Medical Malpractice

Health care professionals, including doctors, nurses, surgeons, anesthesiologists, radiologists, pharmacists and hospital staff must abide by a standard of care in treating patients. Sometimes doctors and hospitals are reckless or negligent or just make mistakes. Traumatic injuries and death can result. As many as 1 out of every 25 hospital patients is injured by a medical mistake; 44,000 to 98,000 people die each year from medical errors, according to the federal Agency for Health Care Research and Quality. The legal team at Cardaro & Peek helps hold medical professionals responsible for their negligence.

Improper conduct can include misdiagnosing diseases, prescribing the wrong or conflicting medication, delaying or failing to provide treatment, surgical errors, anesthesia mistakes and child delivery mistakes.

Cardaro & Peek focuses almost exclusively on medical malpractice claims. The firm handles a wide variety of claims, including those for:

For additional information on the firm's medical malpractice cases, please see Significant Cases.

Amputation - Amputation of a limb that results from infection, improper diagnosis or other negligence, or amputation of the wrong limb can leave a patient struggling to make ends meet and to perform basic tasks. Responsible medical professionals can be held accountable when their errors result in amputation.

Anesthetic Mishaps - Nearly every surgery requires anesthesia, and it is one of the most dangerous parts of an operation. Anesthesia, including epidurals during labor, can be administered incorrectly or for too long, or a patient may react adversely to it. Medical malpractice claims involving anesthesiologists are common.

Birth Injuries - Delivery of a healthy child is dependent on many factors, including timing of a doctor's actions or emergency C-section delivery and his or her skills in using delivery-assistance instruments. An error before, during or immediately after delivery can result in devastating trauma to the infant and / or mother. Injuries to the child can include oxygen depravation that results in death, brain damage, developmental disorders, or cerebral palsy and brachial injuries and shoulder dystocia. Mothers can suffer C-section complications, uterine rupture and death.

Brain and Nerve Damage - Medical mistakes involving lack of oxygen, or anesthesia or surgical errors can result in brain and nerve damage. Brain and nerve damage usually limits a person's ability to function normally and may require years of medical treatment and physical therapy.

Brachial Plexus Injury - The brachial plexus is a set of nerves that sends signals from the spine to the shoulder, arm and hand. It can be severely damaged during childbirth. A brachial plexus injury, also known as Erb's Palsy, can result in numbness, loss of muscle control and paralysis.

Cancer Misdiagnosis - Correctly interpreting lab results, x-rays and mammograms is essential to early diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Unfortunately, appropriate tests are not ordered or the results are often misread, resulting in misdiagnosis, delayed treatment, complications and even death. Doctors who fail to diagnose lung, liver, colon, breast or brain cancer or other cancers may be negligent.

Cerebral Palsy - Cerebral palsy is a term used to describe a group of chronic conditions affecting body movements and muscle coordination. It is caused by damage to one or more specific areas of the brain, usually occurring during fetal development, or during infancy. It can also occur before, during or shortly following birth. The injury sometimes is caused by medical mistakes. People with cerebral palsy require extensive medical treatment, therapy and training, sometimes for their entire lives.

Doctor-Caused Injury - Doctor-caused injury is any injury caused by the negligence, mistake or intentional conduct of a physician. A doctor who causes an injury can be held liable.

Down's Syndrome - Down's Syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by having an extra 21st chromosome. It affects facial features and usually results in mental retardation. Tests are available to diagnose Down’s Syndrome prior to birth. Down’s syndrome also can result in hearing loss, heart problems and an increased risk for pneumonia, seizures and leukemia.

Early Discharge - Being discharged from the hospital or emergency room before a proper diagnosis or complete recovery can result in a longer recovery, serious health problems and even death.

Emergency Room Errors - Because of the fast pace, high volume of patients and serious injuries and illnesses, an emergency room is ripe for errors. Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis of emergency room patients is more common than misdiagnosis in other medical venues and can result in long-term health problems and death. Heart attack and appendicitis are commonly misdiagnosed in an emergency room. Patients often are sent home with medications, only to return with serious complications.

Erb's Palsy - Also known as brachial plexus injury, Erb's Palsy injury can result from improper delivery through the birth canal. The brachial plexus is a set of nerves that sends signals from the spine to the shoulder, arm and hand. Erb's Palsy can result in numbness, loss of muscle control and paralysis.

Failure to Diagnose - It is critical to diagnose cancer, heart disease, heart attack, stroke and other ailments quickly before they progress. One key is for medical professionals to order proper tests and to correctly read and interpret lab results, x-rays and mammograms. Failure to diagnose a condition can lead to delayed treatment, which can result in complications or even death. Doctors who fail to diagnose lung, liver, colon, breast or brain cancer, heart attack, stroke or other conditions may be negligent.

Hospital-Related Injury - Hospitals are responsible for care performed within them. Hospitals can be held responsible when a patient is injured as a result of conduct by doctors, surgeons, nurses, pharmacists or any other hospital staff member.

Infections-Infections are caused by bacteria and viruses. Often, medical negligence leads to infections. Failure to diagnose an infection or misdiagnosis of an infection can lead to delayed or improper treatment that can result in serious illness, amputation and death.

Infections at birth also are common and often are not diagnosed or are misdiagnosed. It is critical to diagnose infant herpes, herpes encephalitis and group B strep before the infection causes long-lasting harm.

Mental Retardation - Mental retardation, or diminished mental capacity, can be caused by genetic or metabolic disorders. But it also can be caused by medical negligence during birth. A thorough investigation is required to determine the cause of a mental disorder.

Misdiagnosis - It is paramount to diagnose cancer, heart disease, heart attack, stroke and other ailments quickly before they progress. One key is for medical professionals to order proper tests and to correctly read and interpret lab results, x-rays and mammograms. Misdiagnosing a condition can lead to delayed or improper treatment, which can result in complications or even death. Doctors who misdiagnose lung, liver, colon, breast or brain cancer, heart attack, stroke or other conditions may be negligent.

No Informed Consent - The Informed Consent Doctrine requires physicians to advise patients of the risks of proposed surgeries. Physicians who fail to obtain proper consent or who misrepresent the risks can be held liable.

Nursing Home / Assisted Living Abuse - Nursing homes provide medical care, much like a hospital. The care must meet strict standards. Unfortunately, care in nursing homes can be substandard. Additionally, patients can be subjected to verbal and physical abuse and negligence.

Unlike nursing homes, assisted-living facilities provide only some assistance to seniors who are not fully independent. Residents of assisted-living centers can be victims of abuse and can be taken advantage of emotionally and financially. Facilities also may fail to provide basic services for which they were contracted.

Paralysis - Paralysis can have a number of causes, including stroke, transient ischemic attack, head injury, spinal cord injury, nerve compression and tumors. Cardaro & Peek pursues personal injury claims for accident victims and medical malpractice victims who are paralyzed.

Prescription Errors - Taking the wrong medication, conflicting prescriptions or too much medication can result in serious complications, overdose and death. Prescription errors can be caused by doctors or pharmacists who fail to adhere to an appropriate standard of care. Drugs can look or sound alike, handwriting on a prescription may be illegible, or mistakes are just made.

Surgical Errors - Any patient who suffers an injury due to a surgical error should be compensated. Surgical mishaps can involve doctors, nurses and anesthesiologists and can result in brain damage, paralysis, infection and death.

Wrongful Death - A person who recklessly or negligently causes the death of another can be held accountable. Medical mistakes and vehicle accidents are among the many causes of accidental deaths. Cardaro & Peek has handled numerous wrongful death actions and obtained substantial judgments for clients.