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GEORGETOWN OFFICE 121 Screven Street Georgetown, SC 29440 • Medical Malpractice
• Workers’ Comp. • Dram Shop Liability • Nursing Home Abuse • Hospital Negligence • Jail Misconduct CHARLESTON OFFICE 635 East Bay Street, Suite F Charleston, SC 29403
• Car Accidents • Personal Injury • Truck Accidents • Wrongful Death
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2024
EVANSMOORELAW.COM · (843) 995-5000
What is a “never event”? In the early 2000s, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) began penalizing and refusing to cover the cost of care associated with medical errors that should never occur and duly titled them “never events.” The list of “never events” — sometimes referred to as Hospital-Acquired Conditions (HAC) — has grown over the last 20-plus years. Never events include things like a surgery performed on the wrong body part (e.g., amputation of the wrong arm), patient suicide while in the care of a medical facility, a patient’s death or serious injury associated with a fall while in the care of medical professionals, a foreign body being left in a patient during surgery, or pressure ulcers acquired after admission to a medical facility. Despite CMS’s efforts to reduce never events by penalizing health care facilities when they occur — and thereby attempting to increase patient safety — never events still happen at alarming rates. Our firm has seen an uptick in the number cases we are consulted on regarding two particular never events — hospital acquired pressure ulcers and patients who suffer injuries due to falls while in the care of medical professionals. Pressure ulcers are also known as bedsores, pressure injuries, and decubitus ulcers. In simple terms, pressure ulcers are injuries to the skin that result from pressure being exerted on a particular area of skin for an extended period of time. The constant pressure depletes the amount of natural blood flow to the area, and without the oxygen and nutrients being transported by the blood, the tissue begins to become necrotic. While they can occur effectively anywhere on the body, these ulcers most commonly occur on patient’s heels, ankles, lower back, tailbone, and hips. Patients with limited mobility are at the highest risk for developing bedsores. They are often the most vulnerable and include paraplegics, quadriplegics, comatose patients, and those with other medical conditions that hinder their ability to ambulate or shift positions on their own. Pressure ulcers are categorized by stages. They escalate from unstageable to Stage 1, 2, 3, and 4 based on several factors including size and depth. An unstageable bedsore may be nothing more than inflamed, unbroken skin. On the other end of the spectrum, a Stage 4 pressure ulcer can be life threating. Stage 4 ulcers are characterized by severe tissue damage that penetrates all three layers of skin. At this stage, patients may experience “tunneling” HABITUAL ‘NEVER EVENTS’ Our Firm Is Seeing More of These Cases
and the sore can appear like a crater, exposing muscles, tendons, and bones. As you might imagine, bacteria and other infections become a grave concern as a given bedsore progresses through the stages. As our understanding and knowledge of this body of medicine has sharpened and expanded in recent years through litigating these cases, we have come to learn that bedsores, particularly in a medical setting, are exceedingly preventable. Most, if not all, medical facilities from big hospitals to rehab centers and nursing homes have training, policies, and procedures pertaining to bedsore prevention. Bedsores can largely be prevented or eradicated with adequate staff-assisted turning and repositioning of patients who are unable to do so themselves. This simple yet necessary action can relieve the pressure
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PSYCHOLOGY OF SUCCESS Harnessing the Power of a Growth Mindset
While there are no treadmills for the mind or ellipticals for our neurons, science tells us that mental exercise can help us obtain a growth mindset. The American Psychological Association defines a growth mindset as “the belief that a person’s intelligence and abilities can grow and improve with practice.” A growth mindset is the antithesis of a “fixed mindset,” which people exhibit when they quickly give up if they can’t solve a problem. Nurturing a growth mindset, in contrast, can help you view failure or setbacks as opportunities for learning. More Than Effort Having a growth mindset is about more than just effort. It is the belief that you can develop your abilities and talents, as well as a perspective on how you approach life’s lessons and learning. That belief allows you to learn more quickly and achieve greater results, no matter what you aim to achieve.
This does not mean simply having an open mind; it also means finding a way to continue striving to improve your knowledge, attitude, and performance. Some call it having “grit.” Cultivating Success With a growth mindset, success plays second fiddle to self-improvement. Celebrating the effort we put into each task motivates and encourages us to work harder and accomplish more in the future. Rather than focusing on the destination, the focus is on the journey. A growth mindset is a great way to become more positive, successful, and adaptable. By incorporating more facets of a growth mindset into your life, you will be well on your way to changing things for the better.
In Remembrance of Bill Evans It is with sadness that we note the passing of Scott’s father, Bill Evans. Bill was a strong supporter of the firm from its inception and a personal mentor for Scott throughout his life. A reprint of his obituary is below:
next 24 years. During much of the 1990s, Bill and best friend, Cory Dudley, were detailed to a multi-agency task force which resulted in the federal conviction of multiple Southern California physicians who had perpetrated the then-largest medical insurance fraud scheme in U.S. history involving fraudulent claims of over $ 1 billion dollars. For his work on the task force, Bill was awarded Federal Investigator of the Year for 1994 by the Federal Investigators’ Association. While he was intense in his work, he was a source of great joy to his family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors and someone to be relied upon in troubled times. As it was at home with his children, he was a natural mentor and team leader throughout his career. He loved each of his children dearly, and he never stopped being their hero and mentor. He was particularly suited to the role of grandfather, with a playful sense of humor, timeless wisdom, and unlimited love. Bill was devoted to his wife, whom he considered a saint on earth. The couple celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary just days before Bill’s illness began.
William Joseph “Bill” Evans, Jr. of Pawleys Island, South Carolina, passed peacefully on June 29, 2024 while surrounded by his family after a 10 week battle with a sudden heart condition. Bill was born in Washington, D.C., in 1945 to William J. Evans, MD and Katherine Sullivan Evans. Bill attended the University Maryland where he played offensive guard for the Terrapins and met the love of his life: his wife, Barbara. After college, Bill was commissioned into the United States Airforce where he obtained the rank of Captain and spent 12 years flying KC-135 (mid-air refuelers) and Galaxy C-5 A cargo planes between Thailand and Vietnam. Bill then followed in the footsteps of his brother Rick in the U.S. Postal Inspection Service where he investigated mail fraud, medical fraud, narcotics, and violent crime cases in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, California, and South Carolina for the
Bill is preceded in death by his sister Margaret “Peg” Collins, and her husband Tom. Bill is survived by his wife Barbara of Pawleys Island, SC, son William Joseph “Jay” Evans, III (Teresa) of Oceanside, CA; daughter Kristin (Edwin) Diaz of Rancho Cucamonga, CA; son Scott Christopher Evans of Georgetown, SC; grandsons Ethan and Dylan Diaz of Rancho Cucamonga, CA; and granddaughter Charlotte “Cece” Evans of Georgetown, SC, as well as brothers Rick (Patricia) Evans and Kevin Evans; sister Kay (Vince) McAndrew; nieces Coleen, Bridgett, Jessie, Anna, Margaret, and Gabrielle; and nephews Inspector Brian and Special Agent Daniel Evans.
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on a given area of skin and allow the patient’s blood to flow naturally. In turn, an immobile patient’s risk of developing bedsores or their bedsores escalating in stages diminishes greatly. In facilities where low staffing levels prevent patient turning on required intervals, alternating air pressure mattress pads (which can be purchased on Amazon for well under $100) can go a long way toward preventing bedsores. Unfortunately, these preventive measures are not frequently taken. In many cases, families of bedridden patients contact our office with concerns that their family member has been neglected by their caregivers. In many of these cases, further inquiry often unearths more troubling issues. Not only are bedsores present on many bedridden patients, but they are also often acquired in a hospital setting, and hospital records pertaining to the bedsores are usually littered with inconsistencies, errors, and omissions. Medical records in this state of discord leave hospitals in a state of defensive scramble. And rightfully so — it is difficult to defend the occurrence of a “never event” as gruesome and preventable as a bedsore. Hospital falls, like bedsores, are never events that our firm is called on to review all too often. Patients, particularly those who are advanced in age, who are being treated in a hospital or other medical setting are under the encompassing care of the medical facility. Hospitals are expected to maintain the well-being of their patients. As part of this undertaking, hospitals and other care facilities should have fall prevention programs in place. In an ideal world, fall prevention programs should involve creating an individualized fall prevention plan for each patient. Among other things, these plans need to consider staff education and training, adequate supervision of patients, treatment of delirium, and the provision of safe footwear, use of wheelchairs, and bed rails. Sadly, in our experience, these plans are often either not implemented properly or not created in the first place. When a fall occurs, the resulting injury or death is often the proximate cause of the medical facility’s failure to execute its fall prevention program. Again, similar to bedsores, these hospital falls are often preventable and rarely the subject of a legitimate excuse. If you or one of your friends or family members has been the victim of a never event, please reach out to our office. George “Buster” Bryan
Policy and Practice If you have suffered damages as a result of medical malpractice, then you should know that malpractice suits can be complex affairs. One of the details many overlook is the non-economic medical malpractice damages limitation, or medical malpractice cap. The medical malpractice cap determines the maximum amount of compensation plaintiffs can be awarded in the event their case is successful. Non-economic damages can stem from pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment, and more. What Is the Cap? The medical malpractice cap is based on the Consumer Price Index, which is published by the Department of Labor. As of December 2023, the medical malpractice cap against a single health care provider and a health care institution for each claimant is $564,168. The medical malpractice cap against all health care providers and health care institutions for each claimant has risen to $1,692,503 per occurrence of negligence When to File When it comes to filing a malpractice suit in South Carolina, timeliness is key. Private and nonprofit hospital systems have a three-year statute of limitations. Governmental hospitals have a two-year statute of limitations. Many rural clinics operate through the use of funds provided by the federal government, and the substantial use of federal funds by rural clinics will sometimes result in the application of the two-year statute of limitations to bring a claim against these clinics in federal court. South Carolina has a six-year statute of repose which serves as a bar for hidden conditions, such as items that are left behind during surgery that are not discovered until years later. When the malpractice is hidden, the statue of repose serves as a bar to bringing an action against the responsible provider after the expiration of six years. Because the statute of limitations analysis is so convoluted, it is recommended that you speak to a lawyer as soon as possible if you think that you have been a victim. If you would like us to assist you in filing a medical malpractice case, call us at 843-995-5000 for a free consultation. Malpractice Caps
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GEORGETOWN OFFICE 121 Screven Street Georgetown, SC 29440 (843) 995-5000
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE
2. 1. The Alarming Rates of ‘Never Events’
The Role of a Growth Mindset in Overcoming Challenges
In Remembrance of Bill Evans
4. 3.
Malpractice Caps in South Carolina
Settlement Highlight
SETTLEMENT HIGHLIGHT Lack of Care Proves Fatal in Bedsore Case
Our firm recently secured a seven-figure settlement for the family of a man who developed critical bedsores while hospitalized. The family’s decedent, who was 83 years old but self-dependent, was hospitalized due to issues with kidney function. At the time of his admission to the hospital,
medical staff documented that there were no open wounds. What transpired over the next several months is as much a mystery as it is horrific. This beloved father and grandfather developed life-threatening bedsores that ultimately went beyond threatening and played a significant role in his demise. Our investigation into this case unearthed a litany of discrepancies in the medical records. For example, there are multiple instances in which nursing staff mis-documented or failed to document the advancing bedsores, failures to chart the turning or repositioning of the patient, failures to provide wound care, and what appeared to be medical billing for this “never event.” Our discovery of these issues, among others, encouraged the hospital to offer significantly more monetary compensation to the family than it typically does in similar cases. Every case is unique, and while prior results at Evans Moore do not guarantee future outcomes, if you or a family member has suffered injuries due to medical neglect, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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