When Medical Staff Improperly Administering Or Injecting Drugs: Kingston, New York Medical Malpractice Attorney Discusses

There are many different types of injuries that a health care provider may be liable to a patient for New York medical malpractice. Some of these are obvious such as foreign objects left inside of a patient or making surgical mistakes, while other injuries are less obvious like some birth injuries or failing to monitor the patient’s vitals. One concerning type of New York medical malpractice is the administering or injecting of drugs into a patient.

A hospital may be liable for the negligent administration or injection of a drug into a patient. The hospital would be liable through the negligence of a member of the hospital staff who incorrectly injects the substances. There are a few different ways that this could happen, and all are actually quite frightening to think about.

For example, we generally would think a medical staff’s negligence in improperly administering or injecting a drug into a patient would be caused by injecting the wrong substance. This is absolutely correct, and typically how it happens. But there has been less occurrence of this, only because now so many hospitals have protocols that guard against this requiring multiple people to confirm the drug before injection. This is not to say that this still does not happen though, and is certainly a viable claim for New York medical malpractice.

But there are other causes too though. Cases where a patient with certain conditions is given a drug which will violently react to a patient’s current condition or is not fit for that patient is also a cause of New York medical malpractice due to the hospital’s negligence. For instance, where a drug is prescribed NOT for elderly patients but is given to an elderly patient which results in a severe reaction, that is a cause for New York medical malpractice.

In addition, failing to notice the injection is having a harmful effect on the patient, such as a reaction or causing other complications, is also a cause for New York medical malpractice. Commonly in birth injury cases, where medical providers administer a dangerous drug for the purpose of speeding labor which causes an injury to the baby is ALSO a cause of action for New York medical malpractice.

But even aside from the injection and drug itself, there can be liability for other injuries as a result of the administration of the drug. Some of these injuries include injecting it too fast or too slow or even using the completely wrong site/method of injection (i.e. veins versus fat/arm). Moreover, failing to sterile the equipment or injecting a patient with a used needle can also lead to a MASSIVE claim for New York medical malpractice.

But what do you think? I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment or I also welcome your phone call on my toll-free cell at 1-866-889-6882 or you can drop me an e-mail at jfisher@fishermalpracticelaw.com . You are always welcome to request my FREE book, The Seven Deadly Mistakes of Malpractice Victims, at the home page of my website at www.protectingpatientrights.com.