Jury finds physician negligent; patient awarded $2.3 million

According to a recent report in the Journal News, a New York resident was awarded $2.3 million in a medical malpractice claim. In the lawsuit, the man claimed that a surgeon with Nyack Hospital failed to treat a severe hip infection that caused him to undergo an entire hip replacement.

The plaintiff in the lawsuit, a 52-year-old man from Valley Cottage, was awarded $2.3 million in damages after a jury found the patient's doctor guilty of negligence. According to the suit, on Oct. 1, 2010, the man's doctor, who is the head of Nyack Hospital's orthopedic surgery, sent the patient home despite test results that showed that the patient was suffering with a dangerous bacterial infection to his hip. However, in just two days, the man returned to the hospital after his infection worsened and caused irreversible damage to his hip. As a result, he had no choice but to go through a hip replacement surgery several months later.

It was reported that the trial lasted three weeks before the jury returned its verdict. Reporters with the Journal News tried unsuccessfully to contact the doctor's attorney for any comments.

The man in this news release suffered a serious setback to his health when an infection destroyed his hip. If the doctor would have been more careful, the man could have been given the proper treatment that may have saved his hip. In cases similar to this one in which a patient has suffered serious injuries because of a negligent doctor, an attorney may be able to assist the client in filing a personal injury claim. If the claim is successful in a civil court, the plaintiff may receive a monetary award to cover his or her losses resulting from the misdiagnosis, including pain and suffering.

Source: Trib Town, "Jury awards $2.3 million to NY man who filed malpractice lawsuit", August 04, 2014