Medical Injury Lawyer Blog : Houston Medical Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Arnold & Itkin Law Firm : Pharmaceutical Injuries, Medical Devices : Texas, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio

On the heels of the Hepatitis B contamination crisis at a New Jersey clinic and the Nevada clinic Hepatitis C scandal, comes another incidence of medical malpractice at a South Dakota urology clinic that could have exposed patients to Hepatitis B, C, and HIV.

This month, the Siouxland Urology Center sent a letter to patients asking them to visit the clinic for free testing of HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and other infectious diseases that could have been contracted by the use of contaminated medical equipment at the center. Now, five residents of Iowa have filed a class action lawsuit against the Siouxland Urology Center and its owners. The clinic is in Dakota Dunes, on the South Dakota - Iowa border.

Last week, the South Dakota Department of Health stated that it identified a possible risk for infection from cystoscopy procedures performed at the facility. A survey of the center revealed that staff used saline solution bags and other single use products on more than one patient before discarding them. According to the Health Department, it has not identified any blood borne infections due to the lack of safe medical practices at the facility.

What is frightening is that the center admitted that since it opened in 2002, more than 5,000 cystoscopy procedures have been performed at the facility.

Inviting patients who you could have exposed to dangerous, possibly deadly diseases by your own negligence, for "free testing" is a like closing the stable gates after the horses are out. These infectious diseases have no known and permanent cure. Patients who contract these diseases can only maintain a lifestyle that keeps symptoms under control. It is appalling that the six doctors who owned the Siouxland Urology Center failed to stop the negligent medical practice of reusing disposable medical equipment. That is the kind of negligence you might expect from a jungle clinic in a Third World country, not from a specialty medical center in the U.S.

Siouxland Urology Center has challenged the health department's statement that using bladder exam equipment on more than one patient can expose them to the risk of disease.

Medical Malpractice

Medical injury attorneys often come across instances in which health care professionals who have been accused of malpractice, continue to remain in a state of denial even when their negligence has been exposed.

If you or a loved one has been infected with a dangerous disease or injured by the negligence of a doctor or clinic, a medical injury attorney can help you find the resources you need to recover.

Contact a medical malpractice attorney, at Arnold & Itkin LLP for a free evaluation of your case. 

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Patients in Nevada who have suffered medical injuries due to malpractice by doctors will now be able to claim unlimited damages for pain and suffering.

Last week, a Nevada assembly judiciary committee voted to approve a bill that lifts the cap on medical malpractice court judgments. The bill, which is supported by medical injury lawyers, will protect patients who have been exposed to medical negligence. Propelling Bill 495 forward was the recent Hepatitis C scandal in the state, in which more than 50,000 patients were believed to have been exposed to the deadly disease as a result of poor standards of hygiene at two Las Vegas clinics. Health officials confirmed that 9 patients who were treated at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada and the Desert Shadow Endoscopic Center, both owned by Doctor Dipak Desai, tested positive for Hepatitis C.

The scandal resulted in several malpractice lawsuits filed by medical malpractice attorneys against the facilities. There has also been severe criticism of the state board of medical examiners for its failure to correct errant doctors and punish them accordingly.

The experience of these patients, who have been exposed to a potentially fatal infection due to the utter negligence of doctors, has no doubt spurred the committee to move quickly to approve Bill 495. Patients who have filed lawsuits have demanded changes in the law which currently places a $350,000 cap on malpractice lawsuits. However, Bill 495 does not apply retroactively to the Las Vegas Clinic Hepatitis C cases.

Opponents of the bill have been staging protests in the days leading up to the vote. Their argument? The bill would raise doctors' insurance premiums and force doctors to leave Nevada. The bill will be sent to the general assembly this week. We hope law makers will do the right thing and return patients' rights to justice.

Medical Malpractice Attorney

Doctors' failure to keep their facilities cleaned properly and free of dangerous diseases puts, not only their patients at risk, but also the family and friends of those patients and so on. A medical injury attorney can hold negligent physicians accountable for their recklessness.

If you or a loved one has been injured due to a doctor's negligence a medical malpractice attorney can help you recover physically, mentally, and financially. Contact a medical malpractice attorney at Arnold & Itkin LLP for a free evaluation of your case.

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