Cerebral palsy can be a devastating diagnosis for parents to hear. This disorder, which affects muscle tone, balance, and movement, can occur as the result of a birth injury during delivery or right afterwards. Because the effects of cerebral palsy can lead to a lifetime of complications and medical expenses, you should consider contacting a cerebral palsy lawyer if you suspect your child’s condition was caused by medical negligence.

For parents, there is no single road map to follow for raising a child with cerebral palsy. Some children with cerebral palsy have minor symptoms that may only require minimal support services. In other cases, the symptoms can be so severe that the child cannot walk. Speech difficulties and intellectual disability are also possible. Parents of children with cerebral palsy need to work closely with their children’s’ medical team to determine the best treatment options. They also need to make plans for the future if their children’s symptoms are severe enough that they will not be able to care for themselves or support themselves.

If you believe that medical negligence in New York played a part in your child’s illness, the birth injury attorneys at Pegalis & Erickson, LLC are here to help you seek compensation. Speak to an attorney today by calling (516) 684-2900.

Each June, health advocates across the country celebrate Men’s Health Month. This awareness month is intended to empower men to become effective self-advocates. Men—and women—often trust the opinions and advice of their doctors without question. Trust may be a good quality in certain situations, but when it comes to healthcare, raising questions and seeking second opinions can be essential for preventing the consequences of medical malpractice.

Schedule a wellness exam.
Men tend to not see the doctor when they’re healthy (or even when they’re sick). But preventive wellness is a cornerstone of good health, and wellness exams are an important part of that. If it’s been a while since you saw your doctor, make an appointment right away for an annual exam. Your physician will assess your overall health, look for warning signs of medical problems, and counsel you about your lifestyle.

Know your risk factors.
During your wellness exam, you’ll be asked lots of questions about your personal and family medical history. This information helps your doctor assess your risk factors of problems like heart disease and cancer. Unfortunately, not all doctors will take the time to tell you what your medical history reveals. Take the initiative to ask about the problems you may be at risk of developing. Your risk factors will also be based on your typical diet, level of activity, and occupation.

Get screened. Each wellness exam includes a check of your weight, pulse, and blood pressure, but you may need additional health screenings. Don’t assume that your doctor will let you know when it’s time for a cholesterol test, skin cancer screening, colonoscopy, or diabetes test. Be a proactive self-advocate by asking your doctor if you could benefit from having any health screenings, based on your age and other risk factors.

Pegalis & Erickson, LLC is a medical malpractice law firm on Long Island, New York. Our medical malpractice attorneys have been providing effective legal advocacy services for our clients for more than 40 years. If you have concerns that you may have been affected by medical malpractice, please don’t hesitate to call us at (516) 684-2900.

Stroke can be deadly, and the risk of stroke is particularly high among elderly patients. However, stroke can actually affect patients of any age—including newborns. Because stroke is perceived as being a problem for older patients, younger individuals who suffer stroke may be misdiagnosed. These serious emergency room errors may be a form of medical malpractice if the physician deviated from standard diagnostic procedures.

When stroke occurs, every second counts. The misdiagnosis of stroke may mean that a patient cannot receive clot-busting drugs within a critical time period to improve the chances of survival. When misdiagnosed patients do survive a stroke, they may suffer serious, lifelong consequences as a result of the death of brain cells.

Emergency room errors committed on Long Island, New York can have devastating consequences, which is why the medical negligence lawyers at Pegalis & Erickson, LLC are always here to help. Call us at (516) 684-2900 to request a consultation with our medical malpractice team.

Medical malpractice laws are complex, and they vary from state to state. If you believe you could have a claim, it is important to contact a medical malpractice lawyer with experience practicing in New York. Here is a closer look at some of the specifics of medical malpractice laws in New York.

Statute of Limitations
The time to bring a lawsuit in New York for medical malpractice can be confusing for patients. If you suspect medical negligence occurred, do not delay in consulting an attorney so that your rights can be protected. The attorneys for the patient need to identify the health care providers who made the avoidable medical mistakes, in order to file the lawsuit.

The time limits for filing a lawsuit, called statutes of limitations, are laws which dictate when a lawsuit must be started. Whether the patient is an adult or child, and is alive or has died, all play a key role. In New York the entity involved– such as private facilities, city, state or federal facilities- all have a different time requirement for filing a lawsuit. Once the time limit has expired, a law suit cannot be brought, so if negligence is suspected, action must be taken quickly.

Medical Malpractice attorneys along with medical experts will determine if something serious happened with the medical care you or your loved one received, that should not have occurred. They will gather and review medical records and information, to identify avoidable medical errors.

You can trust the experienced team at Pegalis & Erickson, LLC to help you protect your rights if medical malpractice in New York has happened to you. Talk to an attorney today by calling (516) 684-2900.

Medication errors can have serious consequences for people who receive the wrong drugs or the wrong doses in a medical setting. If you have been affected by this kind of error by a healthcare provider and believe that medical negligence is to blame, consider allowing a medical malpractice lawyer to evaluate your case.

Medication errors occur when a person is given either an incorrect medication or the wrong dosage of the right medication. Automated dispensing cabinets, which are used in many healthcare settings, have been identified as major contributors to medication errors. Mistakes in loading dispensing drawers in these cabinets can easily lead to a provider giving someone the wrong medication.

If a medication error has had disastrous consequences for you, make an appointment with Pegalis & Erickson, LLC to review your case with an experienced medical malpractice attorney in Long Island. We can help you decide how to proceed with your claim and seek damages for your injuries. Set up an appointment with an attorney by calling (516) 684-2900.

Birth injuries can have lifelong consequences for parents and kids alike. Although some birth injuries are not preventable and some are caused by medical malpractice, it is possible to take steps to reduce your child’s risk of experiencing this kind of injury. If your child is injured during birth and you suspect that medical negligence played a role, contact a medical malpractice attorney to discuss your case. During your pregnancy, take these steps to reduce the chance of birth injuries.

Get Regular Prenatal Care
Prenatal care is essential for a healthy pregnancy, labor, and delivery. During your checkups, your doctor can ensure your pregnancy is proceeding as expected and identify any signs of complications that could interfere with a healthy delivery. For instance, if you are diagnosed with preeclampsia, then your doctor will provide treatment to protect you and your baby from the potential complications of that condition. If your doctor fails to identify a potential complication such as gestational diabetes or elevated blood pressure, and provide proper treatment to void a birth injury, contact a medical malpractice attorney to see if the mistake could be classified as medical malpractice.

Have Screening Tests
There is a range of screening tests that can be used during pregnancy to determine if you and your baby are progressing towards a healthy delivery. Attend all of your recommended ultrasound appointments and have any medical tests requested by your doctor. If your doctor diagnoses developmental problems with your baby during an ultrasound, determines that your baby is not in a safe position for birth, or diagnoses a medical problem through another kind of testing, he or she can take precautions during the delivery process. If you doctor doesn’t diagnose a problem that should have been clear from these diagnostic procedures and your child later experiences a birth injury, then medical negligence could be to blame.

Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
Some lifestyle choices you make during pregnancy, such as smoking or gaining more weight than is recommended, could increase your child’s chance of having a birth injury. Be sure to follow your doctor’s recommendations so you can have the best chance of a healthy delivery.

At Pegalis & Erickson, LLC, we understand how confusing and stressful life can be in the aftermath of a birth injury. Our medical malpractice lawyers are here to help you decide what steps to take to protect your child’s future. To find out more, please call (516) 684-2900.

The underlying cause of cerebral palsy is damage to the brain or the abnormal development of the brain. In some cases, a baby’s brain may sustain damage because of birth injuries, which might be the result of medical malpractice. Birth complications such as uterine rupture, umbilical cord problems, and the detachment of the placenta can increase the risk of cerebral palsy.

It’s also possible that a doctor will fail to diagnose serious conditions, and fail to treat them properly or quickly enough. For example, jaundice of the newborn or infections during pregnancy can result in brain damage if not treated. Less commonly, cerebral palsy may be acquired after 28 days of life. Acquired cerebral palsy may be caused by brain infections like meningitis or by brain injuries.

Was your child diagnosed with cerebral palsy because of medical malpractice? Call Pegalis & Erickson, LLC at (516) 684-2900 to speak with a birth injury lawyer on Long Island, New York.

Sepsis, also known as blood poisoning, is a serious illness that may become life-threatening if it is not treated properly. It’s possible for patients with sepsis to suffer the failure of multiple organ systems. In some cases, acquiring or dying from sepsis may be the result of medical malpractice. For example, a physician may fail to diagnose and treat sepsis in a timely manner. If you or a loved one has been affected by a potential act of medical negligence, you can contact an attorney to discuss your options.

Causes of Sepsis
It’s often thought that sepsis is an infection, but actually, it’s a complication of an infection. Sepsis may result from bacterial, fungal, or viral infections. Most often, it’s a complication of pneumonia, bloodstream infections, or kidney or abdominal infections. Sepsis can develop when the immune system tries to fight the infection and, in doing so, triggers systemic inflammation. Some patients are at a higher risk of sepsis than others, including older adults and people with a weakened immune system. Sepsis cases often involve patients who were hospitalized in the intensive care unit. Patients with any sort of invasive devices, such as catheters or breathing tubes, are also at an increased risk.

Signs and Symptoms of Sepsis
Sepsis is a progressive problem that is best treated in its first stage. A diagnosis of sepsis can be made when a patient has an infection and a rapid heartbeat, high respiratory rate, or abnormal body temperature. The second stage, severe sepsis, may indicate an imminent organ failure. It involves one or more of the following symptoms:

• Abrupt change in mental status
• Abdominal pain
• Difficulty breathing
• Low platelet count
• Atypical heart function
• Little to no urine

The third stage, septic shock, has a poor prognosis, particularly when it isn’t detected and treated immediately. Septic shock is diagnosed when a patient has already been diagnosed with severe sepsis and also has very low blood pressure.

Pegalis & Erickson, LLC is a malpractice law firm on Long Island, New York that routinely handles cases such as hospital-acquired infections. Our medical negligence lawyers encourage patients to contact us for a complimentary case review. You can reach us at (516) 684-2900 to discuss your potential medical malpractice case.

There are many different types of medical malpractice, including misdiagnosis. If a misdiagnosis occurs as an emergency room error, the results may sometimes be fatal. Patients can be strong advocates for their own healthcare by knowing the risks of failure to diagnose heart attacks. The misdiagnosis of heart attacks affects young patients in particular simply because most heart attack patients are of older age. When a younger patient walks into an ER complaining of chest pain, an ER doctor might be more likely to evaluate that patient for panic attacks.

Further complicating this issue is the misconceptions regarding heart attack symptoms. It’s often thought that heart attacks primarily cause chest, left shoulder, and left arm pain. However, some heart attacks might not cause chest pain at all. Instead, young patients may experience jaw pain, nausea, vomiting, and dizziness.

If you’ve lost a loved one to wrongful death on Long Island, New York, or you were injured by a misdiagnosis, you can count on Pegalis & Erickson, LLC to advocate for your legal rights. Call us at (516) 684-2900 to request a case review with one of our experienced medical malpractice lawyers.