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Hardesty, Tyde, Green & Ashton, P.A. blog
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Government Bans Texting by Drivers of Large Trucks & Buses
On January 26, 2010, the Transportation Department issued regulations which banned hand-held texting by drivers of large commercial trucks and buses. According to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the regulations take effect immediately and carry fines of up to $2750 for each violation.
The National Safety Council estimates that 200,000 accidents occur each year because the driver was distracted from observing the road while texting. Research has demonstrated that people involved in texting commonly take their eyes completely off the road while engaged in sending or receiving texts. This can have catastrophic consequences, particularly for drivers of big rigs or buses and the occupants of cars around them.
The texting ban for drivers of large vehicles operating at high speed on interstate roads is certainly an important step in increasing highway safety.
The National Safety Council estimates that 200,000 accidents occur each year because the driver was distracted from observing the road while texting. Research has demonstrated that people involved in texting commonly take their eyes completely off the road while engaged in sending or receiving texts. This can have catastrophic consequences, particularly for drivers of big rigs or buses and the occupants of cars around them.
The texting ban for drivers of large vehicles operating at high speed on interstate roads is certainly an important step in increasing highway safety.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
2:36 PM
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Safety on America's Buses
Thousands of people travel on buses across America each year. However, few realize the dangers that can be involved in bus travel.
In recent years, several high profile bus accidents have reignited the debate on bus safety. For example, after a 2007 bus crash in Atlanta in which 7 people died and 21 people were injured, the National Transportation Saftey Board found that the bus' lack of adequate occupant protection contributed to the accident's severity. Bus saftey was also an issue in the 2006 bus crash in Huntsville, Alabama, in which 4 school children were killed.
Several recommendations have been made to improve bus safety in America. Seatbelts could be made mandatory on all passenger buses. This would protect individuals from significant injury in bus rollover accidents. Bus windows could be made more sturdy and durable. A common cause of death in bus accidents is ejection from the bus. The ejection rate could be greatly reduced by the improvement of bus windows.
There could also be better regulation of bus drivers. It is often found after a bus accident that the driver's medical certificate giving him authority to drive the bus has expired. Making sure individuals are fit to drive buses would increase safety for passengers on the bus as well as other drivers on the road.
If you or someone you know has been injured as a result of a bus accident, please contact us for a free consultation regarding your rights.
In recent years, several high profile bus accidents have reignited the debate on bus safety. For example, after a 2007 bus crash in Atlanta in which 7 people died and 21 people were injured, the National Transportation Saftey Board found that the bus' lack of adequate occupant protection contributed to the accident's severity. Bus saftey was also an issue in the 2006 bus crash in Huntsville, Alabama, in which 4 school children were killed.
Several recommendations have been made to improve bus safety in America. Seatbelts could be made mandatory on all passenger buses. This would protect individuals from significant injury in bus rollover accidents. Bus windows could be made more sturdy and durable. A common cause of death in bus accidents is ejection from the bus. The ejection rate could be greatly reduced by the improvement of bus windows.
There could also be better regulation of bus drivers. It is often found after a bus accident that the driver's medical certificate giving him authority to drive the bus has expired. Making sure individuals are fit to drive buses would increase safety for passengers on the bus as well as other drivers on the road.
If you or someone you know has been injured as a result of a bus accident, please contact us for a free consultation regarding your rights.
posted by
Kevin Moore
at
5:25 AM
Additional Baby Cribs Recalled by Consumer Product Safety Commission
On January 19, 2010, the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled approximately 635,000 cribs manufactured by Dorel Asia because of safety concerns. Recently a 6 month old child apparently died when the brackets holding the drop side of the crib detached or broke and allowed the baby to roll over and become trapped between the drop side and the mattress. There have been multiple reports to the CPSC of similar incidents resulting in injuries to other children. In fact, this is the second time in the last 2 months that the CPSC has issued a crib recall for these types of problems. Last month in this blog we reported the recall of cribs manufactured by Simplicity and SFCA, Inc.
The Dorel Asia cribs which are the subject of the latest recall were manufactured in China and Vietnam. They were sold under various names at Walmart, Sears and K-Mart stores from 2005-2009. The CPSC advises parents to immediately stop using these cribs and to contact the manufacturer for a free parts replacement kit.
If your child was injured by one of the cribs subject to this recall or by any other crib, please call us for a free consultation about your rights.
The Dorel Asia cribs which are the subject of the latest recall were manufactured in China and Vietnam. They were sold under various names at Walmart, Sears and K-Mart stores from 2005-2009. The CPSC advises parents to immediately stop using these cribs and to contact the manufacturer for a free parts replacement kit.
If your child was injured by one of the cribs subject to this recall or by any other crib, please call us for a free consultation about your rights.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
5:11 AM
Sunday, January 03, 2010
Radiologists Unlikely to Disclose Mammography Errors to Patients
Recently, researchers at the University of Washington conducted a survey of more than 350 radiologists at 7 different geographical sites of the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium. The radiologists were given a hypothetical set of mammograms which demonstrated that potentially cancerous calcifications were increasing in number but had been misread by the previous radiologist as decreasing in number, thus resulting in a delay of cancer diagnosis.
When asked whether they would tell a patient about the error:
9% said they would definitely not disclose the error;
51% said they would disclose it only if asked by the patient;
26% said they would probably disclose the error; and
14% said they would definitely disclose the error.
When asked what language they would use to disclose the error in reading the mammograms, only 15% of the radiologists would tell the patient directly that an error had been made by the previous radiologist. The remainder either would say nothing further or would simply report that the lesions were increasing in number.
Failure to timely diagnose breast cancer can have catastrophic results and is a frequent cause of medical malpractice litigation. It should be of concern to patients that many radiologists, 74% of whom report they are concerned about being sued for misreading mammography studies, in most cases are not likely to honestly and straightforwardly tell the patient when an error has been made.
If you have concerns that your mammography results were misread, you should contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney. At our firm, all such consultations are free of charge.
When asked whether they would tell a patient about the error:
9% said they would definitely not disclose the error;
51% said they would disclose it only if asked by the patient;
26% said they would probably disclose the error; and
14% said they would definitely disclose the error.
When asked what language they would use to disclose the error in reading the mammograms, only 15% of the radiologists would tell the patient directly that an error had been made by the previous radiologist. The remainder either would say nothing further or would simply report that the lesions were increasing in number.
Failure to timely diagnose breast cancer can have catastrophic results and is a frequent cause of medical malpractice litigation. It should be of concern to patients that many radiologists, 74% of whom report they are concerned about being sued for misreading mammography studies, in most cases are not likely to honestly and straightforwardly tell the patient when an error has been made.
If you have concerns that your mammography results were misread, you should contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney. At our firm, all such consultations are free of charge.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
12:57 PM
Friday, December 18, 2009
Simplicity Crib Deaths
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued multiple recall notices for various models of cribs manufactured by Simplicity Inc. and SFCA, Inc. of Reading, Pennsylvania. The warnings and recalls began in 2005 and have been linked so far to 11 deaths and 25 additional incidents involving injury or potential for serious injury. The problem relates to plastic hardware which the manufacturer used to secure the side of the crib. Over time, the hardware can break or deform allowing the side to push out, creating a space between the side and the mattress. A baby can roll into this space and suffocate or otherwise be severely injured.
The manufacturers appear to no longer be in business. Some of the cribs manufactured by Simplicity include the Graco logo and Winnie the Pooh motif. The affected cribs were sold between January 2005 and June 2009. Parents are warned to immediately stop using Simplicity cribs because of the serious hazard they pose to babies. More information from the CPSC on the crib recall can be found at: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/simplicity.pdf.
If you have a family member who has suffered injuries from a Simplicity crib or any other defective crib, please call us for a free case evaluation.
The manufacturers appear to no longer be in business. Some of the cribs manufactured by Simplicity include the Graco logo and Winnie the Pooh motif. The affected cribs were sold between January 2005 and June 2009. Parents are warned to immediately stop using Simplicity cribs because of the serious hazard they pose to babies. More information from the CPSC on the crib recall can be found at: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/simplicity.pdf.
If you have a family member who has suffered injuries from a Simplicity crib or any other defective crib, please call us for a free case evaluation.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
5:53 AM
Monday, December 14, 2009
Paxil Settlements
According to recent court records, the manufacturer of Paxil, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, has paid nearly $1 billion to settle a variety of lawsuits for injuries allegedly caused by the drug. Paxil has been on the market in the United States since 1993. It is used primarily to treat depression, anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). During this period of time, thousands of patients have reported problems which they relate to use of the drug. These problems generally include: suicide, birth defects and addiction/withdrawal. In 2005, the FDA required the manufacturer to add a black-box warning to the package insert indicating that use of Paxil had been associated with an increased risk of suicidal thoughts by adolescents. A black box warning is the strongest label warning which can be placed on a prescription medication.
If you or a loved one has experienced significant problems after using Paxil, you may have a products liability claim against the manufacturer or a medical malpractice claim if the drug was improperly prescribed by a doctor. Call us for a free consultation.
If you or a loved one has experienced significant problems after using Paxil, you may have a products liability claim against the manufacturer or a medical malpractice claim if the drug was improperly prescribed by a doctor. Call us for a free consultation.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
6:06 AM
Sunday, October 11, 2009
FDA Orders Black Box Warning for Phenergan
The FDA has just ordered that special warnings be added to the instructions for the use of the anti-nausea medication, Phenergan (promethazine). This so-called "Black Box" warning is the FDA's strongest possible warning about the use of this drug via intravenous (IV) administration. Specifically, the new warning describes the potential serious complications of inadvertent intra-arterial injection, infiltration or extravasation of Phenergan. These complications can include severe tissue or nerve damage, gangrene and amputation. The new warnings also make clear that deep intramuscular injection is the preferred route of administration.
Our firm has handled many cases involving injury to patients from IV administration of Phenergan. Many of these patients went on to develop Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) or Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). If you believe you have been injured by intravenous injection of Phenergan and would like to speak with an attorney experienced in this area, we would be happy to discuss your potential case with you.
Our firm has handled many cases involving injury to patients from IV administration of Phenergan. Many of these patients went on to develop Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) or Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). If you believe you have been injured by intravenous injection of Phenergan and would like to speak with an attorney experienced in this area, we would be happy to discuss your potential case with you.
posted by
Attorney Frank Ashton
at
2:51 PM
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Texting while Driving Gaining National Attention
The proliferation of cell phones with texting and Internet access is certainly an advance in technology and convenience but it is also a safety problem that is plaguing the highways of this country. Texting while driving is rapidly is becoming the as dangerous as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The "eyes off the road" factor essentially creates a vehicle without a driver moving at highway speeds. The results are often deadly or life altering. The lure of getting the information right now is becoming epidemic. Texting and using the Internet while driving has also given rise to various state laws that criminalize the practice in an attempt to reduce the huge number of accidents that it causes. Concentration and reaction times are essentially reduced to zero in many accidents or causes a driver to over correct at the last moment to avoid what should be the obvious and as a result causes accidents. Certainly cell phone use is critical in the development of a crash investigation. If you or someone you know has been the victim of a auto accident please contact our firm to learn more and protect your rights.
posted by
Attorney W. Marc Hardesty
at
2:08 AM
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