Medical Malpractice Attorney Successful After Nursing Error Causes Paralysis

Hampton & King of Houston, TX announce a confidential settlement on behalf of a young client paralyzed after surgery due to omissions in the Electronic Medical Record (EMR)

Houston, United States – May 9, 2018 /PressCable/ —

Hampton & King, Medical Malpractice Lawyers of Houston, Texas, recently obtained a confidential settlement on behalf of a young woman whose legs were paralyzed by a large blood clot, or hematoma, that developed in her spine after surgery. The root cause of the complication was the increasingly problematic integration of handwritten and machine notes into the Electronic Medical Record (EMR).

The patient had undergone surgery for removal of a benign tumor. She was admitted to intensive care for “high risk monitoring,” with nursing staff instructed to call the doctors if there was any change in her neurological function.

Unfortunately, the first nurse to care for the patient did not know how to access the handwritten notes from the Post Anesthesia Care Unit, or PACU—she know only how to use the Electronic Medical Record (EMR). As a result, she could not compare her own notes and findings with those of the PACU nurse, which would have prompted a call to the medical staff and emergency surgery. This caused a delay in making a diagnosis within the short window of time required to preserve nerve tissue. The patient is now paraplegic.

Hartley Hampton, Partner at Hampton & King and the attorney involved in the case said “While we’re delighted to win this settlement on behalf of our client, we hope it helps send a message to medical practitioners that administrative education and training for caregiving staff is as important for the well-being of critical care patients as the cutting edge treatments and surgeries that do so much to improve patient’s lives.”

The case illustrates the problems associated with the interplay between electronic medical records and handwritten nurses’ notes, and the importance of making sure that all of the medical records are available electronically on a single system.

Hampton added “The EMR is the only place medical notes should be placed because it’s the only common record that’s guaranteed to be read by everyone involved in individual patient care. Unfortunately more cases like this are inevitable until the note taking and sharing problem is solved.”

Hampton & King are dedicated Medical Malpractice Attorneys in the Houston, Texas area. The firm has been in business since 2000 and is focused solely on providing legal services in medical negligence cases. That experience and familiarity sets them apart from multi-function law firms in the Houston area.

For immediate assistance in a medical malpractice suit, visit Hampton & King and talk to one of the firm’s specialists today.

Contact Info:
Name: Rebecca Sims
Email: rsims@hamptonking.com
Organization: Hampton & King
Address: 2603 Augusta Drive Suite 1300, Houston, TX 77057, United States
Phone: +1-713-489-0993

For more information, please visit https://www.hamptonking.com

Source: PressCable

Release ID: 341215