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texas statute of limitations for medical malpractice?

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D

drunnels

Guest
What is the name of your state? Texas
Just wondering the number of years for statue of limitations in Texas? My daughter is almost 11 and we have recently learned that her hearing loss may well be related to a misdiagnosis which later erupted into a life threatening case of salmonella when she was 20 months of age. We have never followed up as we are not "frivolous lawsuit" types. Unfortunately though, hearing aids and hearing devices are covered under very few health plans and are quite expensive. She will have to live with the difficulty of being hearing impaired (at least 50% in each ear) for her entire life, incurring medical expenses and emotional hardship. It may be too late to do anything, just thought I would check. She was actually covered under the :confused: Texas state Medicaid program at the time of this incident, does that hold any bearing?
 


ellencee

Senior Member
drunnels
Salmonela, hearing impairment...salmonela, hearing impairment...?
Are you saying salmonela caused the hearing impairment or are you saying the treatment for salmonela (maybe Gentamycin?) caused the hearing impairment? The answer doesn't matter as far as your question goes; I'd just like to know!

Anyway, call a medmal attorney in your area and ask about the statutes. Usually, the child has until the 18th birthday + or - to bring a medmal claim.

EC
 
D

drunnels

Guest
salmonella-hearing impairment

The story goes that she got sick on Friday night (May 5), she threw up once, then the same on Saturday, etc. I took her into her pediatrician on Monday. He said she had giardia. He gave her Metronidazole. It continued for another 5 weeks. He said she had a some other infection (cannot remember the name), and I was told to give her over-the-counter Kaopectate fro children. I continued taking her to the same doctor weekly, as she had constant diarrhea (about 7-10 diapers daily) and her skin on her bottom was completely raw. Finally on June 20, we went to the doctor (again) and he finally took a stool sample. He called me on Saturday, June 24, to tell me she tested positive for salmonella. She was completely dehydrated. I was told that "She has an appointment on Monday, so we will just see her then". We awoke Sunday morning to her throwing up and diarrhea (the vomiting had ceased after the first few days in May, but the diarrhea had not). She was dying in front of my eyes. Literally. Her eyelids were so thin that you could almost see through them and she was about to start seizing. We rushed her to the emergency room and they started and IV and after bloodwork, found her electrolytes to be almost non-existent and her white blood cell count was near 40,000. They were very close to lifeflighting her to Cook's Children's in Ft. Worth, but blessedly she became more stable. Her next two diapers had such an incredibly horrible smell (because of white blood cells actually being in her stool) that it sickened the doctors and nurses on the entire floor. She remained in the hospital 4 days and was on an extremely aggressive therapy of Rocephin injections. She continued to have intense stomach cramps for about two years afterwards.
We bacame aware of her hearing impairment in 1998. She wears hearing aids on both ears and reads lips (extremely intelligent child). We do not know if the untreated salmonella caused the nerve damage in her ears or if it was the massive amounts of antibiotics they used to save her life. I do not think it matters, either way she was under a physician's care on a very consistent basis and the problem was not treated correctly in the beginning. We have since found out that the probable cause for the salmonella to have reached such an extreme point was due to the anti-diarrheal meds (kaopectate) caused the parasite to actaul enter her blood stream, as it had nowhere else to go.
Does that help?
 
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ellencee

Senior Member
drunnels
Why didn't you say all of that in the first place? There is a vast difference in your original post and your second post; like maybe a reason to consult with a medmal attorney.

Metronidazole should not be given to pediatric patients without confirmation that the pt has an amebic form of diarrhea and then, only for ten days.

Kaopectate should NEVER be given to pediatric patients under the age of two years. I've seen toddlers at death's door because the parents gave Kaopectate or Immodium.

Diarrhea in an infant (1-12 months) or in a toddler should NEVER be allowed to go unresolved or undiagnosed & aggressively treated for five weeks.

Whether or not the hearing impairment is related is going to be difficult to ascertain unless you have prior hearing test or evaluations such as would be found on the growth and development records in her file--information such as 'turns head towards mother when mother speaks'. If your daughter received Gentamycin without proper monitoring of peak and trough levels and medication adjustments based on those values, then you may be able to show that the Gentamycin regimen was improperly managed and resulted in hearing loss. However, if Gentamycin was the only medication that would work and the choice was hearing loss or death, you will probably not convince a jury that to adminsiter Gentamycin was an act of negligence. Rocephin does not have the adverse effect of causing hearing loss.

I believe you may have a valid claim of negligence with damages of pain and suffering, hospital bills, and additional medical bills directly related to the events. The dollar amount may or may not justify the expense of a medmal claim. Only an attorney can evaluate your daughter's situation and make a determination on merit and financial damages in an amount sufficient to pursue the claim and provide your daughter with any financial award. Of course, the attorney will need a medical expert's opinion that the initial physician knew or should have known that his actions would, more likely than not, result in damages to the child.

Hope that helps you in making a decision.

EC
 
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D

drunnels

Guest
Thank you so much

I have actually decided to at least take a step toward the process by requesting all medical records from the doctor and then I will make an appointment with an attorney once papers are in hand. I want a fairly solid answer on whether I should pursue this or not. I feel that if I have documentation in hand, it will be quicker and easier to determine the validity of the case.
Again, thank you so much for your advice!
 

ellencee

Senior Member
drunnels
You will need to take all of the records-the first MD, the hospital records (ER and admission), follow-up MD's records, the currently treating MD's records (if different), the ENT's records, etc. Some attorneys prefer you allow them to request the records. You may want to secure a consultation appointment and ask if the attorney wants you to obtain the records beforehand.

Just an additional consideration: If you kept your daughter under the initial MD's care/practice, it may impede any claim of negligence as it shows you continued to have confidence in the physician and did not consider him/her to have caused any damage. Some attorneys will not accept a medmal claim when the patient continued under the care of the same healthcare provider.

EC
 
D

drunnels

Guest
continued care

I did continue under his care until we went to the hospital. However, I also have the fact that I was a new mother and DID continue to be concerned about her care because of the frequency of visits. As soon as we went to the hospital, we never returned to his office for anything. I am hoping that does not impede my claim. You are right about the request. I will contact a couple of attorneys and set up a consultation with someone.
 

ellencee

Senior Member
You're OK with staying with the MD through that point. As a young mother, you did good! You were alert and aware of your child's condition and you advocated for her just as you should have done.

EC
 
D

drunnels

Guest
whew

well, that makes me feel better. Yes, I am definitely her advocate and will be for years to come. She is a remarkable child. She has one district UIL competitions in Science and Math and has never made below an A in any subject for all of her lementary years (Junior High is next year, so...)
I have become extremely involved in her education because of her hearing impairment. She will have any type of equipment, preferential seating, or any other special treatment to insure that she receives the best education offered by Texas Public schools. They have been very good to give her speech, closed captioning, etc. Unfortunately, though, it is one of those things which you have to become an agressive advocate and remain so until death, I guess.
 

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