Nursing Malpractice

Nurses are trained medical practitioners; but just like doctors, nurses are human and can make careless mistakes.  When they do, a patient may have a claim for nursing malpractice.

Hospitals do not practice medicine but do provide the facilities and support staff to physicians caring for hospitalized patients.  The support staff includes registered nurses in every area of the hospital along with nurses’ aides.  If a nurse is negligent, the hospital is responsible for any injuries that occur.  Trained nurses do initial exams in emergency departments and prioritize patients for the doctors to see. They start IVs, draw blood, insert urinary catheters, and perform risk assessments for patients at risk for falls and pressure sores.  They monitor women in labor and are the “eyes and ears” of the doctors when they are not there.  Doctors rely on the nurses to monitor patients and tell them about changes in the patient’s condition.  Careless nursing care has led to many cases that come through my office.

For example, my client took her baby to the ER because she was listless, not feeding, and having trouble breathing.  A nurse examined the baby, drew blood for a variety of tests, but did not believe the baby needed to be seen right away.  The blood tests were done quickly and came back markedly abnormal, but the nurse delayed looking at the test results, so the ER doctor did not know about the critically abnormal tests.  The baby deteriorated in her mother’s arms as she pleaded for more help.  A pediatrician examining another child heard the mom crying and checked on the baby and the lab work.  The baby was rushed to the intensive care unit but by the time she got there, she had suffered a lack of oxygen to her brain causing severe neurological injuries.  The nurse was negligent in her initial evaluation and for not checking the blood test results when she was told they were ready.  The hospital was responsible.

I have had numerous cases where a nurse hits a patient’s nerve while drawing blood or giving an injection of pain medication.  After starting an IV, the site must be monitored to be sure there is no infiltration or extravasation of the chemicals running through the IV.  When that occurs, the patient can sustain chemical burns and nerve compression resulting in large scars and nerve damage.  My client’s pleas for help due to burning pain go unnoticed, leading to these injuries.

I’ve had many cases where an elderly patient with a history of falls and confusion is not properly assessed as a fall risk, so the necessary fall precautions are not taken.  As a result, the patient falls and breaks a wrist or hip, and their life is forever changed.  In other scenarios, a bedridden patient is not monitored for skin breakdowns and pressure sores on their heels or buttocks.  Some of my clients have suffered infected sores that eat their way all the way down to the bone.  I have seen pictures that would send chills down your spine!

I have also had cases where a surgical patient develops signs of bleeding post-operatively that are missed by a negligent nurse.  The patient bleeds to death before the surgeon is notified.

There is nothing worse than a baby suffering brain damage because a nurse negligently failed to detect signs of fetal distress during labor and call the doctor to perform a timely c-section.  As a result, the baby suffers a lifetime of neurological damage.