How Would You Like To Have Surgery by a Doctor Who Is Sleep Deprived or Has a Drinking Problem That Has Not Been Disclosed?
A recent article in The Clinical Advisor highlighted the fact that medical errors cause up to 98,000 deaths and more than a million injuries a year in the United States. Factors leading to medical errors were noted to be overwork and sleep deprivation. As an experienced Philadelphia medical malpractice attorney since 1979, I am well aware that all doctors are human and suffer from stress, burn out, and other human factors that often lead to self medication, drinking problems, and in fact, a recent study indicated that 1 in 16 U.S. surgeons even considered suicide which is 3 times higher than the national levels for the age group 55 to 64. A study indicated that there is a high degree of burn out and stress among America’s physicians, resulting in potentially serious consequences for both physicians and patients.
In the last few years, we have been involved in a number of medical malpractice cases involving a catastrophic injury or death where an investigation of the treating physicians revealed a drug addiction or alcohol problem and in one case a doctor who had signed off on a patient’s chart who wasn’t even present when the procedure was performed. A further investigation of the facts of that case disclosed that the surgeon was suffering from burn out and had an alcohol addiction problem.
A recent survey of physicians revealed that doctors who felt burned out or had made more medical errors than those who did not were more prone to suicidal thoughts. The study further went on to reveal that only 1/4 of troubled surgeons or physicians had sought professional help and that most said that they hadn’t done so out of fear that they would lose their medical license. In many cases we find that physicians chose to self-medicate and prescribe anti-depressants. As an attorney familiar with many of these situations, I have personally witnessed disastrous results leading to medical malpractice.
If you or a loved one has sustained a serious injury or wrongful death as a result of medical malpractice, the experienced medical malpractice lawyers of Reiff & Bily works together with the legendary Philadelphia medical malpractice lawyers of The Beasley Firm who have been awarded over $2 billion dollars since 1958 with two of the largest medical malpractice settlements or verdicts in the United States. As always, we offer a free, no obligation consultation and offer a no recovery, zero fee guarantee. For more information, contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.
