All Topics

• Private Investigators for Real Plaintiffs

  Ken Margolin | February 27, 2007 9:00 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  You've seen them on television - those private investigators who can solve any crime or get the true story on any disaster while the authorities fiddle around without a clue. If you are old enough to remember "The Rockford Files," then you know how creative television private eyes can be. The work of real-life private investigators is more boring, generally consisting of tenacity, a good...

• Injuries to Disabled People

  Ken Margolin | February 26, 2007 11:20 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  It may be tempting to think that the value of a serious injury case due to negligence, to a person already burdened with significant disabilities, has to be substantially discounted. Unfortunately, I've dealt with some insurance adjusters who take just such an attitude. They are seriously mistaken. Juries throughout the country, including my own state of Massachusetts, have recognized the value...

• Missed Heart Attack Diagnosis

  Ken Margolin | February 23, 2007 5:05 PM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  For years, we have been hearing of the importance of a prompt trip to the emergency room or a call to "911" if one is suffering from symptoms of potential heart attack. The expectation is that once in the care of physicians, the various tests available to detect heart attacks will be correctly employed and proper treatment administered. It turns out that getting to the emergency room on time may...

• Peanut Butter Salmonella Outbreak

  Ken Margolin | February 21, 2007 12:30 PM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Massachusetts has not escaped the salmonella outbreak attributed to jars of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter, that has sickened hundreds of consumers. According to federal officials, lids of peanut jars produced by ConAgra Foods with a product code beginning "2111" may contain the contaminated peanut butter. While a majority of the people known to date to have gotten ill from the peanut...

• Nursing Home Falls

  Ken Margolin | February 21, 2007 11:50 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Anyone who has seen an elderly loved one living in a nursing home, may think that falls are an inevitable part of aging with frailty. That perception is inaccurate. While some nursing home falls may be inevitable, many can be prevented. Doing everything feasible to prevent falls is a primary obligation for nursing homes. Falls can begin a downward spiral leading to complete dependence or death....

• Chiropractic Malpractice

  Ken Margolin | February 17, 2007 7:00 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Chiropractors can seem to work miracles at times for patients with ailing backs. Some people swear by them and I don't doubt their ability to help in appropriate cases. There have been, however, some cases of horrific chiropractic malpractice, resulting in severe injury, even paralysis or death. While chiropractors are trained in the mechanics of the body, they are not medical doctors. As is the...

• Treadmill Injuries

  Ken Margolin | February 16, 2007 11:58 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Surveys of health club owners and managers reveal that the single most dangerous piece of equipment is the treadmill. It makes sense. Treadmills are powerful machines with moving parts, that can seem to have minds of their own. While most treadmill injuries are minor, such as strains and sprains, some can and have been serious, even catastrophic. In one case, an Indiana jury awarded $9 million...

• Falling Down Stairs

  Ken Margolin | February 15, 2007 7:00 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Falling down a flight of stairs or even a few steps can cause serious injuries. Broken bones, head injury, and other trauma can result. In determining whether a stair injury case should result in a lawsuit, a number of factors need to be determined in addition to the severity of the injury. Stair injury cases are a form of premises liability litigation. Stair design is one factor to be analyzed....

• Winter Driving Accidents

  Ken Margolin | February 14, 2007 1:15 PM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  While the northeast of the country experiences nasty winter weather, from 2 feet of snow to frozen precipitation, it's a good time to remember the added responsibility on anyone who drives in the winter. Most serious highway accidents in winter conditions are the direct result of driver negligence. The most frequent cause of fatal car crashes in winter is the same as other times of year - speed;...

• Working to Lower Medication Errors - Credit Where it is Due

  Ken Margolin | February 13, 2007 7:00 AM | 0 CommentsBoston, MA

  Michael Leonard, MD, is an anesthesiologist who has written on the subject of medication error reduction. Readers who have followed my blogs may know that the anesthesiology profession was a leader amongst physicians and hospital professionals in analyzing the causes of medication errors and other medical mistakes. The doctors who studied the problem, such as Lucien Leape, MD, and others,...