title>Facts about Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy</title>\n\t\t<link>https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2016/10/facts-erbs-palsy.html</link>\n\t\t<pubDate>Thu, 13 Oct 2016 14:35:48 +0000</pubDate>\n\t\t<dc:creator><![CDATA[Altman &#38; Altman]]></dc:creator>\n\t\t\t\t<category><![CDATA[Children\'s Injuries]]></category>\n\t\t<category><![CDATA[Medical Malpractice]]></category>\n\n\t\t<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/?p=2720</guid>\n\t\t<description><![CDATA[The birth of a newborn baby is as natural of a miracle that we can observe in our world. A newborn baby represents hope, potential, and a clean start. Hundreds of thousands of births occur every single day, and unfortunately many of them have complications that result in various difficulties for the newborn baby and [&#8230;]]]></description>\n\t\t\t\t<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The birth of a newborn baby is as natural of a miracle that we can observe in our world. A newborn baby represents hope, potential, and a clean start. Hundreds of thousands of births occur every single day, and unfortunately many of them have complications that result in various difficulties for the newborn baby and its family. \xc2\xa0One form of complication, Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy, occurs in infants who sustain nerve damage in their brachial plexus, a cluster of nerves that root in the shoulder, near the neck, and flow down into the arms. These nerves can be injured in various ways, such as during a difficult or abnormally stressful breach birth or when the baby is excessively large.</p>\n<p>Sadly, one of the ways Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy can also happen is as a result of a doctor pulling on a baby too forcefully during a challenging birth. It most commonly manifests when a newborn\xe2\x80\x99s head is twisted too sharply in one direction, tearing or cutting off circulation to the nerve cluster. The condition can cause long-lasting or permanent physical disabilities in the child, from temporarily being unable to move its arms or fingers to having full limb paralysis throughout its life. \xc2\xa0Most cases of Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy, which happens in about one out of every thousand births, are minor cases where the child can heal over a short amount of time on its own, due to the rapid cell growth and development of newborn babies. Parents can work with doctors and physical therapists to help gradually progress the newborn into overcoming the condition and establishing a normal life.</p>\n<p>However, in some cases, if a child who suffered damage to their brachial plexus doesn\xe2\x80\x99t heal naturally within three to six months, the doctors may recommend performing surgery on the baby\xe2\x80\x99s nerves. This is only usually used for young infants, since their bodies can more adequately recuperate nerve function. The child may have to endure a nerve graft, which involves taking nerves from elsewhere in the child\xe2\x80\x99s body and replacing the damaged nerves. In more severe cases, they may need donor nerves. \xc2\xa0Even if the surgery if successful, children who suffer from Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy may still experience weakness or loss of function in the affected arm. They will need to undergo months or many years of physical therapy if there is any hope for them to regain normal function. Some may even need to have surgeries later in life. Physically, children affected with Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy will have one arm that is noticeable smaller or shorter than the other.<span id="more-2720"></span></p>\n<p><strong>Accidents happen, but negligence is negligence</strong></p>\n<p>Birth, despite being the most natural thing we can imagine, is anything but simple for human beings. Our anatomy ensures that some births will be irreversibly harmful for the mother or the newborn; that\xe2\x80\x99s the evolutionary cost of walking upright, it seems. \xc2\xa0However, in those tragic cases where a child and a family must endure this costly disorder \xe2\x80\x93 in emotions, time and money \xe2\x80\x93 because of the negligence or over-aggressive approach of a neonatal doctor, you do not have to suffer this situation alone or without compensation.</p>\n<p>Doctors dealing with childbirth have a unique and powerful responsibility to do their best to deliver each newborn safely and without serious side effects. If during the course of a delivery they happen to lose sight of this responsibility and pull too hard on the arms of your newborn, causing a temporary or permanent physical condition that will alter their lives and force you to pursue surgery, they are liable. \xc2\xa0The legal experts at Altman &amp; Altman LLP have decades of experience pursuing every possible area of negligence lawsuit. We will find who is at fault and hold them accountable. If you or somebody you love has been affected by Erb\xe2\x80\x99s Palsy, call us for a free consultation and see what our veteran team of attorneys can do for you. Call us today at 617-492-3000 or toll-free at 800-481-6199. We are available 24/7.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n]]></content:encoded>\n\t\t<post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2720</post-id>\t</item>\n\t</channel>\n</rss>\n\r\n<!-- Performance optimized by W3 Total Cache. Learn more: https://www.w3-edge.com/products/\r\n\r\nPage Caching using disk: enhanced (Requested URI is rejected)\r\n\r\n Served from: www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com @ 2017-10-24 13:11:40 by W3 Total Cache -->'

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Remember the parenthetical is the group you're pulling out. Once you have a working regex, plug it into the code below, and run the cell. If it worked, you'll see you scraped data as an output.

In [29]:
res_1 = re.search(b"item>\s*<title>(.*)</title>\s*<link>(.*)</link>",p_1)
output_1 = res_1.group(1).decode('UTF-8')
output_2 = res_1.group(2).decode('UTF-8')
print(output_1)
print(output_2)
Medical Malpractice Cases and Medical Battery
https://www.bostonpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/2017/08/medical-malpractice-cases-medical-battery.html
In [30]:
res_2 = re.search(b"item>\s*<title>(.*)</title>\s*<link>(.*)</link>",p_2)
output_3 = res_2.group(1).decode('UTF-8')
output_4 = res_2.group(2).decode('UTF-8')
print(output_3)
print(output_4)
$3 Million Award in Delaware Birth Injury Case
https://www.bostoninjurylawyerblog.com/2017/10/3-million-award-delaware-birth-injury-case.html

Post to Twitter and Save to Google (Two Data Point, One Match)

In [31]:
if ((res_1 and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[1]) != output_1
          and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[2]) != output_2)
    or
    (res_2 and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[3]) != output_3
          and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[4]) != output_4)):
    # same as above but now comparing two values
    
    if (res_1 and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[1]) != output_1
          and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[2]) != output_2):

        try:
            # Post to Twitter.
            status = api.PostUpdate('%s %s'%(output_1,output_2))
            print(status.text)
        except TwitterError:
            # Post to Twitter.
            status = api.PostUpdate('%s %s'%(output_1,output_2))
            print(status.text)        

    if (res_2 and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[3]) != output_3
          and (worksheet.row_values(worksheet.row_count)[4]) != output_4):

        try:
            # Post to Twitter.
            status = api.PostUpdate('%s %s'%(output_3,output_4))
            print(status.text)
        except TwitterError:
            # Post to Twitter.
            status = api.PostUpdate('%s %s'%(output_3,output_4))
            print(status.text)        

    # Save to Google only after Tweeting
    worksheet.append_row([now,output_1,output_2,output_3,output_4])