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Important News You Need to Know About Medical Malpractice, Motor Vehicle Accidents and Serious Injuries in Virginia and Washington D.C.

Important summaries of news stories about medical malpractice, birth injuries, car and truck accidents, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and other catastrophic injuries in Northern Virginia and Washington D.C.

Medical Malpractice

• New FDA Study Suggests Misuse of Medical Devices
  Aug 04, 2010

  New FDA Study Suggests Misuse of Medical Devices Leads to Injuries for Children and Teens

  A recent FDA study estimates that 70,000 children and teenagers go to the emergency room each year because of physical problems created by medical devices. Approximately 6 percent of those 70,000 children required hospitalization. The rest were able to be treated in the emergency room.

  The study found that while malfunctioning medical devices are one reason for emergency room visits, misuse of medical devices by medical professionals is another cause of serious injuries to children and teens.

  Misuse of medical devices and failure to diagnose problems are matters that can be identified and may be preventable. A doctor from Chicago's Children's Memorial Hospital, who was not involved in the study, suggests that health-care providers need to be more aware of the possibility that infection and other injuries may be caused by treating chronically ill children at home. Awareness can lead to faster diagnoses and fewer problems.

  Additionally, health care professionals need to be aware that many of the devices they are using were intended for adult use, and may therefore be unsafe for children or teens.

  The FDA is reviewing the study to determine if additional warnings should be required on FDA-approved devices to prevent serious injuries and infections in children and teenagers.

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• New Study Finds that Doctors Do Not Always Report Incompetent Colleagu
  Jul 24, 2010

  The results of a study conducted by Massachusetts General Hospital were made public earlier this month. The study looked at whether doctors report other doctors who are incompetent or impaired by substance abuse.
  
  The study found that more than 30 percent of the two thousand physicians who responded to the survey did not believe that they should have a responsibility to report incompetent or impaired doctors, despite the fact that most professional medical organizations require doctors to do so, and despite the fact that patients’ safety may be at risk.
  
  The study also found that 17 percent of the doctors surveyed had encountered an impaired or incompetent doctor during the last three years, but only two thirds of them actually turned the doctor in.
  
  The three most commonly stated reasons for failure to report an incompetent doctor were: (1) a belief that someone else would take care of the problem; (2) a belief that nothing would happen if the doctor were reported; and (3) fear of retribution.
  
  Doctors did indicate that they were more likely to report impaired doctors than incompetent doctors because incompetence is a subjective judgment. Medical organizations are now encouraging doctors to report both impairment and incompetence in order to protect patients in the future.
  
  Read More About the New Study that Finds that Doctors Do Not Always Report Incompetent Colleagues - 2 - 10

• White House Unveils Patients’ Bill of Rights
  Jul 09, 2010

  As part of the health-care reform package, President Obama recently announced a Patients’ Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights will take effect later this summer. Some of the key provisions of the new rules include:
  
  

  • Children can’t be denied health insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions
  • No lifetime limit on insurance coverage
  • Encouragement of a patient’s choice of doctors; and
  • Removal of insurance company barriers to emergency care
  
  The goal of the Patients’ Bill of Rights is to create better medical outcomes for patients. Insurance companies should no longer be allowed to interfere with patients’ efforts to obtain reasonable medical care.
  
  It may take some time to see whether these changes result in better medical care. The rules will go into effect in late September, and some of them will take years to fully implement. The goal of the Bill of Rights, like the goal of the health-care reform law, is to provide better and more affordable health care.
  
  Of course, the care that individual patients get from their doctors is still the most important determinant of the outcome of health-care reform. We encourage patients to remain vigilant about the quality of care they are receiving from their physicians, and to report any perceived medical malpractice.
  
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• Study: Major Infection Control Problem at Outpatient Surgical Centers
  Jun 25, 2010

  A new federal study released earlier this month and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that same-day surgery centers, also known as outpatient surgical centers or ambulatory surgical centers, have serious problems with infection control.
  
  Inspectors visited sixty-eight centers and told staff who they were and what they were doing. Yet, 67 percent of the centers had at least one mistake in infection control and 57 percent were cited for deficiencies during these visits. Some of the problems that researchers found were failure to wash hands before touching a patient, failure to wear gloves when working with a patient, failure to properly clean blood-glucose meters, and reusing single-use devices for multiple patients.
  
  Any of these breaches could have led to serious infections that would have endangered the lives of patients. It is estimated that approximately 6 million procedures are conducted annually in the United States at outpatient surgical centers.
  
  This study was conducted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services because little was known about how the more than 5,000 ambulatory surgical centers participating in the Medicare program adhered to important infection-control procedures. The study results appeared in the June 9, 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. - 4 - 10

Car / Truck Accidents

• Two Teens Killed in Northern Virginia Crash
  Aug 25, 2010

  A tragic car crash recently took the lives of two Northern Virginia teenagers. The crash occurred early in the morning on Sunday, August 16, on Logmill Road in the Haymarket area. Police report that the teens’ car was traveling east on Logmill Road when it lost control and was struck by a westbound car. An officer from the Prince William Police Department says that both alcohol and speed are thought to be factors in this fatal crash.
  
  The two teenagers have been identified as eighteen-year-old Stephen Dixon and fifteen-year-old Derek Meffert. Mr. Dixon, who was driving the car at the time of the accident, was a 2010 graduate of Battlefield High School in Prince William County. His passenger, Derek Meffert, would have been a sophomore at Battlefield High School this fall.
  
  The driver and the passenger in the other car were both flown to the hospital. Their names have not yet been released, but police indicate that the driver was a twenty-two-old man from Haymarket and the passenger was a sixteen-year-old girl from Gainesville.
  
  We extend our sincere condolences to the families of Stephen Dixon and Derek Meffert, and we wish a speedy recovery to those injured in this accident. - 5 - 10

• Prince William County Nun Killed by Drunk Driver
  Aug 10, 2010

  On Sunday August 1, 2010, Sister Denise Mosier and two other nuns were headed to Mass at Saint Benedict Monastery in Bristow when their car was hit by a drunk driver. The crash occurred on Bristow Road near Wright Lane in Bristow.

  Police report that 23-year-old Carlos Montano crossed the center line of the road and crashed into the nuns' car at approximately 8:20 a.m. The causes of the accident are believed to be drunk driving and speeding.

  Denise Mosier was riding in the backseat of the nuns' Corolla and was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. The two other nuns were taken to the hospital in critical condition.

  This is not the first time that Mr. Montano has driven drunk, according to police. This accident is his third DUI offense in five years. Prince William County police report that he has again been charged with drunk driving, along with involuntary manslaughter and driving on a revoked license related to a DUI offense.

  Carolos Montano had also been taken into custody twice by immigration officers for being in the United States illegally; he was released both times.

  We extend our heartfelt condolences to the friends, family, and colleagues of Sister Denise Mosier following her sudden and tragic death.

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• UVA, INOVA Fairfax Hospital Awarded NHTSA Grant to Study Older Drivers
  Jul 29, 2010

  Last week, the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the awarding of a $2.5 million federal grant to the University of Virginia and INOVA Fairfax Hospital. The grant will establish the Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN), a research program to study older drivers.
  
  The CIREN Center will use engineering and medical expertise to investigate and analyze crash data. The purpose of the CIREN Center is twofold. One of the goals of the CIREN Center is to help older drivers maintain their independence; the other is to help them drive safely, thereby reducing the injuries they cause to themselves and to those with whom they share the road.
  
  New alliances with organizations such as the AARP and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety are expected to add to the work done by the Center. AARP’s involvement will include outreach to the approximately 38 million elderly Americans who can benefit from the CIREN Center’s findings.
  
  Various CIREN Centers operate on NHTSA grants throughout the country, and each focuses on different ways to help improve safety on America’s roadways and prevent serious injuries and fatalities.
  
  Data from the UVA, INOVA Fairfax Center should help save lives of older Americans and help them maintain their independence for as long as possible.
  
  Read More About UVA, INOVA Fairfax Hospital Awarded NHTSA Grant to Study Older Drivers - 7 - 10

• Virginia’s New Speed Limit Laws
  Jul 18, 2010

  A new law went into effect in Virginia on July 1, 2010. The state law allows Virginia Transportation officials to raise speed limits from 65 mph to 70 mph on roads in Virginia. So far, the speed limit has only been raised to 70 mph on a portion I-295 between Petersburg and I-64. But a portion of every interstate in the Commonwealth of Virginia is being considered for an increased speed limit.
  
  One such area is Interstate 66 between U.S. 29 in Gainesville and the Prince William Parkway. The Virginia Department of Transportation (DOT) is studying the width of the traffic lanes, the history of accidents, and how well the speed limit is enforced on those four miles of road in Northern Virginia.
  
  It is too soon to predict how many roads will have their speed limits increased and what the effect will be on the Commonwealth. The cost of studying, implementing, and enforcing the change must be considered. Additionally, the potential effect on the safety of those who use Virginia roads must be carefully assessed.
  
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• D.C. Hit and Run Results in Catastrophic Injuries
  Jul 12, 2010

  Late last month, at around 10:30 p.m. on a Friday night, thirty-five-year-old Todd Beckett was riding his motorcycle on 13th Street in Northwest D.C. when he was hit by a vehicle. After the car hit Mr. Beckett, three teenage girls got out of the car and yelled to the driver not to back up. But the driver did back up over Mr. Beckett, and dragged him for more than one block before he got free.
  
  Mr. Beckett suffered serious injuries and required three surgeries in the first week following the accident. More surgeries are expected.
  
  The driver of the car left the scene of the accident and has not yet been identified. The girls say they met the driver through Facebook. The car has been identified and located. The owner of the car, who was allegedly a passenger in the car on the night of the accident, is under investigation because he is reportedly not cooperating with police.
  
  Mr. Beckett is married. He mentors teens and volunteers at his church. He was two blocks from home when this catastrophic accident occurred.
  
  We extend our best wishes to Mr. Beckett for a full and speedy recovery.
  
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• Virginia’s Memorial Day Weekend Accident Statistics
  Jun 30, 2010

  The first holiday weekend of the summer season is behind us. Memorial Day Weekend undoubtedly left many Virginians with happy memories of friends and family, but it left others with tragic memories of horrific car accidents.
  
  According to the Virginia State Police, the following occurred in our state over Memorial Day Weekend 2010:
  
  

  • Ten people were killed on Virginia roads. This is up from seven fatalities over Memorial Day Weekend 2009
  • The State Police investigated 646 car crashes
  • More than 10,000 people were stopped by the State Police for speeding
  • 2.609 people were stopped by the State Police for reckless driving
  • 121 drivers were charged with DUI
  • 1,000 adults were ticketed for not wearing seat belts
  • 307 tickets were written because children were not properly restrained
  
  We extend our sympathies to the families of the ten people who lost their lives in motor vehicle accidents over Memorial Day Weekend, and we wish a speedy recovery to all those who were injured in motor vehicle accidents over the holiday weekend.
  
  The summer season is traditionally when more car crashes, truck accidents, and motorcycle wrecks occur. Please drive safely, avoid distractions and alcohol, and enjoy the season with your family and friends.
  
  Read More About Virginia’s Memorial Day Accident Statistics: What You Need to Know - 10 - 10

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