f13.net forums - Lawyers/Doctors: Malpractice question.

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
July 20, 2025, 10:27:48 AM

we're back, baby

Help, please (and Nazrat, this includes you so please don't hold a grudge for my assholish behavior last time! embarassed

)! I need to know if my father has a medical malpractice/wrongful death lawsuit with any merit. Below are the details of the case:

On March 28, 2005, my 49-year-old mother was diagnosed with colon cancer. This happened after abdominal distention caused a uterine prolapse that required a visit to the emergency room. A week or two earlier, she had gone to the hospital complaining of constipation and abdominal discomfort, and when the doctor gave her an ultrasound she was told she had uterine fibroids, which was incorrect. After the cancer diagnosis, she was told she would need surgery. They wanted to schedule it for a few weeks after March 28, but she was suffering so much discomfort and rapidly losing drastic amounts of weight, so my father (her husband) demanded they get her in earlier (keep in mind she still has the prolapsed uterus which they didn't want to address until the colonectomy). She had been prescribed medication that caused dehydration (I don't know the name of it, but the pills are my dad's house), and had already been having difficulty eating or drinking because of the distention. On April 6, 2005, she was admitted for surgery that was supposed to take place the following day. She was in so much pain that they were giving her 2mg of morphine every 12 minutes, which didn't start relieving her discomfort until 4 or so hours later. This, of course, also made her nauseous, and she was unable to keep fluids down. The next day, when she was about an hour from surgery, she went into renal failure. She was too dehydrated to have the surgery. She was too unstable to be moved to the Providence Portland Medical Center (she had been at the Providence in Milwaukie, OR) to be put on dialysis, so she spent the next 12 or so hours in the intensive care unit until they were no longer able to inflate her lungs, and her heart rate had been depressed so long that the likelihood of recovering brain function was nil. She died on Thursday, April 7, at around 11:30pm.

The autopsy has been inconclusive thus far (it only ruled out pulminary embolism and ovarian cancer), but the doctor who would have been her surgeon said the tumors in her colon were mucinous (a very rare form). He and his colleagues have been baffled by the sudden turn of events. The doctor, who is the head of surgery at Providence Milwaukie, says he doesn't know why she declined so fast.

My father is currently facing around $15K in medical expenses, and he's already been contacted by the hospital with threats of wage garnishing. My parents both worked, and were reliant on two incomes to make ends meet. My dad, in addition to not earning enough alone to meet living expenses, is facing an unsurmountable financial challenge. I warned him that attorney fees may end up making the fight not worth it monetarily (this isn't about vindication for the loss of my mother), but I told him that I'd see what I could find out. Does this case have merit?

The reason I feel this case may have merit is that if they had correctly diagnosed her cancer on her first visit (constipation that lasts more than a few days, abdominal swelling and rapid weight loss are classic symptoms of colon cancer), they may have performed her surgery weeks before her health had declined to the point it had. Also, during the examination of her colonoscopy, the technicians were joking about the severity of her case while she within an earshot. The doctors would discuss details of her case on the other side of the curtain, where she could hear them, and then not discuss them with her personally. I'm not sure if there's a law against being callous about delicate information to the point that it causes a woman to cry in fear for her life, but maybe that information will help. Thanks for any advice any of you may have.

The doctors screwed up. That is itself is not enough to win a malpractice suit, though. My limited understanding (and I have a cousin who won a $10 million settlement due to malpractice that put him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life) is that you would have to demonstrate that the doctor's were actually negligent in their diagnosis, as opposed to mistaken. Prescribing medication that exacerbated her dehydration is more in line with negligence that misdiagnosing colon cancer as uterine fibroids.

Understand that malpractice suits take forever unless it is so clear cut the insurance company settles. At the very least, filing a suit should stay any garnishment of your dad's wages. I would think the hospital would forgive that $15,000 to get out from under a larger number.

Philosophically, you and your dad need to ask yourselves if you really believe the doctors involved acted in bad faith. Medicine is not an exact science. I, personally, think it is unfair to expect perfection from doctors but laziness is another matter. Picking the odds-on-favorite for diagnosis because it is the likeliest possibility is not what a doctor should be doing.

Med-mal is pretty specific to the state in which it happens. Almost any med-mal lawyer will give you an initial consultation for free, so I'd suggest asking around the people you know if they know of a good one and going that route. Sorry for your loss.

Yeah, I sent an email to several lawyers asking them too. I just want my dad's bills to go away. I don't think the doctors acted in bad faith, but a cancer misdiagnosis does usually qualify as malpractice in Oregon.

VL I'm very sorry for your loss. FWIW I'm a few weeks away from the first year anniversary of my father's death.

Wow VL, thats terrible. I'm sorry to say I really don't know anything about medical malpractice, I work in trademarks.

However, I wouldn't let the thought of attorney costs stop you from getting your day in court. Usually, in medmal, agreements are worked out where the attorneys are paid on contingency (they only get paid if you win the case or a settlement). Another type of agreement I have heard about is where the attorneys are paid a very low hourly rate with a contingency fee bonus should you win. And as Abagadro said, most will give you a free initial consultation.

If you are having trouble finding a lawyer in your state, you could always check in with your state's bar association, they usually have a referral service.

I wish I could give you some more help but that's pretty much the limit of the good advice I have on medical malpractice.

I am very sorry for your loss.

First, any good attorney is going to tell you to talk to a professional in your area. You need someone who knows not only your state's laws but also the local court system and the potential size of the verdicts. That type of information only comes from a local expert in the field and not from academic discussions.

Medical malpractice lawyers, as stated above, generally hold initial consultations for free. Treat these meetings as a job interview where you are hiring. Find a lawyer with whom you feel comfortable and who will explain his fee agreement in English and not in legalese. Most fee agreements in Texas involve a contigency fee from 25-40% with the client paying all costs. Costs could be required to be paid as the arise, up front, or only after recovery. You need to know which is expected before hiring an attorney.

Next, your father needs to have all of the medical records that he can get his hands on before the meetings with the lawyers, if possible. This can be tricky as the hospital may not want to release them, may want payment for copies, or other means of denying access to the records.

Honestly, most people, including attorneys, don't know enough to make a determination of medical malpractice without extensive experience in the field and a thorough review of the medical records. So, you need an expert in this area and not someone trying to hit a big payday.

I would be very surprised to learn that wage garnishment was available less than one month after the death of your mother. AFAIK, that type of recovery isn't available in Texas.

You didn't mention medical or life insurance. Was there any coverage? If there was, you need to see if there is any potential for them to pursue the case for your father. It is a slim chance but you don't want to miss anything. All that the insurance company can do is say no.

Good luck.

P.S. No hard feelings. In my experience, most people hate lawyers except when they need a good one. :) You need a good one to give you an honest assessment of the case.

Voodoo, I'm no lawyer, so I can't help you there, but I'm terribly sorry for your loss. That sounds like a nightmare scenario no one should have to go through. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Wow. Sorry Voodoo. Major Mojo for you!