The DeKalb Medical Center and a nurse staffing agency have recently been found to have been negligent in their care of a 73 year old man who died in December 2005. The jury returned a verdict for his family of $3.8 million.
73-year-old William Rowland, a businessman from Decatur, Georgia was admitted to the hospital after a car accident on August 14, 2005. The nurse on duty apparently failed to look at his medical chart which contained Rowland's low blood pressure readings. Those crucial readings had been recorded by a nurse's aide. Howard failed to check the reading for 8 hours. During that time, Rowland slipped into a semi comatose state and later died.
The nurse was employed by a Florida-based staffing agency, Medical Staffing Network. The agency blamed the nurse's aide, who was an employee of DeKalb Medical Center. Both the hospital and the agency were found negligent. DeKalb Medical Center has filed a separate lawsuit against Medical Staffing Network.
Medical Malpractice Damages
Victims of medical malpractice may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses (these can include past expenses as well as expenses that are expected to show up in the future), lost wages, as well as damages for pain and suffering. The spouse of a victim may be eligible for loss of consortium damages, which compensate for loss of companionship, care, and affection. Families of victims, who are killed because of the medical negligence of doctors, nurses and other heath care professionals, may also be eligible to file a wrongful death claim.
Medical malpractice litigation is very complex, expensive and time consuming. That's why it is important that families of such victims get in touch with a DeKalb County medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible.