IV Error Results in $1 Million Wrongful Death Settlement

by admin on May 1, 2009

The family of a Vermont woman who died as a result of an IV error has been awarded a $1 million judgment in her wrongful death lawsuit.

The victim, Katherine Coffey, had been admitted to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in 2005 to be treated for fluid in her lungs following a recent open heart surgery.  While undergoing treatment, the IV that was placed in Mrs. Coffey’s hand began leaking medication into the tissue surrounding her vein.  As a result of her reaction to the medication leak, she ultimately had to undergo surgery to have several of her fingers amputated.

Just weeks later, Coffey died of a resulting bacterial infection.

According to court documents, the Coffey family and their medical attorney cited multiple instances of medical malpractice.  They claim that medical staff administered a drug to control her blood sugar intravenously when it could have been in a less invasive way, used an incorrect type of IV line to insert into Coffey’s hand, failed to notice the medication leak, failed to treat the subsequent irritation to Coffey’s hand, and ultimately caused the deadly bacterial infection that claimed Mrs. Coffey’s life.
Part of the lawsuit requested that damages be awarded to Coffey’s husband, Francis Coffey, who has suffered from health complications and tremendous distress as a result of her death.  The jury listened and agreed, allocating $385,000 of the settlement to Mr. Coffey and the remainder to Katherine’s estate.

It is quite evident from this story that IV errors can have grave results.  If you have lost someone you love due to an IV error, or have been a victim yourself, you should consider your rights.  The first step is contacting a medical attorney to discuss your situation.

Source:   www.concordmonitor.com

  • Share/Save/Bookmark

Related posts

  • Failure to properly report x-ray, CT or MRI results – Medical Malpractice (An Indiana jury has issued a large verdict in a medical malpractice case last month, an unusual thing in a state where such judgments are rare. The jury awarded the woman $5 million after miscommunication about X-rays led her to lose a portion of her stomach. Due to caps on damages, the verdict [...])
  • No “Wrongful Life” in Canada: Supreme Court (In Canada there is no such thing as a claim for "wrongful life". In a ruling released last week, the Supreme Court of Canada denied leave to appeal a Court of Appeal decision that confirmed that Canadian law does not recognize the tort of "wrongful life" as a legitimate cause of action. In Hergott, et al. [...])
  • FDA Warns of Dangers of Sirolimus (Rapamune) for Liver Transplant Patients (Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, Esquire and Catherine Bertram, Esquire Recently, MedPage Today reported that "The FDA issued an alert regarding the risk of increased mortality in stable liver transplant patients who switch from a calcineurin inhibitor-based (CNI) immunosuppressive regimen to sirolimus (Rapamune)."  It was noted, however, "that a causal relationship has not been established and [...])
  • Medical Malpractice Suit Filed On Behalf Of Sacramento Woman, Part 5 of 6 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of the proceedings.) The defense cites Bird v. Saenz (2002) 28 Cal.4th 910. In Bird, the Supreme Court denied bystander emotional distress to plaintiffs who saw their decedent being briefly rushed through a hospital hallway in respiratory distress. The [...])
  • How Often Does Medical Malpractice Happen in Canada? (How often does medical malpractice happen in Canada? The short answer is that the law suits that are filed in court are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to medical malpractice claims in Canada. medical malpractice claims in Canada tend to get a lot of attention in the media. Everyone is concerned about [...])
  • Man From West Sacramento Files Medical Malpractice Action, Part 2 of 4 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of this medical malpractice case and its proceedings.) The following four blog entries follow-up the previous two entries from July. These entries address the same issues, but do so from the defense side. By comparing the entries readers [...])
  • Nevada May Be Teaching The Rest Of The Country That Damage Caps Aren’t Good For Consumers (In 2004, Nevada passed damage caps of $350,000 as part of a legal reform package. It always amazes me when tort reform doublespeak convinces people that the remedy to frivolous lawsuits is to put a cap on the biggest and most harmful cases. But, all it does is reveal what the "reformers" really want to [...])
  • What Is Medical Malpractice? (In the United States, medical malpractice is a growing problem. Medical malpractice is a medical act or decision made by a doctor or health care provider that deviates from what is accepted as a standard of practice in the medical community and leads to injury or death. Medical malpractice can result from negligence from the [...])
  • How To Find A Medical Malpractice Attorney (If you want to find a really great Medical Malpractice Attorney, take the time to research and educate yourself on medical malpractice. We will help you discover as much information as we can on our site. If you or someone you know has been the victim of medical malpractice, it is paramount that you hire a [...])
  • Study Suggests Hormone Therapy Increases Risk of Ovarian Cancer (Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, Esquire According to a recent Danish study, women who undergo hormone replacement therapy after menopause are at a meaningfully higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.  A Reuters report states that the study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, comments that women who took hormone replacements were 38 percent [...])
  • Medical Malpractice (In the United States, medical malpractice is a growing problem. Medical malpractice is a medical act or decision made by a doctor or health care provider that deviates from what is accepted as a standard of practice in the medical community and leads to injury or death. Medical malpractice can result from negligence from the [...])
  • Medical Malpractice Defenses (If you’ve been a victim of medical malpractice, you have already been subjected to injury, damages and emotional distress, even before your case makes it to trial.  For this reason, it’s important to be prepared and know what to expect before you end up in court so you won’t be surprised when the defense begins [...])
  • Patient Bleeds To Death In Sacramento Hospital: Malpractice Suit Filed, Part 6 of 6 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of the proceedings.) Significantly, the Supreme Court in Byrd held that in Ochoa the injury-producing event was the failure to provide proper medical attention - and that observing the symptoms was sufficient for bystander emotional distress: The injury-producing event [...])
  • Misdiagnosis or Failure to Diagnose in Medical Malpractice Claims ("What's the difference between Misdiagnosis and Failure to Diagnose?" The majority of medical malpractice claims that I am asked to review involve either a misdiagnosis of a medical condition (recognizing the symptoms but getting the diagnosis wrong) or the failure to diagnose a medical condition (not recognizing that there is a medical problem that requires treatment). [...])
  • Verdict Against Sacramento Physician For Malpractice, Part 4 of 4 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of the proceedings.) Question: Are medical malpractice plaintiffs eligible to recover prejudgment interest on their jury award when their statutory offer to settle has been rejected? F. Plaintiff Received a More Favorable Verdict as Compared to the 998 Offer: Whether the [...])
  • Medication Errors (Each year an astounding 1.3 million people are injured in the US due to medication errors.  According to The National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention,  a medication error is defined as “any preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm while the medication is in the [...])
  • Expert Testimony Required In Sacramento Medical Malpractice Case,Part 3 of 4 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of this medical malpractice case and its proceedings.) The following four blog entries follow-up the previous two entries from July. These entries address the same issues, but do so from the defense side. By comparing the entries readers [...])
  • Failure to Diagnose dissecting aorta / aortic dissection (As an experienced Baltimore, Maryland medical malpractice lawyer, I am frequently asked to comment on malpractice cases from around the county. Recently, a Philadelphia jury awarded $2.185 million in a medical malpractice case in which it was alleged that a hospital and two emergency room doctors failed to timely read x-rays. The patient [...])
  • Informed Consent Malpractice (The Maryland Court of Appeals has issued a new decision on the law of informed consent in Maryland medical malpractice cases. According to the court, doctors must inform patients not only of the risks of procedures but also the potential consequences of forgoing a medical procedure. The decision is a victory for patient’s rights. [...])
  • FDA Warning: Don’t Purchase or Use New Whey Liquid Products or Hardcore Energize Bullet (Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, Esquire The FDA has warned consumers not to buy or use Hardcore Energize Bullet or New Whey liquid products sold in test tube-like vials, as a result of suspected product tampering. The products are being recalled. According to the FDA, "The suspected tampering involved a utility knife blade found in one vial of [...])
  • Husband And Sister Sue For Wrongful Death At Sacramento Hospital, Part 4 of 6 ((Please note: the names and locations of all parties have been changed to protect the confidentiality of the proceedings.) The mother in Wilks was not present at the exact moment of the specific act of negligence In Wilks, the child was injured; but the mother could claim emotional distress because of a continuing event. Consequently, [...])
  • Are Results of Academic Medical Center Reasearch Hyped? (In a recent posting on the Wall Street Journal Health Blog,  Sarah Rubenstein explores the selective details in press releases from academic medical centers  She summarizes an examination by the Annals of Internal Medicine that concluded that such press releases may hype or exaggerate the research results and "often promote research that has uncertain relevance [...])
  • Oral Surgeon Operates on Wrong Side of Mouth (Officials at Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Rhode Island have admitted that an oral surgeon performing a surgery at the hospital began operating on the wrong side of a patient’s mouth before noticing the error.  The surgical error occurred earlier this month and is the fifth such incident reported by the hospital’s medical group, Lifespan, in [...])
  • Bayer Sued Over Its Oral Contraceptive–Yaz (Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, Esquire Bayer reached an agreement with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2008, forcing the company to pay for a $20 million ad campaign to correct the company's history of overstating the benefits of its oral contraceptive--Yaz--and downplaying its risks.  The FDA determined that Yaz carries additional risks as compared [...])
  • The Consumer Has To Be Engaged In The Health Care Debate (Talk to any average American about the health care system and there is no doubt that many will agree that the system needs to be fixed. Too many people don't have coverage, the rates are killing struggling small businesses, and non preventative care just leads to more expensive deadly problems later. As Washington continues to [...])

Tagged as: , , , , , , , , ,