Pittsburgh Lawyers Representing Victims of Medication Errors
Medication errors simply should not occur. They usually happen because a nurse or a physician was not paying attention and a patient ends up with either the wrong drug or the incorrect dose of the right drug. Either way, medication errors can lead to serious injury or death.
I'm attorney John Gismondi, founder of Gismondi & Associates. We are lawyers who represent people in Pittsburgh and throughout Pennsylvania who have been injured as a result of prescription medication errors. A powerful lawsuit can provide full and complete compensation for you, and it can also send a strong message that will help to prevent some other person from being injured by a similar mistake or accident.
Why Medication Errors Occur
These errors can happen in hospitals, doctor's offices or at the local pharmacy. In the hospital setting, the errors usually occur because of a mathematic mistake by a nurse administering the drug or, sometimes the incorrect drug is given because the nursing staff could not read the doctor's handwriting! In this day and age, such simple mistakes should not occur.
In a doctor's office, medication errors can occur because the doctor is not paying attention to blood tests which show the levels of certain drugs in the patient's body. If the doctor isn't watching those levels, then the patient can receive too much or too little of the needed drug. For example, we have handled cases involving patients who suffered strokes because they were not given enough of the blood thinning drug, Coumadin.
Pharmacies also make medical mistakes, usually by giving the wrong drug or the wrong dosage to the patient. In one case we handled, a man was given double the correct dose of a drug, and he ended up with catastrophic abdominal bleeding. We filed a medical malpractice claim and obtained a large six figure award for the client.
Examples that we have seen of mistakes that can lead to serious injury or death include:
- Not reading a doctor's handwriting properly
- Not checking a patient's history for drug allergies
- Not checking a drug for ingredients the patient is allergic to
- Administering the wrong dose of medicine
- Administering the drug in the wrong way (for example, intravenously rather than a pill)
- Prescribing a drug that is dangerous in combination with a drug the patient is already taking
Regardless of how it happens, the bottom line is this: Prescription medication errors should not happen.
Click Here to See How We Handle Your Medication Error Case
A Lawsuit Provides Compensation ...... and More
We wish that we could turn back the hands of time and undo what has happened to your or your family. Unfortunately, no lawyer has that power. However, with a successful lawsuit we can reduce the burdens you face by obtaining full and complete compensation for everything that you have experienced as a result of your injury or the death of a family member ...... mounting medical bills, lost wages, physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, and perhaps most importantly, the loss of the relationship and companionship of a loved one.
We will also fight for compensation to cover everything that you may face in the future. Medication error cases often involve long term needs for things such as future surgeries, specialized equipment, personal attendant care, and much more. Our goal is to provide full compensation for all of those needs so that you or your loved one can enjoy the very best quality of life possible and make the most of a difficult situation. After all, that is the least that you are entitled to.
Aside from providing you with full and complete compensation, a lawsuit can do one other very important thing: it can force changes to be made by the doctor or hospital who caused the injury to you or a loved so that no other person or family has to go through what you have.
Our Experience With Medication Error Cases
Over the past 25 years, the attorneys at Gismondi & Associates have successfully handled a variety of medication error cases, including:
- A multi-million dollar recovery on behalf of the woman who was to be given a drug to lower her blood pressure but mistakenly received a drug that raised her blood pressure, thereby causing a severe stroke.
- A large six-figure recovery on behalf of a man who was given too much of the drug Thorazine which caused a heart attack.
- A significant six-figure recovery on behalf of a woman who received too much of the antibiotic Gentamicin and ended up with Gentamicin toxicity which caused a permanent balance disorder and persistent vertigo.
Call Us Now! ...... Free Consultation
If you or a loved one has been injured by a prescription drug error, call us now for a free consultation toll free at 866-757-6585. And remember, we always return phone calls. Our law office is in Pittsburgh and our attorneys handle medical malpractice cases throughout Pennsylvania.
Find answers to frequently asked questions about our legal services.
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