Bon Secours Hospital is a not-for-profit Catholic health system care that was founded in 1824 to assist those in Paris that were sick and dying. Bon Secours organization is composed of the following:
- 19 acute-care hospitals
- five nursing care facilities
- four assisted living facilities
- fourteen homecare and hospice services; and
- one psychiatric hospital
In other words, the organization offers a variety of services through various different locations with more than 25,000 employees who contribute to their efforts. The hospital located in Florida is within St. Petersburg. The way that this hospital is sponsored, according to the Catholic Health Association, “Sponsorship of a health care ministry is a formal relationship between an authorized Catholic organization and a legally formed system, hospital, clinic, nursing home (or other institution) entered into for the sake of promoting and sustaining Christ’s healing ministry to people in need.” The main services that this hospital offers where medical malpractice can surface include:
- Assisted living medical malpractice
- Dementia Care medical malpractice
- Home care medical malpractice
- Long-term Care medical malpractice
- Short-term respite care medical malpractice
- Short-term Rehabilitation medical malpractice
- Virtual Doctor visits medical malpractice
Bon Secour Hospital in St. Petersburg offers services quite different than would a normal hospital, but yet these are all areas where the presence of medical negligence could occur. The law firm of Professional personal injury lawyers at Percy Martinez understand the crucial importance of medical providers abiding by the “standard of care” that has been practiced within the medical field. The patient is at great risk when the standard of care is not followed, or it is provided at a below than average quality; they can suffer debilitating injuries and even death as an aftermath of medical negligence that is performed at Bon Secours Hospital.
Understanding the Standard of Care in Medicine
An important question that needs a direct answer to for many individuals is: “what is the standard of care in medicine?” Many people understand that they have a duty of care when they leave their homes with respect to the well-being of others, but how does that apply to medical professionals?
Every case of medical negligence relies on the answer to this question. In order to prove that medical negligence caused the medical malpractice, the standard of care must have been clearly violated. This notion is the main factor that will influence your medical malpractice lawsuit. The term of medical standard of care boils down to the type and level of care/treatment that a competent professional medical provider that is studied in the same area, would have given the patient in the same situation where the medical malpractice occurred. In other words, if another doctor would have done something different than what the alleged malpractice doctor did, then the standard of care was violated.
In order to prove that is was violated, a qualified expert medical witness will be used to testify as to what they believe should have been the appropriate care that should have been provided given that situation — and how their lack of care led to the patient’s injuries/death– two elements needed for a viable medical malpractice lawsuit
A case for a medical malpractice lawsuit can quickly surge once the standard of care has been violated by the medical professional. Once medical negligence has played a part, and the consequence was an injury or death to a patient, the victim/victim’s family must seek expert legal counsel by a Miami personal injury attorney at Percy Martinez Law Firm for medical malpractice. Every patient that visits a health care facility must understand the ways that they can become victims of medical malpractice.
Grasping the Concept of What Ignites Medical Negligence
Being knowledgeable about the notion of medical malpractice and all of its details is crucial in avoiding the possibility of becoming a victim of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice lawsuits are lengthy and will take time to obtain the mandated compensation. Why not avoid all that hassle and pain by becoming studied about medical malpractice? Areas where medical malpractice can lead to a lawsuit include:
- Medication error lawsuit: Bon Secours hospital offers the services of assisted living care. In these facilities, residents are often bedridden or very sick. They are provided with the medication that they need on a daily basis by the health care providers in this facility because they are unable to do so themselves. If they fail to monitor the resident’s medication intake, fail to give the resident their needed medication, mistake their medication for another type of medication, or give the resident the medication improperly, they will definitely be held liable for the medical negligence that could potentially lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit.
- Dementia Care lawsuit: Dementia is a sickness that affects more than three million people every year in the United States. There are different types of dementia, and it is a disease that cannot be cured. Patients with this type of disease require special and skilled care by the health care providers. Not everyone can handle the obstacles that come with dealing with these patients. If medical negligence played a role during the care of a dementia patient, a medical malpractice lawsuit might be filed with a professional medical malpractice lawyer in Miami.
- Lawsuit for surgical mistakes: Every year, millions of Americans are undergoing surgery. An operation can be planned, or it can be sudden due to an emergency. A surgery is a delicate procedure that must be done by a skilled medical team. If this medical team fails to communicate, does not account for all medical instruments that they used, does not obtain a medical history of the patient, or another medical negligence, the patient can suffer extreme consequences. An instrument could be left inside the body of a patient that might not show its effects immediately; the medical team might not notice the patient’s vital signs deteriorating because they failed to communicate, amongst other mistakes.
In addition to the detailed areas where a medical malpractice lawsuit can form, our skilled medical malpractice Miami lawyers at Percy Martinez Law Firm have dealt with the following lawsuits:
- Misdiagnosis lawsuit
- Emergency room incompetence lawsuit
- Delay in treatment lawsuit
- Lack of informed consent lawsuit
- Birth injury lawsuit
- Anesthesia mistake lawsuit; and
- More
The best advice that can be offered to those patients that are unsure whether their visit to Bon Secours Hospital has resulted in medical negligence, would be to seek a lawyer in Miami that is experienced with medical malpractice personal injury at Percy Martinez Law Firm. They can help with the claiming process and filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. There are medical malpractice occurrences that may not manifest themselves immediately like failing to diagnose a medical condition and even leaving a medical instrument behind. These are medical negligence’s that will show its effect sometime after the medical negligence took place. Do not worry, the law recognizes that with respect to the statute of limitations.
Medical Malpractice Info
Here is relevant information about medical malpractice, figures, and charts to help you better understand the consequences that medical negligence could cause:
- Every year, 3.6 billion dollars is given in medical malpractice lawsuit payouts
- 93% of all medical malpractice lawsuits get fixed before reaching trial
- Neurosurgeons account for 20% of medical professionals being sued
- Cardiovascular surgeons account for 19% of medical professionals that are sued
- General surgeons account for 16% of medical professionals in surgery that are sued
- Orthopedic surgeons account for 14% of surgical professionals that are sued
- Plastic surgeons account for 13% of those sued
- Gastroenterologist account for 12% of malpractice claims
- OB/GYNS account for 11% of medical malpractice claims
- Errors in diagnosis in emergency room account for 52% of medical malpractice claims in ER’s
Chart below shows the specialties in medicine that are most often sued due to medical malpractice:
| Specialties | Percentage |
| Internal Medicine | 15% |
| Family Medicine | 13% |
| Ob/Gyn | 9% |
| Psychiatry | 8% |
| Cardiology | 6% |
| Gastroenterology | 6% |
| Pediatrics | 5% |
| Emergency Medicine | 4% |
| Oncology | 4% |
| Anesthesiology | 3% |
| Diabetes and Endocrinology | 3% |
| General Surgery | 3% |
| Orthopedics | 3% |
| Plastic surgery | 2% |
| Pulmonology | 2% |
| Radiology | 2% |
| Critical Care | 1% |
| Dermatology | 1% |
| HIV/infectious Disease | 1% |
| Nephrology | 1% |
| Neurology | 1% |
| Ophthalmology | 1% |
| Pathology | 1% |
| Rheumatology | 1% |
| Urology | 1% |
| Allergy and Clinical Immunology | 0.4% |
*Information Provided by Medscape
Bon Secours Hospital Malpractice Case
Failure to diagnose colon cancer
In 2016, a medical malpractice lawsuit for failure to diagnose colon cancer was created by the victim’s children. A 76-year old woman went to the emergency room several times at Bon Secours complaining that she had abdominal pain, yet no diagnosis was ever made. More than a year after all of her complaints, when they perform a colonoscopy, they discover that she had stage 4 colon cancer. A month after her diagnosis, she underwent a right hemicolectomy. To make matters short, the cancer spread to the brain and she died three months after. Medical negligence and wrongful death lawsuit were created by the family.
- Our thoughts on this case: It is clear that the hospital failed to provide the needed tests in order to determine the cause of the woman’s pain. They did not follow through with the medical standard of care. Had they determined the cancer at an earlier stage, they may have prevented the death of the victim. Cancer is a disease that needs immediate treatment because if not, the consequences like mentioned above can occur.
Your Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Experienced Competent Attorney
Speak with one of our competent medical malpractice lawyers at our Miami location at Percy Martinez Law Firm if you or a loved one has sought medical aid at Bon Secours Hospital in Florida and have sustained damages or loss of a loved one as a result of medical negligence. A simple mistake when dealing with the health of an individual could have a fatal ending. With the assistance of a medical malpractice lawsuit, our attorneys can ensure that justice is sought for all the victims who have experienced medical negligence that caused them harm and damages.
References:
- https://bonsecours.com/st-petersburg/about-us/bon-secours-health-system
- https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/what-the-medical-standard-care-malpractice-case.html
- http://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/personal-injury/claims-negligence-assisted-living-facilities.html
- https://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/guide/alzheimers-dementia#1
- https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/medical-malpractice-misdiagnosis-delayed-diagnosis-32288.html
- https://www.medicalmalpracticehelp.com/faqs/can-you-file-a-lawsuit-for-emergency-room-negligence/
- https://www.medscape.com/features/slideshow/malpractice-report/public
- https://www.google.com/search?biw=1906&bih=924&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=dMJ6W4WGBobYzwK-iJyADg&q=statistics+of+medical+malpractice&oq=statistics+of+medical+malpractice&gs_l=img.3..0i24k1.15098.16411.0.16533.10.10.0.0.0.0.100.764.9j1.10.0….0…1.1.64.img..1.1.100….0.8x6blx_KrNk#imgrc=KBGxadVASpcHrM:
- https://www.chausa.org/
- https://www.google.com/search?biw=1906&bih=924&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=6cZ6W8TKN6rt5gL8_LOACQ&q=bon+secours+hospital+florida&oq=bon+secours+hospital+florida&gs_l=img.3…0.0.0.12649.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0….0…1..64.img..0.0.0….0.s9s3DllW1sM#imgrc=qmd1KTgvhXJjEM: – image