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Sawyer Law Firm has recently filed a case on behalf of a 47-year-old Montgomery woman who was seen in the emergency room for an infected wound on her foot. While in the emergency room, the client was administered the pain medication Dilaudid. She immediately had an adverse reaction to the drug which caused her to experience respiratory distress. The nursing staff in the ER noted the adverse reaction in her chart as an “allergic reaction.” The client recovered from the adverse reaction and was admitted to the hospital for treatment of her wounded foot. The hospital staff noted on her “patient profile report” that she had a “current allergy” to Dilaudid with a resulting reaction of “respiratory arrest." However, the admitting physician ignored this information and entered an order for her to continue to receive Dilaudid. The hospital nursing staff then administered the drug as prescribed by the physician. Shortly after the administration of Dilaudid, our client suffered another adverse reaction to the medication which sent her into respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. As a result of this event, she suffered a severe hypoxic anoxic brain injury which left her in a constant vegetative state. Sadly, our client is currently in a nursing home where she will require constant care and observation for the remainder of her life. “There was a total breakdown of communication between the healthcare providers involved in this poor lady’s care”. “The doctors, nurses, and pharmacist failed to communicate with each other, and that resulted in this tragic outcome.” “This case is especially troubling when you consider what little amount of effort it would have taken to avoid this life-altering event.”

Sawyer Law Firm is proud to sponsor Brooks Payne of Enterprise for Alabama Boys State. Brooks Payne was chosen as Enterprise High School’s 2016 Alabama Boys State delegate. Boys State will be held May 29 through June 4 at the University of Alabama. Brooks will attend the Alabama Boys State Conference this summer at the University of Alabama. Boys State is among the most respected educational programs of government instruction for high school students. Each participant becomes a part of the operation of his local, county, and state government. Boys State has been a program of The American Legion since 1935. For more information about Boys States programs and services, click here.

In May 2015, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced it had reached an agreement with Takata Corporation regarding U.S. national recalls of vehicles with certain types of driver and passenger frontal airbag inflators. While the recall is U.S. national in scope, the immediate focus will be on replacing airbag inflators located in geographic areas with persistent heat and high absolute humidity (like Alabama!). It is critically important to make absolutely sure all of these defective airbags are replaced immediately. We strongly urge drivers to use the link below to check if your airbag inflator needs to be replaced, and if so, immediately bring your vehicle to your local dealership. IF YOU HAVE A RECALLED VEHICLE, THE AIRBAG INFLATOR WILL BE REPLACED FREE OF CHARGE. Click here to find out if your vehicle has been recalled.

This case involved an elderly female who was admitted to a skilled nursing facility for a “short-term stay” for the purpose of receiving therapy. While the resident was being transferred to therapy by a physical therapy tech, she was thrown from the wheelchair face-first onto the floor. Rather than notifying the nursing home staff, the tech carried the resident to therapy where she supposedly provided physical therapy treatments. No medical interventions were taken for the resident for over two hours after the fall. Only after the resident continued to complain of pain, as she was admitted to the hospital where she was found to have a fractured right humerus and suffered multiple facial fractures. Through informal discovery and investigation, the Sawyer Firm was able to determine that the same physical therapy tech had been involved in a nearly identical incident that resulted in another resident being thrown from a wheelchair just months before this incident. The employer took no remedial action with the tech following the first incident. “You have to know how to investigate these claims to get to the truth, “ said J.P. Sawyer. “This harm could have easily been prevented by the nursing home terminating the tech after the first incident”. “This wasn’t just an accident – this was reckless conduct”. If you or someone you love was injured due to negligence in a nursing home in Alabama, turn to the Sawyer Law Firm. Contact us to set up a free case review. We have 22+ years of experience and have won over $32 million in settlements for clients.

The Sawyer Law Firm recently settled a case involving the death of an Alabama man involved in an ATV rollover. The man was an avid hunter who was preparing the ATV for hunting season. He was riding the all-terrain vehicle on the roadway in front of his home when it rolled over, tragically resulting in his death. During our investigation, testing of the ATV was critical in establishing its propensity to roll over even under normal operating conditions. Most people understand that there is an inherent danger involved in operating any type of ATV, but the name can be misleading. “The name ATV or all-terrain vehicle is a misnomer. These vehicles are not safe on all-terrain” said J.P. Sawyer. A great source for safety information on ATVs can be found on the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.

MONTGOMERY, AL – An arbitration panel has ruled that a Montgomery, Alabama nursing home caused the wrongful death of a resident in 2011. Following a week-long arbitration, the panel entered an award of $375,000 against South Haven Nursing Home. The 77-year-old resident was admitted to South Haven on January 28, 2011, for the purpose of rehabilitation, and he was expected to return home within thirty days. By the time of his discharge on March 11, 2011, the resident had developed a severe pressure ulcer on his sacrum which became infected. The resident ultimately died on March 31, 2011, as a result of sepsis from the infected pressure ulcer. The arbitrator found that South Haven breached the standard of care owed to the resident by failing to turn and re-position him and by failing to provide wound treatment as ordered by the resident’s physician. The family of the resident was represented by attorney J.P. Sawyer. “My clients are so grateful that this facility has been held responsible for the neglect their husband and father suffered,” Sawyer said. “He was sent there for physical therapy to get his strength back and he came out with a gaping hole all the way to the bone on his backside – there is no way this should happen in a nursing facility.” Former Alabama State Medical Examiner, Dr. Jim Lauridson testified that the cause of the wound was unrelieved pressure from lying in the same position for long periods of time. A nurse expert who testified on behalf of the family noted several discrepancies and inconsistencies in the medical record for the resident. For example, the medical record indicated that certain wound care measures were in place even before they had been ordered by the physician. Sawyer indicates that a key point in the case was when evidence was presented about the wound care nurse’s work schedule. “We were able to use the time cards from the facility to show that the wound care nurse documented that she was providing wound care to the resident on days when she was not even at work,” Sawyer said.

HAMILTON, AL – Sawyer Law Firm LLC has recently settled a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of an Alabama man who died as a result of becoming entrapped by the rail of his hospital bed. “This was an absolute tragedy,” said attorney J.P. Sawyer. “This poor man went into the hospital for bronchitis and died from asphyxiation due to becoming entrapped by a bed rail.” The patient’s wife called the hospital to check on him and got no answer in his room. According to Sawyer, “It took her 20-30 minutes to get to the hospital, and when she went into his room she found his head trapped between the bed rail and the mattress.” The lawsuit involved claims against the hospital and the manufacturer of the hospital bed. The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) reports that about 2.5 million hospital beds are in use in the United States. Between 1985 and 2009, the FDA received reports of 803 incidents of patients caught, trapped, entangled, or strangled in hospital beds. The reports included 480 deaths, 138 nonfatal injuries, and 185 cases where staff intervened to prevent an injury. These incidents often involve the frail, elderly, or confused. “This was an important case, and we worked very hard to bring this safety issue to the attention of the hospital administration so that another family does not have to experience a tragedy like this,” said Sawyer.

MONTGOMERY, AL – Sawyer Law Firm recently settled a nursing home negligence case on the eve of trial. The case involved a nursing home resident who was allowed to fall out of his bed and fracture his hip. The resident’s medical record indicated that a nursing assistant heard a fall alarm sounding and found the resident on the floor. In depositions taken in the case, nursing home abuse Attorney J.P. Sawyer was able to get the charge nurse to admit the nursing assistant who found the resident just happened to be walking through the area when she heard the alarm sounding. “There is no telling how long he had been lying there suffering”, Sawyer said. “The nursing assistant who found him testified that she had no idea where the staff was that was responsible for him at the time of the fall. She said they were probably ‘on a break.’” About 1,800 nursing home residents die from falls each year. Many other falls go unreported. “This is a serious issue as most falls lead to other medical problems and can result in a rapid decline in the elderly,” Sawyer said. “There is no excuse for staff leaving residents unattended. I am just glad we were able to discover the truth for our client’s family because the nursing home never would have revealed this to them” If someone you love was injured due to nursing home abuse, turn to the Sawyer Law Firm. Contact us at (334) 539-0604 to set up a free, private case review with our Alabama nursing home abuse attorney.

DOTHAN, AL – Sawyer Law Firm LLC has filed a dental malpractice case against a dentist in which it is alleged that the patient was improperly sedated for a dental procedure. The patient underwent “conscious sedation” which involves the administration of sedatives and analgesics. These medications result in the patient becoming drowsy, sleepy, and relaxed during the procedure. The patient was directed to take the sedatives an hour prior to arriving at the dental office. “Our client was not a proper patient for conscious sedation and he was over-medicated,” says J.P. Sawyer who is handling the case. “He was so sedated when he arrived that the staff had to carry him into the dental office.” The dentist administered additional sedatives once the patient was in the office for the procedure. As a result of having his unsupported neck extended in the dental chair for 3-4 hours during the procedure, the patient suffered damage to his spinal cord which led to permanent paralysis. The client is now in a nursing home and requires constant care. Sawyer says that “many of the dentists who use conscious sedation are not sufficiently trained in this area and do not know how to handle the complications that can arise with this type of sedation. We believe that even a first-year dental student would have known not to proceed with the procedure with the patient in this debilitating condition.” The case is currently pending in the Circuit Court of Houston County, Alabama. If you or someone you love was injured due to dental malpractice, turn to the Sawyer Law Firm. Contact us at (334) 539-0604 to set up a free case review.

ENTERPRISE, AL – Sawyer Law Firm recently secured an award in a wrongful death lawsuit against a Montgomery-based nursing home chain. On January 10, an arbitrator ruled that Capitol Hill Nursing Home had caused the wrongful death of a resident and entered an award of $400,000 in favor of the family. The 101-year-old resident was admitted to the nursing home with a feeding tube. The nursing home staff was directed to keep the head of his bed elevated so the feeding formula would remain in his stomach. A friend of the family visited the facility and found the resident with the head of his bed flat with feeding formula coming out of his mouth. The resident was sent to the hospital where he was found to have aspirated the feeding formula into his lungs. He died four days later as a result of aspiration pneumonia. The arbitrator found that Capitol Hill breached the standard of nursing care owed to the resident by failing to monitor the resident and keep the head of his bed elevated. “This was an extremely tough case due to the resident’s age,” J.P. Sawyer said. “We tried to remind the arbitrator throughout the trial that this case was about quality of life, not the quantity of life.” Kathleen Hill O’Neill, a nurse who conducts nursing home investigations for the U.S. Department of Justice, testified as an expert on behalf of the family. O’Neill testified the failure to keep the head of the bed elevated was a violation of basic nursing practice. In support of her opinion that the nursing staff failed to monitor the resident, O’Neill pointed to the fact that the nurses who were checking the resident noted that he had no bedsores. Still, when he arrived at the hospital he was noted to have six bedsores. “I hope this will convey the message to nursing homes that they will be held responsible for the mistreatment of the vulnerable – regardless of their age or medical condition,” Sawyer said.

FORT MYERS, FL.– Sawyer Law Firm LLC Attorney J.P. Sawyer was recently involved in the settlement of a lawsuit related to the drowning death of a 3-year-old child at a South Florida resort. The young girl was visiting the resort with her grandparents. Shortly after arriving at the resort, the child suddenly went missing. The child was ultimately found at the bottom of the resort pool and attempts to revive her were unsuccessful. The complaint filed in the case alleged that the resort operator improperly maintained the pool area by failing to enclose it with a fence and self-closing gate. Sawyer says that the resort operator’s primary defense was to attack the grandparents for “lack of supervision”. “We were able to totally discredit that argument with statistics from the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the American Academy of Pediatrics,” Sawyer said. “The research shows that the great majority of child drowning victims are being supervised by both parents at the time of the incident and that in 75% of the cases the child is was missing for five minutes or less.” The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents use “touch supervision” where the child is constantly within reach. Sawyer says “That is exactly what these grandparents were doing in this case – it happened within a matter of seconds – that is why a fence with a self-closing gate is such an important aspect of pool safety”. The resort operator maintained that a fence and gate were not required. “We sent our investigator to every resort on the same beach like this one and photographed numerous fenced pools with self-closing gates – many of which were operated by this same company,” Sawyer said. “After we showed those photos to the company president at his deposition, we did not hear that argument again.” The case was resolved for a confidential amount immediately prior to trial. Sawyer says that “these types of cases are important to raise pool safety awareness and force owners to implement simple safety features.” Statistics show that in 2007, of all children 1 to 4 years old who died from an unintentional injury, almost 30% died from drowning. Fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 14 years. If you have been injured, contact our firm to schedule a free consultation today!

ENTERPRISE, AL – Sawyer Law Firm recently resolved a case involving a defective dental drill. While the dentist was performing a routine procedure with the drill, the head of the drill exploded. As a result, the drill chuck and dental bur were discharged into the patient’s mouth. The patient aspirated the drill bit into her lung, and she had to undergo a complicated medical procedure to remove the bit from her lung. “In discovery in the case, we learned that the drill had been serviced by a dental handpiece repair company just two weeks prior to the incident,” said J.P. Sawyer. “Instead of using a replacement chuck from the manufacturer of the drill, the repair company ordered a cheaper, after-market part which was substandard.” The manufacturer of the handpiece inspected it and determined that it had failed as a result of the substandard parts. The dentist was totally unaware of the fact that after-market parts had been used to service the handpiece. “It would surprise a lot of people to learn the extent to which substandard replacement parts make their way into the products we use in everyday life,” Sawyer said. This case involved multiple defendants and was resolved after substantial discovery.