Sara Tschop and her husband, Kenneth L. Tschop, of Ohio have filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a West Virginia doctor and her practice.  In May 2008, Sara Tschop went in to see Dr. Linda Savoy at University Physicians & Surgeons in Huntington, West Virginia for pain on her left side and back and nausea.  

Tschop was seen for two follow-up appointments with Dr. Savoy in June and July before Savoy referred her to a urologist or endocrinologist for further treatment of a kidney stone.  In August, Tschop went to a urologist who performed multiple procedures to try and save her left kidney.  In March 2009, tests revealed that Tschop's left kidney was only functioning at 6.6 percent and needed to be removed.

The Tschops have filed suit against Savoy and UP&S for delaying Sara's treatment and referral, which lead to the removal of her left kidney. 

If you or someone you know has suffered due to medical malpractice involving delayed treatment, contact the Washington delayed treatment lawyers of Fuller & Fuller at 800-570-4878 to learn more about your rights. 

A new study has shown that medical errors can cost the U.S. economy up to $19.5 billion each year.

Researchers in the study found that 25 percent of the injuries were avoidable errors. The study also shows that $1.1 billion of the total cost were related to the short-term disability claims that caused people to miss 10 million excess days of work. In the U.S. in 2008, there were 6.3 million measurable medical errors made and each one cost about $13,000.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of medical injury, contact the Washington medical malpractice lawyers of Fuller & Fuller by calling 800-570-4878 to discuss  you legal rights.

A seven-year-old medical malpractice case is being retried in Madison County. The husband of a woman that died of malignant melanoma is suing the doctor for the alleged failure to diagnose his wife with the correct kind of skin cancer.

The man is suing the doctor for failing to diagnose skin cancer after the woman had a mole removed in 1999. The woman was later diagnosed with cancer in 2003 and died in 2005. The doctor denies all the claims against him now and when the case went to court in 2007.

The findings of this case were thrown out after there was a misunderstanding with one of the jurors in the trial. One doctor from Washington University and the another from the University of Columbia, one a pathologist and the other an oncologist are both testifying in the case.

Our thoughts are with the friends and family of the victim.

61-year-old Max DeVries was at St. Joseph's in St. Paul for a routine procedure. He was having surgery in March when he rolled off the table, hitting his head. He died five weeks later. Hospital staff says that apparently three straps were not enough to keep the 330-pound man on the table. According to WCCO, "He hit his head on the side where doctors had previously taken out bone to help him recover from a stroke."

Devries' family claims that hospital negligence caused the death of their treasured father. The family is suiing for damages but wishes not to specify the amount. CBS reports, the family is attempting to recover, "the loss of aid, comfort and companionship in the loss of their father. In fact, they claim St. Joseph's staff never admitted what happened to their father until the family pressed staff about the incident."

ProPublica, a non-profit news group, reports that certain states are organized into compacts, allowing nursing licenses to transfer between them. It was designed to help alleviate nursing shortages in individual states. ProPublica reveals and USA Today reports that this compact system has actually allowed bad nurses to move freely between the participating states. If a nurse is disciplined for misconduct in one state, they just pack their things and head to another member of the compact of states.

The screening systems in some of the state groups are lagging. USA Today writes that, "Nurse Craig Peske was fired from a hospital in Wausau, Wis., in 2007 after stealing the powerful painkiller Dilaudid 'whenever the opportunity arose,' state records say. In one three-month period, he signed out 245 syringes full of the drug — nine times the average of hisfellow nurses." He was reported to Wisconsin police. So, Peske moved to North Carolina and became a nurse there, where he could continue his habit.

This lack of screening can significantly affect patient care. If you or someone you know has suffered as a result of hospital negligence, contact experienced Washington medical malpractice lawyers at Fuller & Fuller today.

According to Fox News, "House lawmakers have started calling for an investigation into reports that more than 1,800 veterans from Missouri, Illinois and other states may have been exposed to HIV or other diseases while getting dental treatment at a VA medical center in St. Louis."

The VA reported that their equipment was sterilized but not to exact manufacturer guidelines. Both Republicans and Democrats are calling this unacceptable. The VA did say that the risk was extremely low, but still felt the need to send a letter to the, "1,812 patients who were treated at the medical center during the 13-month period," writes Fox News. The clinic now offers free blood test for HIV and Hepatitis B and C screening.

This announcement comes at a time when VA hospitals are already under scrutiny. Last year, three Veterans Affairs hospitals were under investigation for everything from incorrect treatment to poorly sterilized equipment.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of malpractice at a military hospital, dial 1-800-570-4878 today to contact a Washington military hospital claim Attorney at Fuller and Fuller.