| Emergency Rooms, or ER's, at hospitals all over | | | | nerve and tissue injuries. Without timely diagnosis |
| the country are the most stressful worksites in | | | | and treatment, compartment syndrome can |
| the healthcare profession. The standard of care in | | | | cause permanent loss of use or function in the |
| United States hospitals is high quality. Doctors, | | | | involved extremity (legs or arms). The clinical signs |
| nurses, surgeons, and all other healthcare | | | | of compartment syndrome include pain out of |
| professionals take pride in this. However, the fact | | | | proportion to the injury, pain on passive range of |
| remains that malpractice occurs in the medical | | | | motion, and loss of distal pulses. Immediate |
| profession and today's hospitals need to improve | | | | consultation with a surgeon is the preferred |
| the care provided in their Emergency | | | | course of treatment. |
| Departments. | | | | Failing to treat a perirectal abscess in a diabetic |
| Errors in hospital Emergency Rooms are a | | | | patient as an emergency. Patients who are |
| common occurrence infrequently talked about and | | | | diabetic present many unique challenges to their |
| rarely reported to the media. That is why you | | | | health care providers. A perirectal or perianal |
| don't hear about these types of cases on the | | | | abscess is a pool of pus that forms next to the |
| news. Understaffed hospitals, ill-equipped | | | | anus, often causing considerable tenderness and |
| emergency rooms, and poorly trained staff may | | | | swelling in that area and pain on sitting down and |
| lead to fatal errors when dealing with patients | | | | on defecating. These abscesses or infections have |
| requiring emergency treatment. Let's face it - | | | | a tendency to rapidly progress to deeper, more |
| when you arrive at your local hospital ER you | | | | serious infections in diabetic patients. The abscess |
| know absolutely nothing about who will be taking | | | | can develop into Fournier's gangrene, a |
| care of you and there is no time to research the | | | | life-threatening infections with a reported mortality |
| competency and track record of the ER staff. | | | | rate of 9% - 43%. Again, prompt consultation |
| There are many ways that errors or malpractice | | | | with a surgeon is the preferred course of action. |
| may occur in Emergency Rooms. The following is | | | | Failing to provide the proper airway for patients |
| a partial list of some of the Emergency Room | | | | with facial or skull fractures. Establishing and |
| medical negligence cases we have handled: | | | | securing an airway is one of the first steps |
| - Medication Errors | | | | addressed by all Emergency Departments. There |
| - Prescription Errors | | | | are several ways to accomplish this goal but the |
| - Failing to diagnose impending heart attacks and | | | | main techniques are tracheal intubation (either oral |
| strokes | | | | or nasal), bag and mask, or a surgical procedure |
| - Diagnosis Errors | | | | known as a cricothyroidotomy. Emergency |
| - Errors in interpreting x-rays, CT scans, and MRI | | | | physicians should almost never attempt a nasal |
| studies | | | | tracheal intubation in patients with facial or skull |
| - Discharging patients who are critically ill | | | | fractures due to the possibility of passing the tube |
| Over 225,000 people die from medical malpractice | | | | into the cranial vault and thereby cause even |
| related injuries in a single year and nearly half of | | | | more serious injuries. |
| these deaths are from emergency room errors. | | | | Failing to admit unstable patients or patients with |
| The following is a partial list of the more common | | | | unclear diagnoses to the hospital. Remember, the |
| medical errors which arise in the Emergency | | | | Emergency Room doctor's first responsibility is to |
| Department: | | | | stabilize the patient and then make appropriate |
| Failing to administer prophylactic antibiotics in | | | | decisions about the patient's continuing care needs. |
| patients with open fractures. An open fracture is | | | | Most ER doctors do not have admitting privileges |
| one in which the bone has broken through the | | | | at the hospital - they must contact the patient's |
| skin, and as such, these fractures present an | | | | regular doctor or the hospital admitting doctor for |
| increased likelihood of infection. The best outcome | | | | permission to admit the patient directly from the |
| for these patients is dependent upon prevention | | | | ER into the hospital. Almost everyone has a story |
| of infection and obtaining a quick union of the | | | | about a friend or family member who was |
| fracture. Prophylactic antibiotics reduce the risk of | | | | discharged from the Emergency Room returned |
| infection and should be given as soon as possible. | | | | to their home and within hours or a couple of |
| Failing to diagnose compartment syndrome in | | | | days suffered a disastrous outcome. Make sure |
| patients with tibial fractures. The tibia is the larger | | | | your friend or family member is stable, and with a |
| of the two bones of the lower leg and is the | | | | plan of treatment, before discharge from the ER. |
| weight-bearing bone of the shin. A compartment | | | | If you or anyone you know has experienced an |
| syndrome is a serious complication which occurs | | | | emergency room error, or any other kind of |
| when the pressure in a closed fascial | | | | medical malpractice, please contact us. We are |
| compartment rises sufficiently high to cause | | | | here to help. |