A Cap is Fair? Ask these Victims

Victims of medical negligence deserve accountability and fair compensation. Legislative proposals currently in the U.S. Senate advocate capping the amount of non-economic damages injured Americans can recover for medical negligence. These proposals will strip innocent victims of their rights while shielding wrongdoers in a cloak of predictability--- no matter how reckless or despicable their actions, wrongdoers will rest assured that their ultimate liability for causing an innocent patient pain and suffering will be $250,000. Shouldn’t the U.S. Senate be working to improve medical care in the U.S. so that the American people will receive competent and safe medical care? Why, then, are certain members of the U.S. Senate trying so desperately to protect negligent doctors, device and drug manufactures, and hospitals, rather than protecting those who really need protection--- the innocent victims of medical negligence?

Below are the stories of real victims of medical negligence who would be, or could have been affected by placing an arbitrary cap on non-economic damages. Don’t these victims and their families deserve fair compensation?

ARKANSAS

Dialyn Powers
While at the hospital for a hysterectomy, a nurse-anesthetist taped Dialyn Powers’ eyes closed and administered a drug to temporarily paralyze her, as part of normal pre-operative procedures. Proper pre-operative procedures also require the nurse-anesthetist to turn on the anesthesia gases, but Dialyn’s nurse-anesthetist forgot. After realizing that he did not turn on the anesthesia, the nurse-anesthetist turned on the gases and gave Dialyn amnesia-producing narcotics so that she could not recall the surgery. The nurse-anesthetist did not tell the surgeon the anesthesia was administered late and allowed the surgery to proceed. Dialyn was awake and could feel the surgery for approximately 12-35 minutes. She could hear the scissors snipping. The paralytic drug prevented her from communicating with the surgeon. She prayed that the surgeon would stop the operation. Dialyn now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. Her damages were almost entirely non-economic.

COLORADO

Michael Skolnik
In 2001, 23 year old Michael Skolnik unexpectedly passed out. Worried, Michael visited a neurosurgeon, who indicated that his CT scan showed a colloid cyst. The neurosurgeon insisted that Michael be admitted into the ICU for observation. The neurosurgeon advised Michael that needed to have a ventricular drain inserted and brain surgery within two days. At the ICU, Michael had a ventricular drain inserted with a hand drill and then underwent a six hours of surgery. The surgeon never found the cyst. A later examination of Michael’s CT scan showed that the procedure was totally unnecessary. The final 32 months of Michael’s life included brain surgeries, infections, pulmonary embolism, blood clots, paralysis, severe seizures, and psychosis. Michael could not walk, talk, or eat. His vision was severely impaired. He wore diapers. He ate through a tube in his stomach. In June 2004, Michael had a severe seizure and died. Prior to the unnecessary brain surgery, Michael worked as an EMT and was trying to fulfill his pre-requisites for nursing school.

DELAWARE

Krista Roeper
Over the course of two years, 21 year old Krista Roeper went to her doctor 11 times and complained that she was experiencing rectal bleeding. Her doctor told her that the rectal bleeding was most likely caused by a hemorrhoid or a fissure. Her doctor never referred her to a specialist or ordered any tests. When she could hardly stand from abdominal pain, her doctor finally referred her to a specialist who diagnosed her with Stage III colon cancer. At trial, the doctor admitted he altered Krista's record after learning she had cancer. After fighting the disease for another year and a half, Krista died at home with her loving husband by her side.

FLORIDA

Ryan, Kim, and Kendyll Bliss
Kim and Ryan Bliss took their eight month old daughter, Kendyll, to the ER to have her minor cold treated with fluids. Unbeknownst to Kim and Ryan, the ER did not have any medical equipment to treat an infant. For two and a half hours, the ER nurse unsuccessfully tried to insert an adult IV needle into Kendyll's body. An hour later, the ER doctor arrived and inserted an adult IV into Kendyll's jugular vein. With the IV inserted, the ER nurse began to continuously squeeze the fluid bag “to get the fluid going.” The ER nurse’s actions caused air bubbles to form in the IV line. Immediately, Kendyll turned blue. The ER nurse did not try to resuscitate her and did not call for help. Instead, the ER nurse simply shook Kendyll as an attempt to “get her color back.” Shortly thereafter, Kendyll passed away.

HAWAII

Arturo Iturralde
During the course of Arturo Iturralde’s back surgery, the surgeon discovered that the titanium rods necessary for the surgery were missing. Instead of waiting for the screws to be delivered, the surgeon decided to cut up a screwdriver that he found in the operating room and implanted it into Arturo’s spine. The screwdriver, which was not made for this use, fractured a few days later, causing Arturo severe injuries. Two and a half years later, Arturo died from the injuries he sustained as a result of the surgery. Arturo’s surgeon had a history of drug addiction, license discipline, and malpractice. He was given a license to practice in Hawaii, even though his license had been revoked in two other states.

INDIANA

Frank Cornelius
After injuring his left knee, Frank Cornelius underwent routine arthroscopic surgery. Following the surgery, Frank experienced a great deal of pain. Frank’s surgeon suggested that he “get a bedpan.” Upset by his surgeon’s lack of concern, Frank went to another surgeon, who immediately diagnosed his condition as reflex sympathetic dystrophy—a degenerative nervous disorder brought on by trauma or infection, often during surgery. Soon thereafter, during another medical procedure, a different surgeon used the wrong surgical instrument and left several holes in Frank’s vena cava, the main vein from the legs to the heart. The surgeon’s negligence almost caused Frank to bleed to death. While trying to save Frank’s life, another physician punctured Frank’s left lung. Frank is now confined to a wheelchair, needs a respirator to breathe, and suffers from continuous physical pain in his legs and feet.

LOUISIANA

Billy Arrington
Billy Arrington was having trouble breathing. Billy’s doctor recommended that he be hospitalized; however, Billy's family doctor was not authorized to admit patients into the only hospital Billy’s health insurance would cover. To solve the problem, Billy’s doctor wrote a note to the ER instructing them to admit Billy for tests. The ER doctor that treated Billy had been working for over 30 hours. The ER doctor did not conduct the tests Billy needed and sent him home. The ER doctor failed to diagnose a pulmonary embolism and blood clotting in the lungs. Billy passed away 70 hours later. Billy was only 42 years old and left behind his wife and two daughters.

MISSISSIPPI

Linda Mann
Throughout 1996, Linda Mann experienced chronic stomach problems. She underwent numerous medical tests, including a biopsy. Her pathologist concluded that there was no cancer. Her doctors diagnosed her with Crohn's Disease, a debilitating and painful—but not fatal—disorder. Linda’s doctors treated her for Crohn's, but their efforts had no effect—she was in excruciating pain, often waking in the night in tears. Four years later, Linda’s doctors scheduled an exploratory surgery. The surgery revealed Linda had advanced stomach cancer. The cancer had run rampant through her digestive tract, spreading into her colon, and ate through her intestinal wall in several places. At such a late stage, there was nothing the doctors could do to help her. In June 2000, Linda passed away. After Linda's death, it was discovered that Linda's pathologist should have easily discovered the cancer in 1996, when it was still curable. Linda's pathologist admitted that she spent less than 30 seconds reviewing Linda’s biopsies because her company pressured her to review biopsies quickly to generate more revenue.

PENNSYLVANIA

Ellen Thurston
At the age of 50, Ellen Thurston’s doctor noticed a solitary nodule on her left lung. During surgery to remove the nodule, the surgeon negligently cut a hole in Ellen’s diaphragm. The surgeon sutured the hole, continued on with the surgery and never reported his mistake to the hospital or Ellen. Post operatively, Ellen’s health deteriorated and her doctors could not figure out the cause because the surgeon had covered up his mistake. Soon, Ellen underwent another surgery. The new surgeons discovered the hole in Ellen’s diaphragm and found that the sutures used to repair it were infected. The infection caused Ellen’s stomach to herniate, or twist into the diaphragm hole, and cut off its blood supply. As a result, Ellen’s stomach contents leaked into her abdomen and caused a massive infection. The doctors could not reconstruct her chest wall and had to remove some of her ribs to repair the leaks in her lung. Ellen spent 149 days in the hospital. Today, Ellen faces life threatening infections, recurring pneumonia, and hospitalizations. She still has an open hole in her back, leading to her chest cavity.

OREGON

Steve Brown
Steve Brown had a pituitary tumor that was pressing on his optic nerves and causing vision loss. Steve’s doctor operated to remove the tumor. Following the operation, Steve’s doctor informed him that 90 percent of the tumor was removed; however, the doctor only actually removed 10 percent of the tumor. A CAT scan revealed that the mass was still present, but Steve’s doctor misread the scan. Soon, the tumor grew back to its original size. Steve’s doctor performed another surgery but again barely removed any of the tumor. While recovering from surgery, Steve complained that his vision continued to deteriorate; however, the nurse refused to contact the on-call neurosurgeon which caused Steve’s vision loss to progress. By the time a neurosurgeon assessed Steve’s condition and performed emergency surgery, he was permanently blind.

WISCONSIN

Shay Maurin
Shay Maurin was acting strange, so her mother, Yvette Maurin, took her to a local clinic. The clinic doctor suspected that Shay may have had diabetes, but did not administer any tests. The next evening Shay continued to act strangely, so Yvette took her to the ER. Yvette told the ER doctor that Shay may have diabetes. While at the ER, Shay exhibited clear signs and symptoms of diabetes; however, the ER doctor did not administer the standard finger stick test for diabetes. A blood glucose finger-stick would have cost around 58 cents, yet the ER doctor sent Yvette and Shay home. The following afternoon, Shay died of diabetic ketoacidosis, a condition which results when a diabetic is not treated with insulin. The body becomes severely dehydrated and an acid build-up occurs, leading to swelling of the brain and death.

Don’t Let Them Put Profits Over People!