Unfortunately, medical malpractice cases can happen to anyone. Often, the victims are the most vulnerable, such as elderly patients or children.
When it comes to children, the most common type of medical malpractice cases involve doctors making diagnosis errors, which could include any of the following:
- Misdiagnosis
- Failing to run needed tests
- Incorrectly reading the results of those tests
- Not paying attention to certain symptoms
- Prescribing the wrong medication to a child.
Other types of errors can include:
- Too much or too little anesthesia
- Errors in surgery
- Failing to adequately monitor the child after a treatment or surgery.
For children, these errors can prove especially harmful, because children often have weaker immune systems and are not able to fight off infection as easily as healthy adults.
What are some common injuries in pediatric malpractice?
When doctors are not diligent with their most vulnerable patients, the consequences can be dire. Here are some of the most common injuries that children experience as a result of pediatric or medical malpractice:
- Brain injury – This could come from not enough oxygen, the wrong medication, or a rapid drop in blood pressure.
- Meningitis – This can cause severe brain damage and death.
- Hemorrhaging – An uncontrollable loss of blood. This most often happens during surgery.
- Pneumococcal infection – This can come from a number of scenarios. It happens when an infection enters the bloodstream and eventually the child’s organs.
- Organ damage – If a surgeon cuts improperly during an operation, or if a child is prescribed the wrong medication, organ damage can occur.
- Bacterial infections – These can be serious and can lead to sepsis or other severe complications.
Kara Samuels’ proven record of success in medical malpractice cases involving children
If your child suffered unnecessary injury, pain and suffering because of a doctor’s negligence and/or malpractice, you could be entitled to a wide range of monetary damages. That’s why it’s imperative that you contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney to review your case. These damages could include:
- Costs of treating the injury that resulted from the malpractice.
- Future pain and suffering.
- Rehabilitation costs
- Physical therapy
- Counseling
- Compensation for time you as a parent have had to take off of work to care for your child.
Kara Samuels has a proven track record of getting what’s fair and just for her clients.
On November 9, 2017, after a four-day jury trial in Lafayette, Louisiana, a jury ruled in favor of her law firm’s clients, Garrett Zerangue and Paige Zerangue, who brought a medical malpractice claim against Dr. Scott Hamilton on behalf of their minor child.
In this case, Dr. Hamilton was negligent when he failed to rule out appendicitis before discharging their child from the emergency room, even though the child presented with “classic” symptoms and history.
In finding in the Zerangues’ favor, the jury chose to credit the testimony of the Zerangues’ expert witnesses over the medical review panel, which had sided with the physician.
The jury awarded the Zerangue family all of their related medical billing, in addition to damages for physical pain and suffering and emotional distress associated with the child’s 17-day hospitalization, much of which was spent in a pediatric intensive care unit.
If you or someone you love has suffered injury at the hands of a doctor who was negligent and you believe you may have been a victim of medical malpractice, you need a competent attorney to review your case. Contact the law firm of Kara Samuels today.
