Doctors in Illinois and throughout the entire U.S. are supposed to help diagnose and treat brain injuries rather than cause patients to suffer major brain damage. Unfortunately, when medical professionals deviate from the standard of care that they are required to follow when treating each patient, they are at risk of making mistakes that could cause patients to suffer life-altering health problems.
Some medical mistakes that commonly cause patients in Illinois and other states to suffer serious brain injuries include: anesthesia errors that lead to oxygen deprivation, surgical errors that lead to blood clots, misdiagnosing a head or brain injury and inadequate stroke management.
A father recently filed a lawsuit against several medical professionals after he claims that his daughter suffered brain injuries as a result of not being diagnosed and treated in time after having a stroke. The woman’s injuries have already resulted in more than $1.5 million in medical expenses. According to the lawsuit, the woman’s medical expenses to treat her injuries from the misdiagnosis and delay in treatment will add up to about $5 million throughout the course of her life.
In the lawsuit, the father states that his daughter sought treatment at a hospital on Oct. 29, 2010, four days after she had a seizure. The woman was concerned because she was still experiencing symptoms of nausea, vomiting and headaches. The woman was treated for her symptoms and discharged without being diagnosed with any other health problems.
However, the woman’s symptoms worsened after she was sent home, and she went to the hospital the next day. Doctors performed some tests that revealed that the woman had most likely had a stroke. She was immediately treated for the stroke, but suffered major injuries as a result of not being diagnosed and treated the first time she visited the hospital, the lawsuit alleges.
As a result of the stroke, the woman is now paralyzed and she cannot eat, breathe or talk normally. She underwent numerous surgeries as a result of the damage from the stroke and spent more than 160 days in the hospital. However, had the woman been diagnosed and treated for the stroke sooner, her injuries could have been far less severe, the woman’s father claims. He is seeking $7.5 million in economic damages and $25 million for his daughter’s pain and suffering.
Source: The Register-Guard, “Father brings suit over care at hospital,” Jack Moran, Jan. 23, 2012
