Julius Provost died at 6 months old for 'undetermined' causes. His mother Sharon believes the cause was the benzene emissions for the BP refinery a mile away from their home. In the wake of the biggest oil-spill our nation has ever seen, and the most devestating environmental catastrophe most of us will see in a lifetime, BP, who hoped to be out of the spotlight once wells were capped, finds themselves in hot water yet again. BP’s Texas city oil refinery is guilty of a 40 day release of Benzene in April and May that has allegedly claimed the life of 6 month old Julius Provost.
His mother, Sharon, is suing BP for Wrongful Death, explaining that that in his short life, Julius suffered. Doctors couldn’t explain or cure his ongoing symptoms; nausea, runny nose, mucus in his eyes, and difficulty breathing.
Sharon’s lawsuit is just one in a string of lawsuits resulting from the Benzene release. The suits call for BP to pay $10 million in punitive damages. Sharon’s wrongful death suit claims that the case demonstrates “the human suffering caused when the drive for corporate profits is more valued than the safety and lives of people.”
Just last week, BP agreed to pay a $50 million fine for not correcting safety hazards at the Texes refinery that caused in explosion in 2005 which took the lived of 15 workers. They are contesting another $30 million in additional penalties.
Mininno Law Office Wrongful Death Attorneys in NJ and PA
Sharon lost the joy of being a mother, and Julius lost his life, due to BP’s alleged negligence and indifference towards citizens surrounding their plant. If you are suffering the loss of a loved one, and you believe their death could have been avoided, contact the Mininno Law Office.
Our NJ and PA Wrongful Death Attorneys are here to help you through this difficult time, and to recover any necessary damages. Let us get you the compensation you deserve. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation, or call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Max DeVries died after complications arose from a fall off of the operating table during a routine procedure in a Minnesota hospital. Max DeVries, 61, had a stroke and was admittied to St. Joseph’s Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. Days later he was scheduled for a lumbar drain replacement. While under anesthesia, Max rolled off of the operating table, hitting his head on an area where doctors had previously removed part of his skull to relieve inflammation of his brain.
The fall resulted in severe bleeding on the brain. Mr. DeVries was taken to have a CT scan of the brain, and died on April 13th of a massive stroke. DeVries’ family believes that his death was caused by the fall in the operating room. When hospital staff alerted DeVries family of the accident, they said that the restraints used to hold him in were not strong enough to hold an obese man. Max DeVries was 5’5 and weighed around 300lbs.
The DeVries family and their medical malpractice attorney assert that St. Joseph’s Hospital was not equipped or properly prepared to safely handle someone of Max’s size. Their medical malpractice lawsuit also states that Max DeVries’ weight and stature were not uncommon among stroke victims.
St. Joseph’s released a statement explaining that they take very seriousley what happened in that operating room, and express their sincerest condolences to the family. They go on to speak of their immaculate record concerning patient safety, and their practices to constantly implement new ways to improve patient safety.
Medical Malpractice in NJ or PA: Mininno Law Office
In the end, St. Joseph’s Hospital failed Mr. DeVries. He went into the OR for a routine procedure and lost his life due to severe negligence. Failing restraints and an unsuitably sized bed should never be the reason someone dies inside a hospital. Max DeVries and his family trusted that establishment to improve his health and send him home.
This type of medical malpractice and negligence can not go unnoticed. Hospitals are meant to care for us to the best of their abilities. It seems that while the doctors at St. Joseph’s are very able, the establishment itself was ill-equipped.
If you or a loved one have suffered due to medical malpractice or medical negligence, do not be silent. Seek out the help of a Medical Malpractice attorney immediately. Waiting can only hurt you, as your statue of limitations is running out. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation, or call us for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Let us help you get the compensation that you deserve.
Bedsores are a sure sign of nursing home abuse and neglect in a long term care facility. A Bedsore, also known as a pressure sore or pressure ulcer, is defined by the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel as a localized injury to the skin and/or underlying tissue, usually over a bony prominence, as a result of pressure, or pressure in combination with shear and/or friction.
In laymen’s terms, it’s a wound that forms when someone spends too much time in a bed without moving or changing position.
Bedsores or Pressure Sores are often located on bony prominences because these places suffer the most from oxygen deprivation due to lack of blood flow. Think of when your leg falls asleep after you’ve been sitting on it for a while. You move your leg to allow the blood to return to it.
But a bedridden patient that is unable to move themselves must be cared for meticulously, being moved and turned every two hours, to keep areas like the lower back, heels, and elbows, from becoming oxygen deprived.
Bedsores are a sure sign of nursing home abuse and negligence. Residents that are bedridden are automatically high risk bedsore patients. Care plans must be developed that include the routine 2 hour repositioning of these high risk, bedridden patients.
The National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel: Four Stages of Bedsores.
– Stage I: Redness in a localized area, usually over a bony prominence. The area may be painful, and either firmer or softer, or warmer or cooler than the surrounding tissue.
– Stage II: A shallow, open ulcer that can be red or pink. This stage may also present itself as serum-filled blister.
– Stage III: Advanced tissue loss. Fat may be visible but bone, tendon or muscle are not exposed.
– Stage IV: Full thickness tissue loss with exposed bone, tendon or muscle.
Bedsores & Nursing Home Abuse in NJ or PA: Mininno Law Office
Bedsores are prone to infection can prove fatal for some patients. They can cause unwanted and unneccesary complications to a patients’ health, and are completely avoidable.
The New Jersey nursing abuse attorneys at the Mininno Law Office are here to get you the compensation you deserve.
If you or a loved one have suffered to the acquisition of a bedsore during a stay at a hospital or long term care facility, you’ll need to assistance of a nursing home abuse attorney. Contact the Mininno Law Officefor a free case evaluation or call at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
We’ve all heard about Liebeck v. McDonald’s, more commonly known as the “McDonald’s Coffee Case” of 1994. It was a products liability case that became, as ABC News called it, the “poster child of excessive lawsuits.” It’s easy, without knowing the facts of the case, to scoff at someone who would sue for being burnt by hot coffee.
Coffee is coffee, it’s supposed to be hot! But, is it supposed to be hot enough to cause third degree burns?
Stella Liebeck was 79 when she was in the passenger seat of her Ford Probe, as her grandson drove her through the drive thru of a Mcdonald’s Fast Food Restaurant in New Mexico. He pulled the car over so that Stella could add cream and sugar to her coffee. Stella put the cup between her knees and lifted the lid slightly. At that point, she spilled the entire cup of coffee on her lap. Her cotton sweatpants absorbed the coffee, holding it to her skin for over a minute and a half.
The coffee scalded her thighs, buttocks, and groin. At the hospital, it was determined that she had sustained third degree burns on 6% of her skin, and lesser burns on 16% of her skin. She remained in the hospital for 8 days and underwent skin grafting. In that time she lost 20% of her body weight, reducing her weight to 83 pounds, and causing an additional 2 years of treatment.
Liebeck sought to settle for $20,000 to cover her medical bills, which amounted to $11,000. McDonald’s offered $800. After McDonald’s refused her offer, Liebeck retained attorney Morgan Reed, who brought a case against McDonald’s, accusing them of “gross negligence” in making a product that was “unreasonably dangerous” and “defectively manufactured.”
Reed made a settlement offer of $90,000, which McDonald’s rejected. He made another offer of $300,000, followed by a mediator suggested offer of $225,000. McDonald’s rejected both of them, and the case went to trial.
In trial, Reed exposed that McDonald’s was serving coffee at temperatures of 180-190 degrees Farenheight. At this temperature, the coffee could cause third degree burns in 2-7 seconds. Reed also revealed during litigation that between 1982 and 1992, McDonald’s received over 700 reports of people being burned by coffee, and had settled claims for scalding injuries for over $500,000.
In the end, Liebeck was awarded just under $600,000 in punitive and compensatory damages.
Tort Reformists call this a “frivolous” lawsuit, and claim that it’s cases like this that are stressing the economy. But a case like this is far from frivolous. McDonald’s was serving coffee that had the potential to truly harm their customers. As we can see, it did. No labeled warning can replace a manufacturer’s responsibility to keep consumer safety a number one priority.
Product Liability Attorneys at the Mininno Law Office
Nowadays, we see more and more fault in our system regarding foreign manufacturers and their seeming exemption from U.S. regulations on product liability. But even native manufacturers are producing products that are defective and unsafe. Defective products are dangerous, and potentially harmful or fatal.
If you have been injured by a defective product, you may be entitle to compensation. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation, or call us for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Alexis Richie (right) with her mentor, showing off a home made ice cream sundaes they made together in 2005. SSM DePaul Health Center in Bridgeton, Missouri finds themselved under fire for medical malpractice, after a hainous event that took place last October. Sixteen year old Alexis Richie, a patient in the psychiatric ward of the hospital, suffocated and died when caretakers restrained and sedated her face down in a bean bag chair.
Alexis Richie was a foster child from the time she was 7 years old, bouncing around between families and institutions. A troubled past included incidents of sexual abuse, as well as a suicide attempt at age 11. Alexis would act out in violent fits, and many times cause physical harm to others. She was admitted to the psychiatric ward at the SSM DePaul Health Center on October 16, 2009 after stabbing a teacher at Evangelical Children’s Home with a pencil.
During her 10 day stay at DePaul, Alexis was sedated and restrained frequently. Her outbursts put herself and others in danger. In therapy, she knew she needed to behave because she wanted to return to her foster home for her 17th birthday.
On the night of October 26th, an aide named Leon Harriel told Alexis to head back to the girls hall for bedtime, and Alexis cursed at him. She became unruly and violent, and Harriel , along with another aide, Mike Manetta, grabbed Alexis by her arms and took her to a small room, where they laid her face down on a bean bag chair. Alexis continued to fight the aides, and Nurse Pam Wooten entered the room with shots of Geodon and Ativan. Wooten injected the drugs into Alexis and left the room to get arm restraints. Harriel and Manetta told Alexis they would let go of her if she calmed down, and which point she became limp. At that point, Harriel and Manetta simply stood up and left the room. They did not check her pulse or her breathing, or even help her turn around to be face up on the chair.
Minutes later, Wooten returned and Harriel told her Alexis had calmed down. She did not re-enter the room to check on the girl. The charge nurse, Iris Blanks, was making rounds and asked about the status of Alexis. Harriel said she had passed out after receiving the sedative shots. Blanks entered the room and called Alexis’ name to no response. Blanks checked vital signs; pulse weak, pupils fixed, reflexes gone. She was soaked in her own urine. The team tried to revive the girl, but it had been 12 minutes since she first “went limp.” It was too late. Alexis was pronounced dead at 10:06 pm.
So far, charges have not been filed against the caretakers, as the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said there were too many people involved to determine who was responsible.
The Team’s Response to Alexis’s Condition
Alexis’ biological family has hired an attorney who is investigating the case. This story is an example of gross medical malpractice and negligence. The caretakers response to Alexis’ state when Blanks found her was horrid. Blanks should have immediately started CPR, but instead left the room to get a flashlight and blood pressure machine. She left a second time to get a stethoscope, and to retrieve Nurse Wooten. Wooten came in and tried to wake Alexis up, who was not responding. She called a code blue at the nurses station, and an emergency team entered the room. It took the doctor 9 minutes to put the breathing tube down Alexis’ throat. The team’s response was not at all satisfactory, and Iris Blanks was fired immediately.
The SSM DePaul Health Center has a lot of work to do to make sure their staff is qualified and ready to handle emergencies such as this, and to be able enough to not cause emergencies like this, as happened in this case.
Mininno Law Office and Medical Malpractice
At the Mininno Law Office, medical malpractice cases are taken very seriousley. Alexis should not have died due to the negligence of doctors who felt no need to check up on her after pinning her down and injecting her with sedatives.
If you or a loved one have been victimized by medical malpractice or medical negligence, do not hesitate to contact the Mininno Law Office. Our New Jersey and Philadelphia Medical Malpractice Attorneys are here to work for you, and to get you the compensation you deserve. Call us at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Nursing Home Abuse is a disturbing trend plaguing the long term care facility industry.On Wednesday, August 4th, six nursing home employees at the Valley View Skilled Nursing Facility in Ukiah, California were arrested on misdemeanor criminal charges for a cruel and abusive prank they played on a select number of residents.
According to a release from the Attorney General’s office, each of the six employees greased up the bodies of their patients with slippery ointment cream at they end of their shift so they would be slippery for the oncoming shift of workers. The residents that fell victim to this nursing home abuse were chosen because they suffered from an advanced level of dementia and could not fight the treatment.
The charges filed against the workers include injury to an elder or dependant adult; battery committed on an elder or dependant adult; conspiracy; and battery committed while on hospital property.Attorney General Jerry Brown said, “As part of a cruel and and shocking prank, these caregivers abused defenseless elders. This dispicable behavior by people placed in a position of trust.”
Nursing Home Abuse and the Mininno Law Office
This form of nursing home abuse is truley disturbing. These six employees turned sick, elderly residents whose care they were responsible for into the butt of a joke. Clearly, they had no respect for those they were caring for, the facility in which they worked, and the work they were supposed to do.
The Mininno Law Office takes a strong stand against this depraved and awful behavior. Nursing Home Abuse is all too common, and we must fight against the entities that allow it to continue.
If you or a loved one have sufferend the effects of nursing home abuse, contact the Mininno Law Office. Let our New Jersey and Philadelphia Nursing Home Abuse Attorneys help you get the compensation you deserve.
You could also call at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Lancaster General HospitalThe Lancaster General Hospital in Lancaster, PA is named in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of 70 year old Fillipo Raia, who, last summer, leapt to his death out of an eighth story window at the facility on Duke Street where he was being treated for mental health problems.
Raia had a history of seizures and anxiety and, upon admittance to the hospital last July, was confused, agitated, and appeared to have an “altered mental status.”According to nurses, two days after his admittance, Raia threatened to jump out of the window. Nurses also noted that he was suffering from hallucinations and paranoia, and thought the hospital staff was trying to kill him. He was given medicine throughout his stay to keep him calm and sedated.
Raia’s two psychiatrists, Dr. Kathleen Dougherty and Dr. Leo Dorozynski, are being named in the suit. It seems that their assesments of Raia differ greatly from those of the nurses who cared for him on a daily basis. On the same day that a nurse documented Raia to be “agitated and uncooperative,” Dr. Dougherty noted that he was “somewhat anxious” but “logical.” Two days before Raia’s death, Dr. Dorozynski wrote that he was “calm, pleasant but confused.” Two hours later, a nurse noted that he was “very confused,” “agitated,” and “psychotic.” Raia’s medical doctor suggested a transfer to the psych unit of the hospital, and Dougherty stated that she “…[did] not see indication for psychiatric admission.”
Andrew Youman, an attorney with Kline and Specter, the Philadelphia Firm handling the case, stated that “Throughout the stay, he was clearly demonstrating that he was not able to keep himself or others safe because of his mental status.” The lawsuit names not only the hospital and the two psychiatrists, but Behavioral Health Specialists, Lancaster General Medical Group, Lancaster General Behavioral Health System, Lancaster General Health and Lancaster General Health Foundation as well.
Wrongful Death at the Mininno Law Office
John Mininno began a law career to help bring justice to those who have been wronged. He has won substantial verdicts for people who have been hurt by negligent doctors, defective product manufacturers, and corporate wrongdoers.
If you are grieving the loss of a loved one, and you believe their death was not inevitable, contact the Wrongful Death Attorneys at the Mininno Law Office. They will be able to help you get the compensation you deserve. You may also call at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signs bill that aims to improve the care being provided in nursing homes across the state. Illinois Governor Pat Quinn recently signed a bill that aims to greatly improve the quality of care being provided to the state’s elderly citizens in nursing homes and long term care facilities. Supporters have high hopes that new regulations upheld by the bill will work to eradicate the disturbing trends of nursing home abuse, neglect, and violence currently plaguing the long term care industry.
Expected changes include:
New ratio of 1 inspector per every 500 beds
Increased criminal background checks and psychological testing of nursing home patients
Alternative housing arrangements for patients who are physically capable, but suffer from psychological conditions
Increased staffing levels at long term care facilities
Illinois State Governement intends to fund the plan by increasing licensing fees, and decreasing the amount of psychiatric patients in nursing homes. Small, group-homes require less staff oversight and will save some of the money the state currently spends on this area of care.
Naysayers claim the bill is just a way to silence the public outcry for tighter restrictions on the care being provided in Illinois nursing homes. Whether or not that is true really doesn’t matter. The bill was signed, changes will be made, and nursing home care will improve.
The Mininno Law Office Frowns Upon Nursing Home Abuse
The Mininno Law Office has taken a firm and unwavering stand against nursing home abuse. Our elderly citizens deserve respectful, careful, and attentive treatment while staying in nursing homes and long term care facilities.
If you or a loved one have experienced what you believe is nursing home abuse or negligence, contact the Mininno Law Office. Our New Jersey and Philadelphia Nursing Home Abuse Attorneys are ready to help you with your claim against the nursing home, and will work ’round the clock to get you the compensation you deserve. You can also call at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
CT scanners are using unnecessarily high levels of radiation in brain perfusion scans, and causing hairloss, burns, scabs, and other worse complications.This past Sunday, The New York Times published a story on CT Scans and the damage they may be causing to patients. It seems the scanners are emitting dangerous and harmful levels of radiation when patients are getting CT brain perfusion scans, a scan often used to test for strokes. This particular test is exposing patients to radiation overdoses at levels that can cause burns, scabs, significant hair loss, cancer, or even brain damage.
Last summer, after a large number of radiation overdoses began emerging, the FDA set off an investigation into why patients were being bombarded with excess radiation. They have yet to publish findings.
The New York Times investigation found that , nationwide, upwards of 400 patients received radiation overdoses in only 8 hospitals. Six of those hospitals are located in California. A health official in California believes that more cases will undoubtedly surface once other states begin to look into the issue. The Times determined that it is relatively unclear why the overdoses are taking place.
Blame could fall on the shoulders of the technicians, who are not properly using the equipment, or the manufacturers of the equipment, who provide poor design and inadequate training. GE Healthcare, one manufacturer of the scanner, suggests to technicians higher levels of radiation for clearer images, a practice that one expert said is unjustified and potentially dangerous.
Affected By a Radiation Overdose? Contact the Mininno Law Office
Depending on what further investigation determines is the catalyst for these radiation overdoses, victims could potentially file medical malpractice or product liabilty claims. Radiation is a dangerous technology that must be handled with extreme care. Four hundred patients in 8 hospitals suffering from excessive radiation levels is proposterous.
If you or a loved believe you are suffering from the effects of a radiation overdose, contact the Mininno Law Office. Our New Jersey medical malpractice and defective product attorneys will help in any way possible to determine if you have a case. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation, or call us for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
Let us help you get the compensation you deserve.
27 Never Events - Occurences that should never take place within the walls of a healthcare facility.
The National Quality Forum is a non-profit organization that aims to improve the quality of healthcare for all americans.
The forum aims to do that through pursuit of three seperate missions:
Setting national priorities and goals for performance improvement;
Endorsing national consensus standards for measuring and publicly reporting on performance; and
Promoting the attainment of national goals through education and outreach programs.
NQF’s membership consists of a wide variety of healthcare stakeholders: consumer oraganizations, public and private purchasers, nurses, physicians, hospitals, healthcare researchers, and quality improvement organizations.
The NQF has recently published a list of 27 “never events” in healthcare. “Never Events“ refer to events that, rightly, should never happen. Most of the events on the list would happen when a patient is being cared for at a healthcare facility, and constitue as medical malpractice and negligence or nursing home abuse.
A few of the events could happen within a patient’s home. Below is a list of the NQF’s 27 “Never Events.”
1. Surgery performed on the wrong body part 2. Surgery performed on the wrong patient 3. Performing the wrong surgical procedure on a patient (conducive to symptoms) 4. Retention of a foreign object ina patient after surgery or other procedure 5. Intraoperative or immediately post-operative death in a normal, healthy patient. 6. Patient death or serious disability associated with the use of contaminated drugs, devices, or biologics provided by the healthcare facility. 7. Patient death or serious disability associated with the use or function of a device in patient care in which the device is used or functions other than as intended. 8. Patient death or serious disability associated with intravascular air embolism that occurd while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 9. Infant discharged to the wrong person. 10. Patient death ot serious disability associated with the partient disappearance for more than four hours. 11. Patient death or serious disability associated with a medication error. 12. Patient suicide or attempted suicide resulting in serious disability, while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 13. Patient death or serious disability associated with a hemolytic reaction due to transfusion of the wrong blood type. 14. Maternal death or serious disability associated with a medication error. 15. Patient death or serious disability associated with hypoglycemia, the onset of which occurs while the patient is being cared for in a healthcare facility. 16. Death or serious disabilty associated with the failure to identify and treat jaundice in newborns. 17. Stage 3 or 4 bedsores or pressure sores acquired after admission to a healthcare facility. 18. Patient death or serious disability due to spinal manipulatice therapy. 19. Patient death or serious disability associated with an electric shock while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 20. Any incident in which a line designated for oxygen or other gas to be delivered to a patient contains the wrong gas or is contaminated by toxic substances. 21. Patient death or serious disability associated with a burn incurred from any source while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 22. Patient death associated with a fall while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 23. Patient death or serious disability associated with the use of restraints or bedrails while being cared for in a healthcare facility. 24. Any instance of care ordered by or provided by someone impersonating a physician, nurse, pharmacist, or other licensed healthcare provider. 25. Abduction of a patient at any age. 26. Sexual assault of a patient within or on the grounds of a healthcare facility. 27. Death or significant injury of a patient or staff member resulting from a physical assault that occurs within or on the grounds of a healthcare facility.
Medical Malpractice or Nursing Home Abuse in NJ or PA?
These “never events” are sure instances of medical malpractice, and in some cases, nursing home abuse. If you or a loved one have experienced any of the events on the list, you should contact a NJ Medical Malpractice or Nursing Home Abuse attorney.
The team at the Mininno Law Office is ready to help you get the compensation you deserve. For a free case evaluation, contact the Mininno Law Office. Or simply call at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
We’ve all heard about Liebeck v. McDonald’s, more commonly known as the “McDonald’s Coffee Case” of 1994. It was a 
