New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer Blog

A former patient of David Chao, the Chargers Team doctor, recently received a $2.2 million settlement by an arbitration panel. The panel found Chao negligent when he performed her hip operation in May of 2007. The patient claims that Chao lacerated her femoral artery, vein and nerve, causing chronic pain and a limp.

This is not the first time that Chao, a 46-year old doctor, has been sued in recent months stated a doctor. In 2009 a male patient sued him and other care providers after a knee replacement surgery, which also took place in 2007. The man reported that Chaos carelessness resulted in an amputation of the leg. Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla agreed to a $1.39 million settlement, according to report.

Chao has been sued 20 times since 1998 by various patients, ranging from charges off malpractice to personal injury, fraud, or negligence. At least eight have been settled with payouts to the plaintiffs.

Last year the federal drug enforcement agents searched Chaos office and found an alleged 108 prescriptions that Chao had written for himself. He has also been accused of writing prescriptions for a former Chargers doctor who was dismissed in 1998 for an alleged narcotic addiction. Chao was required to pay a $1,000 fine for his involvement in that case, and his inability to maintain accurate medical records, reports a source.

Chao, who is an orthopedic surgeon, has operated on many professional athletes, has served as the doctor for the USA rugby team, and for the Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment. He has had complaints filed against him for abusing alcohol and unprofessional conduct from two DUI charges. Chao has denied all accusations against himself in the court records. The settlements are not considered admissions of liability for medical malpractice. Hospitals in New York City and Westchester County try to caution their staffs about these mistakes.

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Nearly 70 percent of doctors over the age of 50 have been sued according the American Medical Association, reported a study. He went on to say that many of these claims are dismissed but 95 out of 100 doctors will be sued at some point in their career.

These staggering numbers will likely harm doctor’s ability to provide their patience with quality care claimed a representative for the American Medical Association. He added that our country continues to work hard to reduce unnecessary health care costs and these statistics just don’t help.

In a survey conducted by the AMA, it was clear that certain types of doctors or surgeons were much more likely to be sued than others. General Surgeons, OBGYNs men doctors, and practice owners were most likely to be sued, whereas Pediatricians, women doctors, younger doctors and Psychologists were least likely to be sued. Only about 5 percent of doctors are sued per year, a study pointed out.

While more than half of these claims are dismissed, advocates estimate the average defense costs between $22,000 and $100,000.

"Even though the vast majority of claims are dropped or decided in favor of physicians, the understandable fear of meritless lawsuits can influence what specialty of medicine physicians practice, where they practice and when they retire," the advocate added.

In an effort to improve patient care and decrease the number of malpractice lawsuits, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality donated $25 million, which includes grants that should help cover these costs

The survey was funded by the AMA and more than 40 national medical specialty associations including many in Westchester and New York City.

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A 4 year old requiring eye surgery has recently had the wrong eye operated on due to a mix up at the hospital. It’s not clear whether or not his sight will be permanently damaged.
A surgeon recently operated on the wrong eye of a 4 year old Child, explains a New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer. The child may suffer permanent sight problems as a result of this. The surgery was supposed to be a fairly simple procedure, but it was overly complicated due to the confusion.
The doctor who operated on the wrong eye said that she simply made a mistake. According to the court notes read by the investigator the nurse ended up covering up a mark on the eye showing which eye needed surgery.
According to a well-known New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer, this answer simply isn’t good enough. Doctors should check several times before cutting anything. The rest of the medical staff including other doctors and nurses should also check and double check the information before starting the operation.
The surgeon ultimately discovered here mistake. She then continued to operate on the correct eye. It is claimed that the correct procedure would have been to inform the parents and ask for consent.
The way that the parents were treated was very poor. They were not told what was going on until it was actually happening. Also nobody stayed with them to discuss their concerns.
The original operation was simply supposed to correct the one eye as it wandered. However, this simple procedure has now become highly complex.
The long term effects of this are not currently known. It is hoped that both of his eyes will make a full recovery. The boy has small red marks in the whites of the eyes. This means that he has to put eye drops into his eyes several times per day.
Surgeons should never operate on the wrong side or part of the body. But unfortunately this type of human error does happen occasionally even in hospitals in Staten Island and Westchester County. This is a very common example of medical malpractice.
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