Tom Rhodes Law Firm P.C. Co-Counsels New Mexico Medical Malpractice Claim, Secures $7.75M Verdict
After a New Mexico man kept in intensive care developed severe pressure ulcers due to negligent treatment. Tom Rhodes Law Firm P.C. served as co-counsel for the subsequent injury claim, which has concluded with a $7.75 million jury verdict award.
SAN ANTONIO, July 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Case No. D-202-cv-2012-04942 in Bernalillo County (Albuquerque court) has concluded with a $7.75 million jury verdict award for the plaintiff, who suffered a severe pressure ulcer due to medical negligence. The medical malpractice claim was co-counseled by Attorneys Tom Rhodes and Robert Brzezinski of Tom Rhodes Law Firm P.C. and Attorneys McGinn and Montoya of McGinn, Carpenter, Montoya & Love, P.A., and filed against Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque. The $7.75 million jury award was comprised of a $4 million award to the plaintiff for compensatory damages, $1.5 million award to the plaintiff's wife-turned-caretaker for compensatory damages of her own, and $2.25 million award to both plaintiffs for punitive damages.
The plaintiff, Mr. Webb, was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque in 2011, remained in a semi-conscious state for many days, and depended on the medical staff at Presbyterian for all of his care needs. Within only six days, a skin wound had developed on his sacrum due to a general lack of repositioning of his body while he was unable to reposition himself. Five days later, a wound care specialist examined the wound and found that it had become a severe pressure ulcer.
The plaintiff's attorneys, working together as co-counsel, focused on Presbyterian Hospital's own patient safety policies and procedures for a significant portion of the trial. The hospital's regulations require patients who are at risk for pressure sores to be repositioned once every two hours, or more frequently if necessary, with the specific intent of preventing pressure ulcers from forming. Due to generally neglectful care, Mr. Webb was left in the same position for long stretches at a time. The end result was the formation of a large, painful pressure ulcer that required additional medical treatment, including painful debridement processes that removed skin, flesh, and damaged tissue in large amounts. Mr. Webb's ulcer has still not fully healed.
Jurors that spoke with legal counsel after the verdict was given noted that the multimillion award was not only to fairly compensate the plaintiff but to also reinforce the need of adequate patient safety training at Presbyterian Hospital and other medical groups.
Interested parties can review an Albuquerque Journal article (https://www.abqjournal.com/995973/icu-patient-wife-awarded-775m.html) for more information regarding this recent case result. Inquiring parties in need of personal injury claim representation and legal assistance are encouraged to visit the website of Tom Rhodes Law Firm P.C. (http://www.tomrhodeslawfirm.com/), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas for more information.
SOURCE Tom Rhodes Law Firm P.C.
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