Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Illinois
My daughter has bi-polar and depression disorders. She was taking prescribed medications for her disorder when she got pregnant. She ask the doctor to discontinue or change her medications because she was pregnant, but the doctor ignored her. The medications were not discontinued until 3 months later in her pregnancy.
My grand daughter was diagnosed with 'valporic acid exposure syndrome' and suffers from multiple serious medical complications such as: failure to thrive,seizures, gastric reflux,broncho malacia,and hip displasia. She has tracheaostomy and was ventilator and oxygen dependent for over three years. She also has a G-tube where all her formula and medications are fed through. She has developmental delays and requires physical, occupational, speech,and developmental therapies. She also takes numerous routine medications for her disorders and requires 24 hour nursing services from a health agency. Routine medical apointments and treatments are a must.
My questions are:
1) Can the psychiatrist be held responsible for neglect?
2) Can the drug manufacturer be held for liability?
3) Can a law suit be in place and if so is it worthwhile to hire an attorney for this case?
2 Answers from Attorneys
I am sorry to hear about your family's situation.
There are many factors involved in a malpractice case against the psychiatrist as well as the drug manufacturer-some are very complex and require additional information. However, I am glad to provide you with some general information based on the information that you have provided. .
The liability of both parties would depend on whether the drug was the cause of your grandchild's condition. Assuming that the medication was the cause the psychiatrist answer to your first question depends on whether the standard of care that the psychiatrist provided was up to the level of other psychiatrists. In other words, would it be an acceptable practice by other psychiatrists to prescribe that medication to a pregnant person.
The answer to your second question depends to a large extent on any knowledge that the manufacturer had about ill effects for pregnant persons and the extent of the warnings.
More facts need to be provided in order to determine whether you have a case against either the medical professional and/or manufacturer and therefore you should definately hire an attorney. Attorneys such as myself provide legal services for injury victims on a contingency basis. In other words there is no fee unless recovery is made for the client. You have nothing to lose and it does sound like you may have a case. Please contact me if you wish to discuss your situation more fully. I will be happy to meet with you and your family at your home.
Dear Sirs,
The case would be one in which both the physician and manufacturer of the drug could be sued if in fact it could be established that administration of the drug caused the your granddaughter's condition.
A number of factors to consider would be whether the manufacturer warned not to prescribe this drug during pregnancy; whether these side-effects should have been known by a reasonably well-qualified psychiatrist; and whether other medicines could have been prescribed that do not carry the same risks.
We are a law firm that has been in existence for nearly thirty (30) years and have successfully handled many similar cases in the past.
Please contact our office should you wish to discuss this matter in depth.
Many thanks,
Sincerely,
John C. Wunsch
Law Offices
JOHN C. WUNSCH, P.C.
1.13.2010
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