Day on Torts

February 23, 2010

Hospital Acquired Infections in the News

Two common conditions caused by hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) killed 48,000 people and ramped up health care costs by $8.1 billion in 2006 alone, according to a study released yesterday in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Here is an excerpt from a summary of the study as reported at www.extendingthecure.com:

The researchers looked at infections that developed after hospitalization. They zeroed in on infections that are often preventable, like a serious bloodstream infection that occurs because of a lapse in sterile technique during surgery, and discovered that the cost of such infections can be quite high: For example, people who developed sepsis after surgery stayed in the hospital 11 days longer and the infections cost an extra $33,000 to treat per person.

February 22, 2010

Tennessee Personal Injury Client Advice

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Springfield Injury Law Blog has given us a great post titled "8 Ways to Help Your Personal Injury Lawyer Help Your Case." Obviously, the post informs personal injury clients how they can help their lawyer obtain a better result in their case.

It is so good I am going to reprint it here:

1. Give your lawyer the whole story

February 18, 2010

Federal Rules of Evidence PDF

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Federal Evidence Review has shared a PDF of the current federal rules of evidence. Only 40 pages in length (20 pages if you print on the front and the back of the page) this PDF is a handy addition to your trial notebook for cases in federal court.

February 15, 2010

Product Manufacturer Cannot Use Release Against Consumer

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

This is an interesting decision out of Colorado.

Executive Tans operated an upright tanning booth manufactured by Sun Ergoline. Before using the booth, Savannah Boles signed a release form provided by Executive Tans that said as follows: “I have read the instructions for proper use of the tanning facilities and do so at my own risk and hereby release the owners, operators, franchiser, or manufacturers, from any damage or harm that I might incur due to use of the facilities.” After entering the booth, several of Boles’s fingers came in contact with an exhaust fan located at the top of the booth, partially amputating them.

The Colorado Supreme Court refused to allow the manufacturer of the tanning both to assert the release as a bar to the claim. The court rejected the traditional test for determining the enforceability of exculpatory agreements (similar but not identical to the test we use in Tennessee) and court explained that

February 15, 2010

2009 Medical Malpractice Claims Reports Due March 1, 2010

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance has released the forms for reporting on medical malpractice claims for the 2009 calendar year.

The reports are due March 1, 2010.

Here are the instructions for filling out forms as a representative of the claimant. Here is the link to the reporting form.

February 12, 2010

How Much Do ER Patients Pay to Protect Themselves from Malpractice of ER Doctors? You Won’t Believe It.

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Team Health Holdings, Inc. is a physician-founded, physician-led outsourced healthcare professionals staffing organization. Based in Knoxville, TN, it purports to be "the largest providers of [Emergency Department] staffing and management services in the United States, based upon patient visits and revenue."

The company serves "approximately 550 hospital clients and their affiliated clinics in 46 states with a team of approximately 6,100 healthcare professionals, including physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners." It. provided care to 7.6 million patients in emergency rooms alone for the calendar year ending December 31, 2008.

The outlook for this business looks good. Here is how Team Health describes the future demand for its services:

February 10, 2010

Suggested Jury Instructions to Warn Jurors About Accessing the Internet and Social Media

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Blog of Legal Times advises that the Committee on Court Administration and Case Management of the United States Judicial Conference has developed pattern jury instructions "to address the increasing incidence of juror use of such devices as cellular telephones or computers to conduct research on the Internet or communicate with others about cases,” as explained by Judge Julie Robinson, committee chair, in a memo to district judges. “Such use has resulted in mistrials, exclusion of jurors, and imposition of fines.”

“The committee believes that more explicit mention in jury instructions of the various methods and modes of electronic communication and research would help jurors better understand and adhere to the scope of the prohibition against the use of these devices,” explained Robinson.

Here are the instructions:

February 9, 2010

Tennessee Jury Trials in Tort Cases by the Numbers

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

How many tort cases are tried in Tennessee in the last year? The Annual Report of the Tennessee Judiciary gives us the answer.

Here is the data for the year ended June 30, 2009:

Total jury trials in all tort cases: 260

February 8, 2010

Kentucky Lawyers Sued By Client

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

A plaintiff in a car accident lawsuit has become a legal malpractice plaintiff.

Sharon Langford has sued a law firm with office in Kentucky and Florida and made some very serious allegations. Basically, she was alleged to seek health care for her injuries from a specific provider and that there was a business relationship between the provider and the lawyers. She also alleges that the provider and the law firm advised her not to submit the bills to her health insurer and that she did not receive documentation of the charges made by the health care provider.

She alleges that the undisclosed relationship between the health care provider and the lawyers resulted in financial and other losses. Here is a copy of the complaint.

February 4, 2010

Tennessee Nursing Homes – 5th Worst in United States

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Tennessee’s nursing homes rank the 5th worst in the United States, according to an analysis done by the Tennessean.

The February 3, 2010 article points out that

[a]bout 15,000 nursing homes nationwide got ratings of one to five stars, with five being the best, from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The ratings are based on inspections, complaint investigations, staffing levels and other nursing home survey data collected in 2008 and 2009.