Posts tagged "dangerous conditions"

The Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI) recently released a report documenting a little-discussed subcategory of medical malpractice issues: technology-related mistakes. While technological advances have dramatically improved patient care generally, there is a flip side to all good things. Here, the flip side is a set of hidden hazards.

In its study, the ECRI pointed out ten of the biggest risks associated with technology in hospitals. Each of these hazards could result in claims for catastrophic injuries. This will be the first of two posts that look at some of the interesting findings in ECRI's study.

Two of the ECRI's concerns deal with something patients have no doubt noticed in recent years: hospitals and medical centers are increasingly relying on electronic records-keeping systems. Electronic records make it easier for hospitals to keep all staff informed about a patient's medical background and other information. Other computer systems automate some routine aspects of patient care by accessing these records.

As discussed in the previous post, ProPublica recently did another in-depth story about the issue of contractor safety on cell tower work sites as part of an ongoing investigation by journalists. The newest article tells the story of a 43-year-old worker who died after an antenna fell on his head on a work site. The antenna broke off a faulty rope while he and other workers walked below fellow workers without hard hats on their way to a lunch break.

The personal injury lawsuit filed by a co-worker and one of the deceased worker's family members sought to figure out whom would be held responsible for the negligence on the site and the death of the subcontractor, but these were difficult things to sort out, as detailed by ProPublica.

As discussed in previous posts, contractors who work on cell towers can face dangerous workplaces, and it is difficult to figure out who to hold responsible after an injury or death on a cell tower work site. This is because often these contractors are a few times removed from the cell phone company that ordered and uses the site.

Cell phone companies hire a contractor to do the work on the cell tower site and these contractors, in turn, hire contractors who may do the work or hire another company to provide the workers.

In the end, any subcontractor who gets hurt or dies likely worked for a company other than the cell phone company. The workers have few rights and safety rules and equipment to keep them safe because they may work as contractors for a small company with few resources and no big company has taken the responsibility to keep them safe.

As discussed in the previous post, the state of California recently settled a lawsuit with the California-based maker of the salon product, Brazilian Blowout. The product straightens hair and eliminates frizz, but it also contains unacceptable levels of the known cancer-causing chemical, formaldehyde. The formaldehyde is released into the air and breathed when the product is heated.

California sued the company because the products had been labeled as formaldehyde free. The FDA had written letters to the company telling them to properly label their products, but they were not able to go so far as to pull products off shelves and it is still being used in salons. Many people are pushing for the FDA to similarly ban beauty products containing formaldehyde.

The salon product Brazilian Blowout has been found by the FDA to contain unacceptable levels of formaldehyde, which is a known cancer-causing chemical. The product is supposed to make hair straight and free of frizz -- kind of the opposite of a perm. It has soared in popularity in the last couple of years and continues to be popular even after word got out that the products contained known carcinogens.

One major problem is that women used the product before it was labeled correctly. The products were labeled as "formaldehyde-free" or safe, which the FDA disputed. The state of California sued a California-based maker of Brazilian Blowout for this deceptive advertising. A settlement was recently reached in which the company agreed to pay $600,000 in fines and fees, and change the information on their website significantly.

When a property owner or a landlord creates a dangerous condition on his or her property and a guest or employee is injured by that dangerous condition, the injury victim can sue for damages. This type of lawsuit is referred to as a premises liability lawsuit.

Tony Award Productions and CBS are now facing a premises liability lawsuit based on allegations that their producers are responsible for a 2009 on-stage incident that injured singer Bret Michaels. The lawsuit claims that producers did not provide Michaels with information on how to safely exit the stage, therefore failing to prevent the circumstances that led to his injuries.

Last June, a 15-year-old Atwater Village girl attended the Electric Daisy Carnival rave at the Los Angeles Coliseum. She was able to get in despite a policy of requiring all people under 16 to have a parent or guardian to attend. She attended with friends.

While attending the rave, she fell into a coma and died a few days later from an ecstasy overdose. Now, her parents have filed a claim against the Coliseum Commission and the city and county of Los Angeles, seeking $5 million in damages. Filing a claim is a required step before the county and city can be sued in court.