Copyright 2008 Medical News Today Latest Medical Malpractice / Litigation News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/medical_malpractice/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Fri, 09 May 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106866.php In a unanimous ruling Tuesday, the Kansas Supreme Court allowed a Sedgwick County, Kan., grand jury to continue its investigation of abortion provider George Tiller but limited its authority to subpoena the records of Tiller's patients, the AP/USA Today reports. The court also ruled against overturning a law that allows state residents to call for a grand jury investigation. Wed, 07 May 2008 11:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106507.php A number of groups that represent hospitals, physicians, dentists and other health care providers in California on Monday filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court to prevent a scheduled 10% reduction in reimbursements under Medi-Cal, the state Medicaid program, the Wall Street Journal reports. The state Legislature in February approved the $1. Wed, 07 May 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106485.php Kansas Supreme Court on Friday unsealed two lawsuits demanding that Johnson County, Kan., District Attorney Phill Kline (R) return abortion records to Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, the Kansas City Star reports. In unsealing the cases, the court released hundreds of documents related to the two cases. Wed, 07 May 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106616.php Advocating solely for tort reform in the legislative arena does not get to the root of the medical liability crisis, according to Richard Boothman, JD, chief risk officer for the University of Michigan Health Systems, who presented the 6th Scientific Session-The Donald F. Richardson International Symposium, "Medical Malpractice Reform: Beyond Caps"- at The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' (ACOG) 56th Annual Clinical Meeting. Moreover, Mr. Wed, 07 May 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106521.php A randomized controlled trial conducted by Brigham and Women's Hospital - in affiliation with Harvard Medical School - finds bar-coded, computer-assisted surgical sponge counting systems reduce the chance of counting errors during patient surgery by a factor of 3 to 1. The results of the study - conducted by patient safety researchers Dr. Atul Gawande and Dr. Caprice Greenberg - were published recently in the Annals of Surgery (Ann Surg 2008;247: 612-616). Tue, 06 May 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106452.php Deaf people on trial were granted the right to an interpreter as early as 1725, according to Old Bailey records examined by UCL (University College London) scientists. The use of family and friends to interpret court proceedings later switched to deaf teachers and eventually written testimony, which may have disadvantaged the less educated 'deaf and dumb' at the very time that British Sign Language was emerging. Mon, 05 May 2008 10:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106200.php Summaries of news related to medical malpractice law in Tennessee and Louisiana appear below.Louisiana: The Louisiana House on Monday voted 45-44 to reject legislation that would have expanded coverage under the state's medical malpractice laws, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports. State Rep. Fri, 02 May 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106111.php A 45 year old Registered Nurse from Chadwell Heath, Romford has received a two year Caution by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) at a hearing held in London on Monday, 28 April 2008. Sherril Gurley was employed as a Staff Nurse at Basildon University Hospital in 2006 when she used her mobile phone to photograph a female patient as they sat on the toilet and as they left the bathroom. Fri, 02 May 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/106108.php A 55 year old nurse from Cheshire who illegally prescribed conflicting prescriptions for her husband has been struck off the Nursing & Midwifery Council register following the outcome of a hearing by the regulatory body in London on Friday, 25 April 2008. Thu, 01 May 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105927.php A review of Utah court records and procedures has found inconsistencies in the enforcement of a state law that requires convicted commercial sex workers and solicitors of commercial sex to be tested for HIV, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. The state is one of six in the U.S. Thu, 01 May 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105911.php A Kansas judge on Monday dismissed a subpoena from Johnson County, Kan., District Attorney Phill Kline (R) regarding abortion records from Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri's clinic Comprehensive Health, the Kansas City Star reports. Thu, 01 May 2008 07:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105910.php The American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon and other groups last week filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Portland, Ore., over a state law that restricts the sale and provision of sexually explicit material to minors, the AP/Oregonian reports. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 08:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105768.php Maternal and Child Health Access, an advocacy group for low-income women, filed suit in San Francisco Superior Court last Thursday over a 1991 law requiring women to be state residents for six months to qualify for prenatal and postnatal health care services, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105810.php In a case of "celebrity snooping", US prosecutors revealed yesterday, Tuesday 29th April, that a former worker at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Medical Center was indicted on 9th April by a federal grand jury on the charge of "wrongful obtaining of individually identifiable health information for commercial advantage". Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105762.php The statement below was made by David G. Strunce, President and CEO, Scientific Protein Laboratories LLC."Chairman Stupak, Ranking Member Shimkus, and Members of the Subcommittee, I am David Strunce, President and Chief Executive Officer of Scientific Protein Laboratories LLC ("SPL"). I am accompanied by Dr. Yan Wang, Vice President of Business Development and Research for SPL, and General Manager of Changzhou SPL Company, Ltd. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105761.php SUMMARY OF MAJOR POINTS-- More than any other company in the world, Baxter's products are involved in critical caresettings. Because of this, we are greatly concerned that our heparin product appears to be thetarget of a deliberate adulteration scheme. Patient safety is our number one priority, and wedeeply regret the impact this contamination in Baxter's heparin has had on patients and theclinicians who treat them. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105624.php The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled that HHS should restore more than $1 million in Ryan White Program funding to Nassau and Suffolk counties in New York state, the Long Island Newsday reports. Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105599.php While the medical malpractice system in the United States can provide remediation for negligent medical care, its overzealous application can have devastating effects on practicing surgeons, and inevitably hurt patient care by limiting the scope of care available to the general population.There are currently an estimated 3,229 active neurosurgeons in the United States certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgeons (ABNS). Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105415.php A Wisconsin pharmacist who was sanctioned because of his refusal to refill or transfer a woman's oral contraceptive prescription filed an appeal on Wednesday with the state Supreme Court, the AP/St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (AP/St. Paul Pioneer Press, 4/23). Mon, 28 Apr 2008 04:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105558.php The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) successfully prosecuted a man from Nottingham at the City of London Magistrates Court on Wednesday 23 April 2008 for illegally possessing with intention to sell and advertising the unlicensed drug, Lipostabil®, for cosmetic purposes.Dr. Dinesh Maini, a GP based at the Lenton Surgery, 266 Derby Road, Nottingham, NG7 1PR, pleaded guilty to three charges and was ordered to pay over £10,000 in costs and fines. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/104978.php The Indiana Right to Life Committee and two judicial candidates on Friday filed a federal lawsuit seeking a temporary injunction against an Indiana rule that prohibits judges from publicly discussing several issues, including abortion, the AP/WSBT reports.Marion, Ind. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 05:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105077.php A nurse has been struck off the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) register for stealing drugs for her own use. The hearing was held in London on 21st April and the independent panel of the NMC's Conduct and Competence Committee heard evidence that Lorraine Hill, 43 from Tittensor, Stoke-on-Trent had been regularly stealing sedatives (Midazolam and Diazemuls) from her employer. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 03:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/105045.php A nurse has been struck off the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) register for steeling from the vulnerable residents in his care.Anthony Stephan Griffiths, a 48 year old adult nurse from Doncaster, South Yorkshire stole nearly £21,500 from the residents at Cedars Care Home between February 2005 and February 2006. Wed, 23 Apr 2008 02:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/104970.php Insurance broker Aon, in exclusive partnership with insurer Ecclesiastical, has launched Practicecare, an insurance policy designed to meet the specific needs of doctors in the UK. The launch of Practicecare is a response to the increase of doctors in the UK over the last decade - there has been a 65.4% increase of consultant doctors and a 12% increase in NHS doctors during this time (Source: Royal College of General Practitioners). Mon, 21 Apr 2008 09:00:00 PDT http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/104702.php The Bush administration recently announced support for a lawsuit filed by the Golden Gate Restaurant Association against the city of San Francisco contending that the Healthy San Francisco program violates the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act, the