Legal Question in Veterans Law in Louisiana
civil, or other
While at an appointment at the veterans� hospital on my last appointment date, I was ask by the lady to give her a number on a scale from 0 to 10 to show how much pain I was having. When I gave her that number, she looked at me and said that from what she could see, I was sitting there just fine to her, and wasn�t in any pain. She then informed me that I needed to see a psychiatrist because I had a problem. When I ask her what that meant? She stated that I need to see the psychiatrist because she wasn�t getting the answers she was looking for. I felt that she was trying to prove I�m not hurt and that I didn�t need to be there. Seeing how I have had 3 surgeries on my knees, and am pending another on my right shoulder. She also told me that there wasn�t anything wrong with my shoulder regardless what my x-rays shows. She also then said that the dvt I got in my leg the next day after my last surgery was my fault for not exercising. My Question is: Were my civil rights as a patient violated? Or was a law even broken? I�m really confused! Do I need an att. If so please send me an e-mail.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: civil, or other
Based upon your description, the conduct falls short of that required for an actionable civil rights claim, and even if it did, you probably could not get an attorney to take the claim because the mere words stated to you are not likely to have caused sigificant damages, if any. Also, your complaint does not seem to be centered on any medical malpractice claim.
It is possible that there is another explanation for her comments, particularly if you are a combat veteran. While some VA hospitals are very skeptical of PTSD claims, others almost seem to encourage them, and that may be where the psychiatrist recommendation comes into play. Also, when no objective basis the existence of pain can be found, it is not unusual to have studies conducted to see if there is a psychological basis for the pain. However, if there was the basis for her comment, she fell short in properly explaining the basis for her comment.
Claims against the VA can be asserted against the VA under the Federal Tort Claims Act. My experience is that when you can show that they have screwed up, they will take responsibility. But that has been on the more serious cases where a veteran is killed or seriously injured because of medical errors.
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