Jacksonville Legal Blog

According to the results of a national survey, over half of the physicians around the country are burned out. As a result, there is a higher chance that they will make medical errors.

For the survey, almost 6,700 hospital and clinic physicians were asked questions about safety in the workplace, medical errors and indications of fatigue, workplace burnout, suicidal thoughts and depression. Over 10 percent of the respondents stated that they were responsible for at least one major medical error within the last three months prior to the survey. After evaluating the responses, investigators determined that the physicians who were burned out were two times as likely to commit a medical error.

When people in Florida enter the hospital for surgery, one of their greatest fears may be the potential for a serious surgical error occurring. Many people have heard news reports about patients that have suffered serious complications during surgery, and no one wants those stories to be about themselves. Since surgery involves cutting into, removing and altering parts of the body, it has a reputation as being the most precise of medical sciences. That precision is critical to ensuring that surgery is a success.

However, when there are complications after surgery, it is important that patients are aware and knowledgeable in order to respond to the situation. In one article in a medical journal, doctors described dealing with the potential for damage to the arteries during a total knee replacement. In one case, a patient spoke about her pain and unusual symptoms as soon as she awoke from surgery. In this case, physicians responded quickly to scan the area and perform a second surgery, using a catheter to repair the tear and restore blood flow. This quick action meant the patient recovered well.

Inaccurate and delayed diagnoses affect women more than men with regard to at least some specific diseases and medical conditions. With regard to heart disease, for example, women are 50 percent more likely to be incorrectly diagnosed initially, even if they have had a heart attack. Female patients are approximately 30 percent more likely than their male counterparts to have stroke symptoms misdiagnosed. Seventy-five percent of autoimmune disease cases are women, in Florida and across the U.S., and it takes five doctors, on average, before the correct diagnosis is reached.

The first nationwide survey of medical students regarding how medical education addressed gender and sex found that only 43.1 percent of students thought their curricula had increased their understanding of gender and sex medicine. Only 34.5 percent said they thought they'd been prepared to handle gender and sex differences in providing health care. The doctor who published the report said that the misdiagnoses and delays that impact women are results, at least in part, of these gaps in medical education.

When Florida residents undergo surgery, they expect their doctors to be honest and qualified. However, several patients accuse a Georgia dermatologist of lying about her qualifications, making inappropriate videos during surgeries, performing different procedures than they agreed to and otherwise botching their care.

One patient went into cardiac arrest during a lengthy procedure in the doctor's Atlanta-based office. When paramedics arrived, they had to wait 30 minutes for the doctor to suture her incision. They were then forced to carry her down the stairs because the office doesn't have elevators large enough for stretchers. She suffered brain damage and now requires round-the-clock care. Another patient suffered a massive infection, renal failure and respiratory failure after undergoing what she believed was a laser liposuction procedure. She was hospitalized for 30 days and later learned the doctor performed surgical liposuction on her. A third patient also received the wrong liposuction procedure and alleges that the doctor dumped her in a random hotel room while she was still sedated.