Hospital negligence and Veterans in Maryland

Most Maryland residents utilize the care of a hospital emergency room when the need is immediate and urgent. For Veterans, their local Veterans Affairs Hospital is where they are seen for routine check-ups, dental visits, prescription refills and urgent care. While these facilities are stationed across the nation to help meet the needs of those who have served their country, it appears that most of these centers are often lacking in properly trained staff and critical protocols that can save those in the most dire of circumstances. When patients suffer, hospital negligence can be claimed and lawsuits may be soon to follow.

One of many cases that have been reported to authorities about the neglect and lack of proper medical care at one of the VA centers involves a veteran who lives with diabetes and fell victim to poor circulation. With the hopes of getting the veins repaired in his leg and proper circulation restored, he checked into his local VA. When the man left the hospital, little did he know he would be returning in three short weeks.

Upon his return to the hospital, doctors realized the circulation was worse than before and amputation of the right leg was unavoidable. Upon the removal of the man’s leg, the operating team found a total of 10 inches of plastic tubing embedded in an artery; 3 inches in the leg and another 7 inches was found in the limb that had been amputated. The plastic tubing found was the wrapper that the catheters are coated in to protect them during shipping. The original doctors had failed to see and remove it.

Mistakes can happen, but hospital negligence should not be an ongoing issue. Those entrusted with the care of the most vulnerable of the population should be compassionate, considerate and thorough when administering care. Should a Maryland resident find him or herself or a loved one the victim of a medical error, the family may decide to file a personal injury or medical malpractice claim. With the aid of an attorney, a successful claim could award compensation to help cover medical costs incurred as well as pain and suffering.

Source: tennessean.com, “Memphis VA hospital among 4 under tight watch from agency officials“, Jake Lowary & Donovan Slack, Sept. 7, 2017