By Bill Sizemore
The Virginian-Pilot
© May 18, 2010HAMPTON
After the Hampton VA Medical Center denied responsibility, a Chesapeake veteran has sued the emergency-room doctor there who failed to diagnose a stroke that left him permanently disabled.
John Morgan, a Marine veteran, went to the Hampton center Nov. 23, 2008, complaining of slurred speech, unsteady gait and weakness on his left side – what government investigators later described as “classic stroke symptoms.” He was discharged by the physician on duty, Dr. Razaak Eniola.
The next day, he went to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, where he was found to have suffered a stroke and was hospitalized for six days.
A subsequent investigation by the inspector general’s office at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found the Hampton center at fault in the case. But when Morgan filed an administrative claim for compensation, the VA denied liability on the grounds that Eniola was a contract doctor, not a VA employee.
Posts Tagged ‘VA Medical Malpractice’
Man sues Hampton VA doctor over missed stroke symptoms
Monday, May 24th, 2010Staff error caused hepatitis outbreak
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010By MARY SHEDDEN
TAMPA – The area’s first known group outbreak of hepatitis C was isolated to mistakes made by an employee at a Brandon holistic medical clinic, public health officials say.
Up to eight patients at Wellness Works, 1209 Lakeside Drive, have tested positive for the blood-borne illness, which is most often transmitted by the improper sharing of needles or intravenous medical equipment. Since the Hillsborough County Health Department launched an investigation in July, nearly 130 patients have been tested.
No more patients tested positive since The Tampa Tribune first reported the outbreak in February.
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VA Limits Surgeries At Some Hospitals After Deaths
Friday, May 7th, 2010by David Schaper : May 6, 2010
The Department of Veterans Affairs is implementing a new rating system for its hospitals that at some facilities will limit the types of surgeries doctors can perform.
The changes come after several patients died because of surgical mistakes at one Illinois VA hospital.
VA officials acknowledge that at least nine patients died directly because of surgical mistakes by doctors at the Marion VA Medical Center in southern Illinois in 2006 and 2007. A VA investigation found that poor care at Marion contributed to the deaths of at least 10 other patients, and to the illness and injury of several more.
The investigation found doctors performing surgeries they were not qualified or trained to perform. It found the Marion VA hired one doctor in particular, thought to be responsible for many of the deaths, not knowing he was under investigation for malpractice in Massachusetts.
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GAO Calls for Stronger Credentialing, Privileging Oversight at Facilities
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010The Government Accountability Office (GAO), after reviewing credentialing, privileging, and performance monitoring procedures at several Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers, has called for several areas of improvement among those facilities.
GAO’s interest began when seven out of 180 patients diedâa rate that was far greater than expectedâbetween October 2006 and March 2007 at a VA medical center in Marion, IL. This prompted an investigation by the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG), which later issued a report that identified numerous deficiencies related to credentialing, privileging, and monitoring surgical care.
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NRC cites VA clinic for radioactive-treatment violations
Wednesday, December 16th, 2009In the first outside report on its flawed prostate-cancer program, the Philadelphia VA Medical Center was cited for eight apparent violations in using radioactive materials on nearly 100 veterans, federal inspectors have concluded.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission found that the Philadelphia VA staff failed to evaluate radiation doses or know when to report a mistake, according to the 16-page report obtained yesterday by The Inquirer.
The brachytherapy team, for example, failed to check radiation doses for more than a year because a computer was unplugged from the hospital’s network, the report said.
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