February 11, 2010

Types and Causes of Radiation Errors

xray3.jpgIndiana medical malpractice cases involving radiation errors are extremely technical and complicated. One reason is because there isn’t just one way in which a radiation error can occur. With new medical technologies, using radioactive rays to diagnose and treat, and a continued paucity of training and oversight, the types and sources of these errors have increased.

The types of errors have been numerous.

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February 4, 2010

Indianapolis Radiation Therapies Offer Hope, But Also Present Risk of Injuries

radiation.jpgNew radiation technologies are offering patients more focused and precise treatment, but as a series of investigative reports in the New York Times shows, lack of safeguards, software flaws, faulty programming, poor safety procedures or inadequate staffing and training are causing these technologies to harm the very patients they are meant to treat.

The New York Times profiles a series of radiation errors involving new, more advanced and highly sophisticated machines capable of delivering a treatment called Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). The errors have included overdoses caused by poorly configured systems, radiation that misses all or part of the target or is focused on the wrong part of the body and other errors. With these increasingly sophisticated radiation tools, you would think that the margin for errors would be virtually nil. In fact, as the NYT reports, the complexity of the machines that deliver the radiation, combined with the failure of hospitals to implement processes that catch errors in time and poorly trained staff, have all helped create a “crisis” situation.

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September 12, 2009

Indiana Medical Malpractice Cap Challenged

xray%202.jpgTimothy Plank, the husband of the late Debbie Plank, has authorized his attorneys to file a challenge to Indiana's long-standing cap on medical malpractice injuries. Indiana's current medical malpractice law limits awards to $1.25 million. On September 3, 2009, a Marion County jury returned a verdict of $ 8.5 million against Community Hospital of Indianapolis. The Planks alleged that Community Hospital had misplaced an x-ray that showed that Mrs. Plank had a small bowel obstruction.

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August 20, 2009

Indiana Medical Error Report Released

medical%20error%20report.jpgThe Annual Indiana Medical Error Report outlines errors and events suffered by Indiana patients over the reported year. Its release provides Indiana patients an opportunity to scrutinize care they are receiving at local hospitals.

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