24 hrs to decide…….Need your advice

Only you can decide if you are up to a long court battle.

Good luck with whatever you choose.
Kelly

jeanbell,

I have a legal background and work in commercial claims. I do not have any direct experience with medical malpractice claims, but I do know that they are very difficult and costly to pursue. You have to prove that the doc was really negligent and you have to get other docs to testify against this doc, which is nearly impossible. I don’t know your circumstances, but unless you think you have really strong evidence that this doc deviated from the standard of care in a major way, then I am not sure that it is worth it. Will the lawyers work on a contingency or hourly? If contingency, you might as well take the risk.

On a personal note, my initial neuro would not treat me with IVIG, steroids, anything, even though I begged for something. He said “not unless you are not walking.” I went to the ER when I was in the acute phase, and they treated me for dehydration, did not call the neuro on call and sent me on my way. When I went to another neuro a week later, he said that I should have been admitted to the hospital and wanted me to be admitted. By that time, my reflexes came back and my arm weakness was getting better so I didn’t get admitted at that time. I have oftentimes thought about how that initial neuro and hospital were not proactive and that could have made the difference, as to why I am STILL having problems. BUT, can I prove that they were negligent and deviated from the standard of care, No. He did an EMG, he recommended a spinal tap, so I don’t think another neuro would say that he was grossly negligent or that the hospital was. So I just move on…..Good luck with what you decide.

Jeanbell:
I am a trial attorney who defends doctors and hospitals in medical malpractice cases. It is very difficult to pursue a professional negligence action against a healthcare provider. First of all, it’s expensive. You will have to hire experts to testify as to the applicable standard of care to be applied to your physicians and the violation by the physicians of that standard of care. You will need an expert to testify as to causation, that is, that the violation of the standard of care caused or worsened your medical condition and how it did so. You will also need one or more experts to testify as to damages, that is, the extent to which you were harmed, future medical issues and expenses, etc. If you are claiming future loss of income or inability to work, you will need economic and/or vocational experts to testify. You will incur expenses for everything from travel for your attorneys to copying charges, deposition transcripts, filing fees, and all sorts of other things. Expenses in these types of cases can run into six figures, and that’s even if your attorneys work on a contingency fee basis.

Second, it is personally very stressful; in fact, I can think of few things more stressful than being involved in this type of litigation. The insurance companies for the doctors will pull out all the stops to defend. Experienced and aggressive defense lawyers will be hired. Your complete medical history from birth forward will be requested. Your medical records as far back as exist will be obtained and poured over by the defense. Every detail of your personal life will be explored. You will be interrogated extensively at a deposition about these areas. You will be compelled to be examined by defense physicians who will call into question the real extent and cause of any alleged problems. And you had better have complied to the letter with every recommendation or request made by your doctors, or you will be blamed for what happened. Your family will be interrogated at depositions.

Third, these cases are notoriously difficult to win. Here in Pennsylvania, 87% of medical malpractice trials result in verdicts in favor of the doctors and hospitals involved. Even if there is a verdict in your favor, you may be disappointed by the amount awarded. Juries can be very stingy, especially in rural areas. Additionally, CIDP is extremely rare and difficult to diagnose, making it much easier to explain the doctors’ failure to do so.

I don’t want to say that medical malpractice cases are impossible to win; they aren’t. But no matter how good you think your case may be, it probably isn’t. Even if it is, you need to understand what kind of a battle — and a battle it will be — you will need to fight.

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best.

Goodney, thanks for your detailed and eloquent explanation that supported what I was trying to say!! I am not a practicing attorney, so that is the difference….:)

It’s really a shame, because I have seen a lot of bad medicine perpetrated by a lot of terrible physicians, and very few are ever brought to book, for the very reasons set forth in my last posting. Take it from someone who has been on the inside for nearly a quarter of a century, the legal system is not what people think. Justice does happen, but rarely. The only ones who really make out are the lawyers. Everyone else almost always loses something, even if they prevail. Some lose everything.

I have read your post with interest.
You admit that you are making it your life’s work to revictimize the victim.
Why do you do this for a living, knowing it is wrong?

DU:
I hear what you are saying. There was a time when I was younger in the profession and extremely aggressive in defending my clients. I pursued a scorched Earth policy, and my goal was to destroy the opposition. I bought into the insurance company/medical community propaganda. I caused as much pain to the people suing as I possibly could. I manipulated the system. And I won almost all my cases. I made a very good living and had a phenomenal professional reputation. I also drank myself into oblivion every chance I got in order to deal with the stress of what I was doing to other people. I was disconnected with the people I loved. And I was disconnected with myself.

I slowly over a period of time began to realize that I could no longer continue to go on living my life with such hostility, causing so much pain to myself and everyone around me. I began to study Buddhist and Hindu philosophy. I stopped drinking. I made amends to those I had hurt. I forgave myself. I began to understand how harmful my ego had been. I decided to treat those lawyers and parties on the other side with compassion and respect. Now, when I defend a case, I am as understanding and compassionate toward the other side as possible. I try to be dispassionate in evaluating the cases I handle. If the claims are legitimate, I urge my clients to pay a settlement.

I have had clients fire me because I now refuse to beat up the other side or engage in aggressive tactics, or manipulate the legal system. In fact, I now pride myself on making the legal system work as it should so that justice is done. Unfortunately, I find myself almost alone in doing so. But I will keep trying to make the lives of those around me better — and that includes the people on the other side of the lawsuits I defend. That also means I will be honest about the deficiencies in the legal system and the ego-driven conduct of lawyers.

For me, CIDP has only reinforced the way I now live my life — with as much acceptance and love as I can.

Goodney,
Your post touched my heart.
Sounds like your career was destroying you. You made great changes to your life. By recognizing the problems you were having and making those
changes you won your biggest case.
Keep it up, one day at a time.
Congratulations!
Shirley

First off? Goodney? One can only be a ‘crusader’ for soo long. The ‘opposition’ is large and massive. That you could win? Is definitely credit to your skills and persistence!
Jeanbell? I did research tho w/less concrete evidence than you have? But, I knew after consulting w/two top notch liability attorneys in the area? It’s mostly a ‘he-said, she-said’ sort of issue. None of it based on facts nor anything GIVEN from doc to patient [of course NOT] to give the patient a ‘handle’ on their issues. However? As I encountered other neuro’s and my only comment was to these prior docs? ‘We DID NOT COMMUNICATE well at ALL’? Well, it got the point across. I’ve long suspected and have had confirmation in two different medical areas? That docs are worse than ‘church ladies’ at times. They talk about US! A doc gets more than a dozen patients who ‘aren’t communicating’ w/a certain specialist? You gotta KNOW that the TOM-TOM drums go out and all others are on the lookout!
I truly do believe that this first neuro did only the ‘basic minimum’ and came to a ‘basic minimum’ diagnosis…which was two steps short of finding a real diagnosis! He’d rathered I be too drugged to care or seek other help, in this, I truly believe. Word of mouth? Can quietly do more damages than law suits at times. AND It’s cheaper. In all this tho? One must be careful? As if you apply for disability? This turkey could claim you to be a drug seeking psycho. Some do this only to protect their rep… onus is on you to defend your reputation in all the disability wheels that squeak and groan in their own procedures.
I say this not only from my own experiences but, from the many experiences I’ve read over the many years I’ve had such a severe neuropathy and all it complicates.
Establish your priorities, get diagnosed? Get treated? Then…get even.
I truly wish you energy and strength AND one heck of a good Attorney! You will need it ALL to win a law suit. YOU are far, far braver than I am, for sure!
Hope and wishes for good things soon!

I don’t believer that it is a matter of being “braver”. It is choosing what hill you want to die on! I persued a lawsuit also. But the “in my face” reality was I would not win – for all of the reasons posted prior to mine. I still (18+years later) get a nauesa when remembering the first docs attitude. Life is a journey of learning and hindsight a great teacher! And yes, I still have an anger when a family member thinks that I should be over the residuals. I want them to live in my body for a day . . .
Listen to the Budda; use your life force to live.
I admire that you want to make a difference for those who will come after us and if giving of your own life for that crusade is your “reason for living” then truly I wish you well and good luck!
Dis-ease sucks!! 🙁 We all want to be one of the “well ones”. 🙂

We were involved in a medical malpractice lawsuit which began 30 yr. ago & ended 9 yr. later when they settled out of court with us. It was clearcut malpractice & we did win, but it was not worth the time or energy it took out of us. They made us discuss our sex lives (frequency before & after) brought up that my father had a drinking problem when he was younger (he was deceased well before the incedent occurred,) etc. It was absolutely horrible, would never recommend medical malpractice suing to anyone!

Thank-you for your explanation, Goodney. Your life’s turning point modified your previous viewpoint. I only wish you represented us, instead of them.

But in the end, God is still the final judge; after this life tests us all to determine the factors in His decisions.
“Execute justice for the oppressed” may not happen on our behalf, in our lifetime on Earth, but it will on the Day of Judgment.

[QUOTE=Goodney]DU:
I hear what you are saying. There was a time when I was younger in the profession and extremely aggressive in defending my clients. I pursued a scorched Earth policy, and my goal was to destroy the opposition. I bought into the insurance company/medical community propaganda. I caused as much pain to the people suing as I possibly could. I manipulated the system. And I won almost all my cases. I made a very good living and had a phenomenal professional reputation. I also drank myself into oblivion every chance I got in order to deal with the stress of what I was doing to other people. I was disconnected with the people I loved. And I was disconnected with myself.

I slowly over a period of time began to realize that I could no longer continue to go on living my life with such hostility, causing so much pain to myself and everyone around me. I began to study Buddhist and Hindu philosophy. I stopped drinking. I made amends to those I had hurt. I forgave myself. I began to understand how harmful my ego had been. I decided to treat those lawyers and parties on the other side with compassion and respect. Now, when I defend a case, I am as understanding and compassionate toward the other side as possible. I try to be dispassionate in evaluating the cases I handle. If the claims are legitimate, I urge my clients to pay a settlement.

I have had clients fire me because I now refuse to beat up the other side or engage in aggressive tactics, or manipulate the legal system. In fact, I now pride myself on making the legal system work as it should so that justice is done. Unfortunately, I find myself almost alone in doing so. But I will keep trying to make the lives of those around me better — and that includes the people on the other side of the lawsuits I defend. That also means I will be honest about the deficiencies in the legal system and the ego-driven conduct of lawyers.

For me, CIDP has only reinforced the way I now live my life — with as much acceptance and love as I can.[/QUOTE]

Amen, man. Amen.