Philadelphia Medical Malpractice Attorney Blog

Consumer Reports conducted a nationwide study on the amount of central-blood line infections at hospitals and most hospitals in the Philadelphia area were graded above average. Pennsylvania is one of only 23 states that have a policy for all hospitals in the state to mandatory report infections.

Hundreds of thousands people die each year in hospitals due to infection with the most common being a central line infection. Central lines are catheters that are placed in a major vein to quickly deliver medication or fluids to a patient. One third of patients who die in hospitals from infections are from central line infections that occur in intensive care units.

In the Philadelphia area, St. Christopher's and Hahnemann University Hospital scored better than average along with A-I DuPont in Delaware. Surprisingly Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was graded well below average and officials from the hospital have acknowledged the problem and have implemented a system that is already producing better results.

Research has shown that central line infections are relatively easy to avoid with some very simple steps and good hygiene practices. Two thirds of infections can be prevented if hospital staff wash their hands before and after touching a patient or a catheter, disinfect the patient's skin before applying the catheter and wearing protective gear such as gloves, masks, caps, and gowns when caring for a central line patient.

Related Sources:
Consumer Reports exclusive on hospital infections

The Shops at Liberty Place at 17th and Chestnut Street in Center City Philadelphia have a new innovative addition to their ground floor, Drexel University's walk-in clinic. The facility is the first in the city but other city health systems are planning to build similar treatment centers in the area.

The clinic will be open 7 AM to 7 PM and is aimed to cater to the millions of people who live and work in Center City Philadelphia. Doctors and nurse practitioners will staff the clinic and will be able to diagnosis and treat routine medical conditions and if need be patients will be referred to Drexel specialists. Also at the clinic will be a state of the art drug vending machine that is able to easily provide patients with the most common generic drugs without them having to visit a pharmacy.

Doctors are hoping that the convenience of the clinic and the onsite prescription vending machine will help people to see doctors more often and catch problems early. There is also hope that the clinic and others like it will alleviate some of the traffic visiting emergency rooms after the recent concerns about treatment at local emergency rooms.

Related Sources:
Walk-in clinic opens in Center City
Kenneth Rothweiler Appears on Fox 29 Good Day Philadelphia to Discuss Emergency Room Treatment

It was once believed that 2 in every 100,000 children are victims of a stroke but thanks to the work of doctors at the Pediatric Stroke Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia it is now estimated that 12 in every 100,000 children suffer from strokes.

Strokes are so uncommon in children that parents and many doctors never imagine the child is suffering from a stroke although they may be presenting with the signs and symptoms associated with a stroke. In most cases strokes aren't recognized in children until 24 hours after the first sign or symptom. In all stroke cases, time is of the essence, the faster a stroke is diagnosed and treated the less brain damage the patient will experience. Those at the highest risk for a stroke are children born with a hole in their heart and those with vascular problems however the risk is so low that they are not routinely screened for a stroke.

Children suffering from a stroke present the same symptoms of adults suffering from a stroke. The child may lose the ability to walk, speak, use one side of their body, and may become disoriented. Child stroke suffers are more capable of leading a healthy and active life than those who experience a stroke as an adult. A child's brain is still developing and is able to work around those areas affected by the stroke and many return to full health with no disabilities or impairments.

Related Web Sources:
Children Don't Have Strokes? Just Ask Jared

The emergency room of a hospital is supposed to be a place where patients receive care in a timely way for a condition that needs immediate attention and can't wait for the patient to see his or her regular doctor. Recently a patient went to a local hospital and was left waiting in the ER despite complaints of crushing chest pain. This complaint is a clear sign of an impending heart attack, and in Philadelphia,at Frankford Hospital, the patient died before anyone even came to examine him. The whole event was captured on videotape, and showed how the patient was left sitting in the emergency room without any care until he eventually went into cardiac arrest and died. We have represented families of victims who have suffered similar losses, and have tried to get emergency rooms to understand that complaints of an impending heart attack must be taken seriously and immediate medical attention is required. Such tragedies like this should not happen with today's modern medical technology and qualified medical personnel staffing our emergency rooms. When they do, serious and inexcusable lapses of medical attention and care have occurred.