A Philadelphia mother won $1.5 million for the wrongful death of her son on Wednesday, August 17, in a civil trial against the family doctor and a psychiatrist for overprescribing a deadly mix of narcotic medications. PA personal injury attorneys Console & Hollawell represented the plaintiff in this case. While we wish we could go back, erase time, and prevent this incident and other incidents like this from every occurring, we can’t. While nothing will ever bring our client’s son back, we hope that the settlement received sends a strong message to doctors and health professionals who have the power to prescribe that they must do so responsibly, and not recklessly.
Pattern of Medical Malpractice Shown
One of the defendants, a family doctor, began treating the son of our client in June of 2005 for back pain following a motor vehicle accident. The doctor, who claimed he was performing “pain management,” was not certified in pain management, nor had he been specially trained in this discipline. The “pain management” treatment, by the doctor’s own testimony, consisted of prescribing extremely large amounts of narcotics. In 2006, our client’s son sought the care of a psychiatrist for depression that resulted from his pain. Despite the fact that the client of our son told both doctors he suffered from asthma, they prescribed excessive amounts of narcotics—including Percocet, Oxycontin, and Xanax—that are known to suppress the respiratory system. The amount of narcotics prescribed was increased in dosage, amount, strength, and frequency, until the son of our client died, on October 7, 2007.
The family doctor did not run any diagnostic tests to determine the cause of his patient’s pain, and on several occasions he prescribed entirely new batches of pills just days after original prescriptions were filled. In so doing, he ignored the signs that the patient was becoming addicted to the medications, or was abusing them.
Despite the fact he was told the patient was in treatment with several other medical professionals, the psychiatrist did not order medical records of the patient, and was therefore unaware of the diagnosis or of the other medications being prescribed by other physicians. Neither doctor attempted other interventions aside from narcotics to manage the patient’s pain, and both ignored the signs of serious side effects and health problems caused by the narcotics, such as the weight gain and fluid retention that indicated the organ failure that eventually killed their patient. Instead, the doctors prescribed more narcotic medication.
An autopsy of our client’s son showed that he died an accidental death from an adverse reaction to prescription narcotic medication. Both a family practice specialist and a pharmacist who reviewed the case testified that the care provided by both doctors was negligent, reckless, and outrageous.
If you or someone you love has been harmed by a doctor who has been negligent, you may be due compensation for medical bills, loss of income, pain and suffering, or wrongful death. Contact a medical malpractice attorney Philadelphia for a free consultation. An attorney will review your case, advise you of your legal rights and options, and develop a plan that’s best for you and your family.
