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Medical Malpractice at Tucson Urgent Care Facilities

snyder-wenner · Aug 6, 2020 ·

Urgent care facilities can diagnose and treat common, non-life threatening conditions. Unfortunately, medical malpractice at Tucson urgent care facilities is a relatively common occurrence, as they a that do not have the knowledge, experience, or capabilities to handle serious, life-threatening conditions. The Tucson metropolitan area is home to many urgent care facilities owned by large health care institutions like Banner Health, NextCare, FastMed, and Concentra as well as smaller urgent care chains and individually owned urgent cares.

If you seek treatment at a Tucson area urgent care, you could be treated by a doctor, physician’s assistant, or nurse practitioner for your medical condition. It is not uncommon for you to be seen by a physician’s assistant or nurse practitioner and not a doctor when you go to a Tucson area urgent care. Physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners do not have the length of education or training as a doctor does which can lead to a lack of understanding of certain medical conditions and how to diagnose and treat them. Moreover, doctors, physician’s assistants, and nurse practitioners working at Tucson area urgent care facilities may not have training or experience in emergency medicine or pediatrics. This lack of education, training, and experience can lead to catastrophic injury or death, which is why medical malpractice at Tucson urgent cares is on the rise.

Much like a hospital or doctor’s office, you can sue an urgent care for medical malpractice resulting from a catastrophic injury or death. Some common types of medical malpractice cases arising from a Tucson urgent care include:

Failure to diagnose
Misdiagnosis
Failure to treat
Inadequate examination
Inadequate testing
Inadequate instructions to follow-up with your primary care doctor or emergency room if your condition worsens
Prescribing the wrong medication

If you or a loved one suffered a catastrophic injury or death as a result of negligence occurring at a Tucson area urgent care, you need to contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Snyder & Wenner, P.C.

Birth Injury In Tucson, Arizona

snyder-wenner · Jul 13, 2020 ·

In Tucson, a birth injury can occur as the result of the negligence of a doctor, nurse practitioner, midwife, physician assistant, nurse, hospital, or birthing center. Birth injuries caused by medical malpractice can occur during pregnancy, labor, or delivery.

A birth injury to an infant that survives can have a significant and catastrophic impact on that child’s life. Likewise, a birth injury that results in the loss of your baby will cause immeasurable grief and can be devastating to the family.

Birth injuries during pregnancy can occur when the medical provider fails to diagnose and timely treat conditions that can affect the mother and baby. If a medical provider fails to monitor the health of the mother and baby during pregnancy, serious medical conditions such as preeclampsia, placenta previa, placental abruption, fetal brain damage, and diabetes can occur.

During labor, the medical provider must monitor both the mother and the baby. Failure to properly monitor the mother can lead to complications such as uterine rupture, preeclampsia, and post-partum hemorrhage. The medical provider must also monitor the baby’s vitals and watch for fetal distress. If the baby is showing signs of distress, failure to timely intervene may cause birth injury or death.

Medical Malpractice can cause birth injuries such as:

1. Brachial Plexus injury;
2. Spinal Cord Injury;
3. Cerebral Palsy;
4. Bell’s Palsy;
5. Oxygen deprivation leading to significant brain damage or death;
6. Shoulder dystocia; and
7. Death.

Because Tucson is home to the University of Arizona Medical School, medical students, residents, fellows, and doctors from the University of Arizona may be involved in your and your baby’s medical care before and during delivery. If you or your baby were injured before or during delivery, it is important that you contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Snyder & Wenner, P.C. If you believe one of your medical providers is from the University of Arizona there is a possibility that your lawsuit must be filed within 180 days (or 180 days from the baby’s 18th birthday)

If you suspect your baby suffered a catastrophic injury or death as a result of the negligence of a doctor, nurse practitioner, midwife, physician assistant, nurse, hospital, or birthing center in Tucson, Arizona contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Snyder & Wenner, P.C.

Banner University Medical Center Tucson: Computer System Errors

snyder-wenner · May 11, 2020 ·

An investigative report from the Arizona Department of Health Services detailed serious patient safety problems when Banner University Medical Center Tucson was working on their computer system.

While upgrading its health records system, Banner University Medical Center Tucson experienced a significant number of computer glitches during the upgrade causing problems in delivering medications, ordering tests, and caring for critically ill patients. The hospital also had problems delivering and administering chemotherapy for patients in the hospital and outpatients.

Some of the most problematic findings included:

a physician who ordered a larger dose of medication for an infant than was needed; and
nurses who had difficulty calculating the appropriate dosage of a blood thinning medication for a patient who had undergone a kidney transplant. The patient was internally bleeding and needed to be resuscitated twice.

Were these issues caused by the failure of Banner University Medical Center Tucson to train its doctors and staff on the differences between the old and new health records system? Only time will tell. It appears that perhaps too many doctors, nurses, and staff were not properly equipped to deal with the transition which led to patient injuries and near-misses. The simple fact is that medical malpractice rates continue to rise throughout the country. Computer systems should make malpractice less likely for various reasons, but electronic records also have their own inherent problems. Since patients can be injured due to a host of issues, it is important to find a medical malpractice lawyer that has significant experience in all aspects of malpractice cases. This includes the electronic medical record system, and proving that doctors and/or nurses had access to certain information in the chart even if they claim they did not.

Contact Snyder & Wenner today for more information on medical malpractice and wrongful death lawsuits in Tucson, Arizona.

Medical Malpractice Tucson, Arizona

snyder-wenner · May 1, 2020 ·

Tucson is home to several hospitals, including Banner University Medical Center, Tucson Medical Center, Northwest Medical Center, Carondelet St. Mary’s Hospital, Tucson VA Medical Center, and Oro Valley Hospital. These facilities do not include the numerous urgent care centers and other doctors’ offices throughout the city. Unfortunately, patients at these hospitals and urgent care centers are subjected to possible life-changing outcomes that are the same at hospitals all throughout Arizona, including injuries and death due to medical negligence.

Some of these injuries and deaths were due to:

birth injuries,
doctor’s misdiagnosis,
radiology errors,
delay in diagnosis,
judgment errors,
surgical complications,
medication errors, and
doctor and nurse fatigue.

Suing a hospital or doctor in Tucson may sometimes be more complicated than in other cities in Arizona. This is due to Tucson being home to the University of Arizona Medical School. Many of the hospitals in Tucson have medical students, residents, and fellows who rotate through the various departments and hospitals across the city providing medical care and treatment to Tucsonans. Additionally, some of the doctors at these hospitals are teachers and faculty members of the University of Arizona Medical School. Due these differences in Tucson, you may also have to sue the State of Arizona and the University of Arizona in addition to the doctor and the hospital for your injuries.

In order to protect your legal rights when suing any hospital in Tucson you need an experienced medical malpractice lawyer who understands these complex issues. You may have to serve what’s known as a Notice of Claim against the State of Arizona and the University of Arizona for their employment and supervision of these doctors. A Notice of Claim requires victims of personal injuries and wrongful deaths to act quickly, within 180 days of the injury or death, to file a claim. Snyder & Wenner has significant experience litigating and trying cases in Tucson, which is a critical component of successfully resolving a medical malpractice.

If you or a loved one suffered injury or death as a result of medical malpractice at any hospital or urgent care center in Tucson, Arizona, you must contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers now at Snyder & Wenner for a free consultation. Email us or call us now at 602-224-0005.

What To Know About Nurse Practitioner Malpractice

snyder-wenner · Mar 31, 2020 ·

When you go to a doctor’s office or the hospital for treatment, chances are you don’t actually see a doctor. Instead, you are likely to be treated by a Nurse Practitioner (“NP”). Nurse practitioners are mid-level providers. This means the NP is a licensed medical professional who obtained a bachelor and masters or doctoral degree in Nursing. NPs have less medical education and training than a doctor but can still diagnose, treat, and prescribe medications. In Arizona, a nurse practitioner can be sued and held responsible for your injury just like you could sue a doctor.

Does a Nurse Practitioner Work on Her Own?

Yes. Nurse Practitioners can work independently without the supervision of a licensed medical doctor.

What Types of Malpractice Can a Nurse Practitioner Commit?

Medical errors
Failure to obtain an appropriate medical history
Failure to diagnose a medical condition
Delay in diagnosing a medical condition
Providing the wrong diagnosis
Failure to treat

Who do I Need to Sue to Protect My Legal Rights When a NP Commits Medical Malpractice?

When a NP commits medical malpractice, you need to ensure you take appropriate legal action against the NP who injured you and the hospital, medical practice, or medical clinic that employed the NP. The hospital, medical practice, or medical clinic that employed the NP is also liable for the injuries the PA caused you because they vicariously liable for the NP. Under the laws of Arizona, if an employee (like a NP) causes an injury, the employer is responsible for the acts of the employee who is acting within the scope of their employment.

If you believe a NP has committed medical malpractice against you or a loved one you need to contact an experienced medical malpractice law firm. For a free consultation contact us by clicking on this link, or call Snyder & Wenner at 602-224-0005.