Practice Areas
Blog 
Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
- Skilled Nursing Facilities - Real Estate or Health Care?
- Nurse-to-Patient ratios have affected care in nursing homes.
- Omega's nursing home/long term care acquisitions: can nursing homes plead poverty?
- Nursing Homes Misuse Money Marked for Staffing: Evidence of Corporate Neglect?
- Nursing home abuse in North Carolina, Unfair Arbitration Clauses
Medical Negligence, Mistakes and Malpractice
- Medical Malpractice Myth - Tom Baker's Book
- Medical Malpractice Insurers Faked Lawsuit Crisis
- Medical Malpractice and Tort Reform: AAJ Primer
- Would Tort or Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Reform Lower Health Care Costs?
- Americans for Insurance Reform Articles on Medical Malpractice
Personal Injury & Wrongful Death
- Auto Accident Insurance (Underinsured Motorist Coverage)
- Life Care Plans for Future Care in Personal Injury Cases Add Up
- $1.9 Million Settlement to Man Killed by Drunk Driver
- Threat of Personal Injury from Dog Bites in Fayetteville North Carolina
Insurance: Unfair Insurance Claim Practices
- Assurant Insurance (formerly Fortis Insurance) Pays Dearly For Misconduct
- Buying Disability Insurance Article May Help Avoid Problems With Unfair Disability Insurance Claim Denials
- Unum Insurance, Provident Life Insurance, Paul Revere Insurance - Regulatory Settlement Details, etc.
- Independent Insurance Adjusters - Help With Insurance Claim Problems
- Insurance Bad Faith Claims on Wikipedia
General
News
- Article on Nursing Home Injury and Nursing Home Wrongful Death Lawsuit Pioneer
Posted on 5/14/2009 - Sunbridge Nursing Home Lawsuit Filed
Posted on 5/13/2009 - Family sues nursing home in alleged sex attack
Posted on 5/13/2009 - Kindred Nursing Homes and Hospitals' Profits Increased in First Quarter 2009
Posted on 5/6/2009 - North Carolina Medical Malpractice Case Filed Against Hospital Over Death Of Child
Posted on 5/5/2009
Pleasant Law Blog (Insurance Claims, Medical Misakes, and Nursing Home Claims)
North Carolina Injury and Wrongful Death Attorney Thomas Waitt Pleasant's blog, facilitating commentary on North Carolina nursing home abuse, injury, neglect, and wrongful death; as well as medical malpractice, medical mistakes and medical negligence. Topics also include unfair and bad faith insurance claims practices.Medical Negligence, Mistakes and Malpractice
Surgery Mistakes and Informed Consent: Doctors/Surgeons Must Inform Their Patients of Risks of Surgery; and Adhere to the Standard of Care
Medical negligence complaints often arise from mistakes made by surgeons during surgery. While some surgeries can be extremely difficult, and the likelihood of bad outcomes high, medical malpractice can and does still occur. A doctor performing surgery must adhere to the standard of care applicable to the physicians in that community, so even if a surgery is difficult, a surgery error can still be made giving rise to a supportable medical negligence lawsuit. Further, when a high probability of a bad outcome is likely from surgery, the doctor’s failure to explain the dangers of the surgery (i.e., the patient’s lack of “informed consent”) can give rise to medical liability, despite that those bad outcomes were a known risk of the surgery. Also, surgery candidates often are not informed that there are different ways to perform certain types of surgeries, with a particular type possibly being more risky. For example, a common shoulder surgery is “rotator cuff repair” surgery. This procedure can generally be done using one of three accepted methods: the “open” procedure, the “mini-open” procedure, or the “arthroscopic” procedure. While with rotator cuff repair the surgeon’s own skill and experience may determine which surgery procedure he or she uses, the patient should be informed of the risks, pros and cons of each procedure type. A known risk of rotator cuff repair surgery is “deltoid avulsion,” which is when the primary shoulder muscle, the deltoid, detaches after surgery and slumps down. This surgical problem can arise when the surgeon removes too much bone during the repair of the rotator cuff, and the likelihood of this cause may be increased through the use of the “open” procedure. Deltoid muscle avulsion can be a painful condition, and usually requires an additional surgery to correct. A North Carolina medical negligence lawyer can help you with your concerns about surgical negligence, mistakes or errors. A bad outcome does not necessarily mean that medical negligence or malpractice has occurred, but if you or someone you love has been injured, hurt or killed wrongfully as a result of surgery; contact my law office for a free consultation. Our call center and main office is in Fayetteville, but I can arrange to meet with prospective clients at our location in either Raleigh or Wilmington as well. In some cases, I am even willing to travel to your home to discuss your matter. Feel free to contact The Law Offices of Thomas Waitt Pleasant with your medical/surgical error concerns.
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Frequent Questions
Insurance: Unfair Insurance Claim Practices
- What if my insurance company says that my claim is not covered due to the specific provision?
- I am not sure as to the extent of my coverage, have not read my policy and not sure if my claim is covered. Does this mean I cannot file my claim?
- My insurance company has offered an unfair settlement. What can I do?
General
- How do I know if I am covered by ERISA (Employer Retirement Income Security Act) or by a private plan?
- Can I assert a “bad faith” claim for insurance provided by my employer?
- How is disability considered during the hiring process?
- What rights am I granted under the insurance policy?
- What kind of bad faith insurance claims are there?