Recently, a jury in Allegheny County awarded $10 million to the family of a patient who died at a UPMC hospital.  The improper treatment verdict was determined based on the predicted earnings the 24-year old accountant would have made in his lifetime.

In 2008, a jury awarded the family $2.5 million in a wrongful death claim against the hospital system.  The jury found the hospital responsible for the patient’s death in 2003.

The patient checked himself into a hospital in 2003 with severe headaches.  At UPMC, doctors diagnosed the man with a brain tumor and scheduled surgery to remove the tumor four days later.

The evening before his surgery was scheduled, one of the patient’s pupils became noticeably dilated and stopped moving.  Staff at the hospital gave contradictory reports about how much care was given to the patient that night and how much information was given to doctors about his condition.

The next morning during surgery, doctors realized that the man was suffering from a brain abscess — not a brain tumor.  After the surgery, the patient was unable to regain consciousness and passed away.

The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority recently conducted a number of studies into patient safety and health care including one titled “Ambulatory Surgery Facilities: A Comprehensive Review of Medication Error Reports in Pennsylvania.”  The study looks at the most common errors made in ASFs, types of medications, and patient populations.

An ambulatory surgery facility is a health care facility that performs surgeries but does not require overnight stays like hospitals.  ASFs are also commonly known as same-day surgery centers and outpatient surgery centers.

From June 2004 to December 2010, 502 medication errors in ASFs were reported to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority.  Of these errors, the most common types of medication errors were the omission of a medication, medication monitoring error, mistakes concerning drug allergies, and wrong medication errors.

If you or someone you love has been the victim of a medication error or another type of improper treatment in Pennsylvania, contact the Philadelphia medical malpractice lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at 215-238-1130 to speak with one of our experienced medical malpractice lawyers today.

Last month, a New York family was awarded $34 million in compensation for the brain injury she suffered after going to Bon Secours Community Hospital for treatment of hyponatremia.

People with hyponatremia suffer from insufficient sodium.  Treatment of hyponatremia involves raising a patient’s sodium level between 10 and 12 units over 24 hours.  However, according to court documents, the mother’s sodium was raised 27 units in only 14 hours.

As a result, the mother’s brain swelled and she suffered permanent brain injury.  After the injury, the mother was forced to live in a rehabilitation center in Milford, Pennsylvania and her family commutes to see her.  The woman lost most of her physical and speech abilities and is said to function at “the cognitive level of a young child.”

If you or someone you love has been injured or become ill because of an improper treatment, contact the Philadelphia improper treatment lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at 215-238-1130 to learn more about how we can help you.