Pittsburgh Medical Malpractice Law Blog

Doctor’s visits have changed immensely from the days when doctors made house calls. Most residents of Western Pennsylvania are used to driving to a doctor's office or medical complex when they need medical assistance. Once there, it is now not uncommon for electronic devices to be used in the course of the visit. This trend is expected to continue in years to come.

In fact, the technologies currently being used by many physicians could eventually make it possible for a physician to accurately provide a diagnosis without even being in the same room as the patient. In some locations throughout the nation this is already a reality with "office visits" being done via commonly used technologies such as email, Skype, text and FaceTime. Known as telemedicine, individuals working in the field estimate that it will take at least a decade before the practice moves much beyond where it currently is.

We often write about situations that could result in medical malpractice lawsuits involving problems with procedures. There are times however when hospitals may be negligent without workers even coming into physical contact with the patient. This is the basis of a lawsuit that was recently filed in Pennsylvania.

The medical malpractice lawsuit alleges a hospital located in the state was negligent in the way it treated one of its patients. The 30-year- old woman was reportedly at the hospital due to what appeared to be suicidal tendencies. Despite these reportedly obvious issues, manifested in the patient's repeated messages to caregivers that she wanted to die, the woman nonetheless was left alone.

There are many things that can be done in a hospital setting to improve the health of the patients staying there. This is true in Pittsburgh and throughout the nation. Depending on the condition the patient has, medication may be a part of their treatment. When used correctly, this can make a huge difference. Conversely, should a medication error occur, it is possible that a patient can be greatly harmed.

There are several different medication errors that can cause such harm. One is when a patient receives the wrong dosage of the medication prescribed. Another is that a patient receives the wrong medication completely. This too can be devastating and in the worst cases lead to death.

Residents of Pittsburgh may remember the case of a man who was diagnosed with hepatitis C after receiving a kidney from his girlfriend. Neither was informed before the surgery took place that a blood test showed that the donor had the disease. As a result of the failure to disclose this information before the procedure, the couple sued individuals involved in the surgery as well as the hospital where the transplant took place for medical malpractice.

This is of course not the only time someone has received a kidney tainted with hepatitis C. Though tests for diseases such as hepatitis C are run prior to the transplant procedure, the results are not always accurate and could result in someone receiving a kidney that is actually tainted.