Med Mal News

Jackson Family Says Contract Terms Encouraged Dangerous Treatment

Connecticut law firm Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder is assisting the plaintiffs in the case against concert promotion company AEG Live Inc., which hired Dr. Conrad Murray to care for singer Michael Jackson as he prepared to go on tour. Jackson suffered from chronic pain due to an accident that occurred several years before Murray's hiring. The plaintiffs, members of Jackson's family, allege that Jackson died just after Murray ' apparently attempting to ease this pain ' gave him an injection of Propofal, a surgical anesthetic. The plaintiffs have presented expert testimony claiming the doctor breached the standard of care by administering Propofol in a home setting without having backup personnel and CPR equipment on hand. According to Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder's Michael Koskoff, the plaintiffs feel that “[b]ecause Murray's contract with AEG ended if the Jackson tour was cancelled, the contract with AEG encouraged Murray to take risks.” Specifically, the contract called for Murray to go on the road with the singer, leaving behind all of his other patients, yet provided that he would lose his lucrative position if Jackson missed any concert dates. Murray is currently serving a four-year sentence after being found criminally responsible in 2011 for causing Jackson's death. The civil trial, which seeks damages for negligent hiring and supervision, is expected to last several months.

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Hospitals Seek New' Methods of Encouraging Hand Washing

A recent New York Times article is again shining a light on the problem of hospital sanitary practices and infection, this time highlighting the use of new products and services aimed at ensuring adherence to hand-washing safety standards. Hartocollis, Anemona, “With Money at Risk, Hospitals Push Staff to Wash Hands,” The New York Times, 5/28/13. The article discusses a service that sends video images to a monitoring center in India whenever someone enters and intensive care unit, so that their hand-washing practices can be observed; a computer chip that notes when a medical practitioner has passed a sink; and the use of monitors, secretly embedded in the hospital setting, to observe and report on health care workers' hand-washing practices.

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Jackson Family Says Contract Terms Encouraged Dangerous Treatment

Connecticut law firm Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder is assisting the plaintiffs in the case against concert promotion company AEG Live Inc., which hired Dr. Conrad Murray to care for singer Michael Jackson as he prepared to go on tour. Jackson suffered from chronic pain due to an accident that occurred several years before Murray's hiring. The plaintiffs, members of Jackson's family, allege that Jackson died just after Murray ' apparently attempting to ease this pain ' gave him an injection of Propofal, a surgical anesthetic. The plaintiffs have presented expert testimony claiming the doctor breached the standard of care by administering Propofol in a home setting without having backup personnel and CPR equipment on hand. According to Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder's Michael Koskoff, the plaintiffs feel that “[b]ecause Murray's contract with AEG ended if the Jackson tour was cancelled, the contract with AEG encouraged Murray to take risks.” Specifically, the contract called for Murray to go on the road with the singer, leaving behind all of his other patients, yet provided that he would lose his lucrative position if Jackson missed any concert dates. Murray is currently serving a four-year sentence after being found criminally responsible in 2011 for causing Jackson's death. The civil trial, which seeks damages for negligent hiring and supervision, is expected to last several months.

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Hospitals Seek New' Methods of Encouraging Hand Washing

A recent New York Times article is again shining a light on the problem of hospital sanitary practices and infection, this time highlighting the use of new products and services aimed at ensuring adherence to hand-washing safety standards. Hartocollis, Anemona, “With Money at Risk, Hospitals Push Staff to Wash Hands,” The New York Times, 5/28/13. The article discusses a service that sends video images to a monitoring center in India whenever someone enters and intensive care unit, so that their hand-washing practices can be observed; a computer chip that notes when a medical practitioner has passed a sink; and the use of monitors, secretly embedded in the hospital setting, to observe and report on health care workers' hand-washing practices.

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