Orlando Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog

At Orlando Regional Medical Center, Florida Hospital South and other local hospitals, patients and family members must remain vigilant to avoid injury or death by medical malpractice. Preventable medical errors kill and seriously injure hundreds of thousands of Americans every year. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we believe that any discussion of medical negligence that does not involve preventable medical errors ignores this fundamental problem. And while some interested parties would prefer to focus on doctors’ insurance premiums, health care costs, or alternative compensation systems—anything other than the negligence itself—reducing medical errors is the best way to address all the related problems. Preventing medical errors will lower health care costs, reduce doctors’ insurance premiums, and protect the health and well-being of patients.

The Institute of Medicine’s thorough study of preventable medical errors estimated as many as 98,000 people die every year at a cost of $29 billion. If the Centers for Disease Control were to include preventable medical errors as a category, these conclusions would make it the sixth leading cause of death in America.

Further research has confirmed the extent of medical errors. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement estimates there are 15 million incidents of medical harm each year. HealthGrades, the nation’s leading healthcare rating organization, found that Medicare patients who experienced a patient-safety incident had a one-in-five chance of dying as a result.

Disappointing to most people we represent is the fact that these hospitals and doctors seek to avoid responsibility for their errors and the devastating harm they cause. However, with all the laws making it more difficult for patients to hold hospitals and doctors accountable, very few medical malpractice cases settle. Usually, the only way to hold those who commit medical malpractice accountable is to go to trial.

As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we have developed successful approaches to this complex area of law. Dr. Walter Ward is one of the few lawyers in Florida who is also a medical doctor. As a medical doctor and lawyer he brings unique training and experience to examination of the medical doctors and hospital personnel involved in our clients' malpractice.

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If someone is considering surgery, the experience of the surgeon would certainly be an important concern. Few people would want a surgeon who had never performed the same surgery. No one would want to be the surgeon's first patient to undergo a particular operation. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we believe that patients and families would want to have a medical doctor who is also a lawyer represent them in medical malpractice cases.

Unfortunately, when medical malpractice strikes few people know where to turn. Even fewer people realize that there are lawyers who are also medical doctors who handle medical malpractice cases. Yet, what better advantage could a patient have than to have a lawyer who is licensed as a medical doctor. Dr. Walter Ward has a distinct advantage to be able to confront the doctors involved by going into the case with a complete understanding of the medical issues involved. Obviously, it is much more practical when a lawyer has first hand experience as a medical doctor who was educated and trained from the standpoint of the doctors who are responsible for the medical malpractice.

When selecting an Orlando medical malpractice lawyer hiring one that is a medical doctor/lawyer should bring a higher level of confidence. These cases are complex and can be lost if the patient's lawyer does not understand the medicine involved.

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In 2003, the Florida Legislature placed limits on medical malpractice damages. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we have found that these limits hurt three groups of patients more than others. Stay-at-home moms, children and the elderly will receive far less for their injury from medical malpractice.

For these groups the limits on medical malpractice damages mean that many will never be fairly compensated for the harm caused by Orlando Regional Medical Center, Florida Hospital Orlando or other health care facilities. Sadly, the hospital and medical associations convinced law-makers that healthcare providers should be treated differently when they recklessly cause injury or death.

Joined by the medical malpractice insurance industry, the hospitals and medical associations have stripped away many rights of Florida patients. No longer can any patient be treated fairly when it comes to assessing the horrible losses caused by medical malpractice. How did this happen? It happened because few people think about this unfairness until medical malpractice hits home.

We must explain to our clients and to those that seek our help, that when it comes to medical malpractice, the field is not level. The medical associations, the hospitals and the malpractice insurers have stacked the deck against the patient and their family. Without a medical malpractice specialist or a medical doctor-lawyer, people may have little chance for a successful outcome.

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Medical malpractice and injury caused by the United States, by any federal agency, including the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA), U.S. Postal Service and the Department of Health and Human Services involve special federal laws. When our clients are injured by the federal government, their rights are generally governed by the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA).

Whether it involves medical malpractice by a federally funded health care facility or a car accident caused by a United States postal worker, before a lawsuit can be filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, a written administrative claim must be presented in a special form and manner to the federal agency employing the person who caused the injury. The agency then has six months to either admit or deny the claim. A lawsuit cannot be filed until the administrative claim has been denied or until six months has passed without the agency acting on the administrative claim.

In such cases, a federal judge, not a jury, decides your case. In other words, a federal court judge is your juror. For all of these reasons, if you or a family member is injured by an employee of the federal government, you need a competent federal tort lawyer who has tried FTCA claims in federal court.

While there are more than 80,000 lawyers in Florida, there are only a small number of lawyers who specialize in civil trial law. Most people may not be aware that the Florida Bar has certified lawyers less than 2% of Florida lawyers as specialists in civil trial law which includes medical malpractice and injury caused by federal employees. In addition, there are even fewer Florida lawyers who are also a licensed medical doctor.

We offer both a board certified trial lawyer and a medical doctor/lawyer. Along with a critical care registered nurse who serves as medical case manager, clients receive the medical and legal expertise necessary to take on the United States Attorneys who will defend the government. People should understand what they are up against when they are considering a claim against the United States for injury or death.

Unless individuals injured by United States has a malpractice or injury lawyer with a long track record of success, they may not even have a fighting chance for a just result. Indeed, we believe so strongly that the selection of a lawyer may lose the case years before it ever goes to trial that we have written a book to help consumers select the right lawyer. We continue to make the book, Seeking Justice: An Insider's Guide for the Injured, available at no charge.

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Medical malpractice involving the failure to prevent or treat MRSA infections may be on the rise. MRSA stands for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. MRSA is caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria — often called "staph." It's a strain of staph that is resistant to the broad-spectrum antibiotics commonly used to treat it. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we have seen too many cases of MRSA which should have been avoided or which were not properly treated. Indeed, MRSA medical malpractice has led to the death of innocent individuals.

The terrible effects of medical malpractice involving MRSA infections also include patients who lose all of their limbs. My partner, Dr. Walter Ward, a medical doctor and lawyer, has spent significant time educating our clients on the correct method of avoiding MRSA, and when it is diagnosed-the proper method to treat it. Obviously, hospitals and doctors must do all that they can to protect their patients from this serious risk of harm.

Most MRSA infections occur in hospitals or other health care settings, such as nursing homes and dialysis centers. It's known as health care-associated MRSA, or HA-MRSA. Older adults and people with weakened immune systems are at most risk of HA-MRSA. More recently, another type of MRSA has occurred among otherwise healthy people in the wider community. This form, community-associated MRSA, or CA-MRSA, is responsible for serious skin and soft tissue infections and for a serious form of pneumonia.

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When people have a medical emergency they usually call 911 and are transported to an Orlando emergency department. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we know that Orlando Regional Medical Center and Florida Hospital Orlando receive thousands of patients through their emergency departments each year.

These Orlando hospitals have a responsibility to provide timely and appropriate medical care.
Hospital emergency departments must be adequately staffed and capable of handling all types of medical emergencies. Whether it is 1:00 in the afternoon or 1:00 in the morning if a hospital agrees or advertises to take emergencies such as heart attacks or stroke, it must be able to provide timely intervention and medical care. Otherwise, patients should be taken to other healthcare facilities.

Unfortunately, patients taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center and Florida Hospital Orlando do not always receive timely intervention. This may occur because the doctors or hospital staff fail to properly take a medical history from the patient or the patient's family. A medical history is the information surrounding the circumstances which caused the patient to go to the hospital. While this information is critical to a proper diagnosis, we have found that hospitals and doctors fail to take the time to do obtain a complete and accurate medical history. Sadly, the failure to ask simply questions has led to unnecessary injury and death.

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While there are more than 80,000 lawyers in Florida, there are only a small number of lawyers who specialize in medical malpractice law. Most people may not be aware that the Florida Bar has certified lawyers less than 2% of Florida lawyers as specialists in civil trial law which includes medical malpractice. In addition, there are even fewer Florida lawyers who are also a licensed medical doctor.

As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we offer both a board certified trial lawyer and a medical doctor/lawyer. Along with a critical care registered nurse who serves as medical case manager, clients receive the medical and legal expertise necessary to take on the "medical giants." People should understand what they are up against when they are considering a medical malpractice lawsuit. No other area of law may be as complex and confusing when it comes to seeking justice for injury or death.

Unless the patient has a medical malpractice lawyer with a long track record of success in dealing with these tactics, the patient may not even have a fighting chance for a just result. Indeed, we believe so strongly that the selection of a medical malpractice lawyer may lose the case years before it ever goes to trial that we have written a book to help consumers select the right lawyer. We continue to make the book, Seeking Justice: An Insider's Guide for the Injured, available at no charge.

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The United States is having an epidemic - tens of thousands of people are experiencing adverse reactions and deaths from preventable medical errors during their hospital stay. As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers we continue to see needless tragedies caused by doctor and hospital malpractice.

While you would like to think that Orlando hospitals have well-trained doctors and medical personnel and the most advanced technology – preventable mistakes continue to devastate innocent individuals and families. Nationwide, more people die from hospital errors than AIDS, breast cancer, and motor vehicle accidents. These mistakes happen during hospital admission, during the hospital stay, and during and after hospital discharge.

According to Archives of Internal Medicine, patient errors are first recorded upon admission to the hospital. Medications taken and allergy history is frequently omitted from charts which result in drug therapy problems ranging from discomfort to deterioration of the patient’s condition. In one study conducted at two prestigious teaching hospitals, results showed that about two out of every 100 admissions experienced a preventable adverse drug event.

Not only do patients suffer from drug interactions but they also suffer from surgeries gone wrong. These tragedies include surgeons operating on the wrong side of the patient's brain, doctors amputating the wrong leg and patients going in to have a gall bladder removed and actually having their kidney removed instead. One poor man expected to have his cancerous testicle removed; instead his healthy one was removed. Sadly, a significant number of many patients later discover foreign objects left inside their abdomen.

Of course, when medical malpractice happens the doctors, hospitals and nurses involved usually keep silent. Few healthcare providers admit making mistakes. Even fewer doctors or hospitals ever voluntarily take responsibility for the harm they cause. That is usually when we are asked to assist the patient and the patient's family.

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Chest pain, shortness of breath and difficulty talking are hallmark signs and symptoms of a heart attack. Few people would need a medical degree to know that anyone with those complaints needs to get to a hospital without delay. Yet, as Orlando medical malpractice lawyers we have seen patients arrive in emergency departments with these conditions only to be told that they are fine.

Even more amazing, patients with classic signs and symptoms of a heart attack have undergone cardiac testing that reveals serious abnormalities and they too have been discharged from the hospital. Yet, how can this happen in Orlando hospitals? Sadly, too many healthcare workers do not realize the importance of being entrusted with the health and well-being of their patients. It is too easy to get into the mindset of treating people as numbers. This is especially true when hospitals do not adequately staff their facilities or provide sufficient supervision.

Is there any excuse for an obvious heart attack patient being neglected? Sadly, when even the most obvious cases of medical malpractice happen, the hospitals and doctors involved rarely admit fault. Instead, the hospitals and their teams of medical malpractice lawyers "circle the wagons" and tries to avoid being held responsible.

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As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers, we have developed successful approaches to this complex area of law. Dr. Walter Ward is one of the few lawyers in Florida who is also a medical doctor. As a medical doctor and lawyer he brings unique training and experience to examination of the medical doctors and hospital personnel involved in our clients malpractice.

Whether the medical malpractice case involves a failure to diagnosis cancer or to promptly treat a heart attack, a medical doctor/lawyer has obvious advantages. In addition, our law firm has a board certified civil trial lawyer and a critical care registered nurse on our trial team. From more than 20 years of trial work in medical malpractice cases, we have learned to take on the giants in the Orlando area. Whether the medical malpractice occurred at Orlando Regional Medical Center, Florida Hospital Orlando or one of the many medical facilities, we understand the many challenging issues involved. Our clients trust us to deal with devastating injury and death caused by careless medical providers.

Sadly, we find that most incidents of medical malpractice could have been easily prevented. Medication errors, operating on the wrong extremity and striking unconscious patients with medical equipment should never happen. Yet, when even the most obvious medical malpractice occurs Orlando Regional Medical Center and Florida Hospital Orlando may deny responsibility. Fortunately, these hospitals can only run for so long. No matter how much power and influence, even these giants will have to answer in court for their medical malpractice.

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If a patient undergoes a heart catheterization procedure at Florida Hospital Orlando, is it too much to expect the nurses to stay with the patient when they first get him out of bed? As Orlando medical malpractice lawyers we have seen many incidents where Orlando hospitals have failed to protect their patients when they are getting out of bed. Many patients who have undergone a significant procedure and those who have been confined to bed for an extended period of time should never be left alone when first allowed out of bed.

Most people who seek our help are decent, honest people who never thought about the fact that hospitals are in the business of making money. While many hospitals do many positive things, patient care is not the first priority. Hospital CEOs understand that profit is a priority.

While businesses are created to make money, when it comes to hospitals and other health care facilities, people's lives and safety should be the first priority. Sadly, when staffing is cut to improve profits, it is the patients who suffer. When injury or death occurs these hospitals should take responsibility for the harm done. Unfortunately, that rarely occurs. Hospitals understand that many patients will never realize that medical malpractice has occurred. Obviously, if a patient does not contact an Orlando medical malpractice lawyer when questions about the medical care and injury arise, the Orlando hospital will not be held accountable for its wrongdoing.

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Orlando Medical malpractice cases are complex, expensive and very difficult for patients to win. Doctors and hospitals and the medical malpractice lawyers who defend them have become skilled at creating excuses and blaming patients to avoid responsibility for medical malpractice. Indeed, when a patient suffers injury or death at an Orlando hospital, patients should contact lawyers who have a long record of success in medical malpractice cases.

Walter Ward, MD, JD is both a medical doctor and a lawyer who has devoted his professional life to representing medical malpractice clients. As a medical doctor/lawyer Dr. Ward can quickly analyze the medical circumstances involved. Time is important since there is always the risk of hospital and medical records being changed or destroyed. While no one wants to believe that such tactics occur, obtaining complete and accurate hospital and medical records are crucial to a successful medical malpractice case.

As a medical doctor/lawyer, Dr. Ward is familiar with the record-keeping requirements and what is expected in a medical or hospital chart. That expertise helps to prevent hospitals from omitting important records necessary to prove a case. Having handled medical malpractice cases for more than thirty-five years, Dr. Ward has successfully brought claims against hospitals throughout Florida.

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