‘Genuinely Frightening’ New Painkiller is Approved

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The shock felt after the FDA’s recent approval of the new pain medication Zohydro wasn’t limited to advocacy groups and addiction treatment specialists. Even those on the FDA advisory committee were startled by it, considering that they had voted 11-to-2 against approval of the drug.

As much as 10 times more powerful than other painkiller in its class, Zohydro is not messing around.

‘It Will Kill People As Soon As It’s Released’

Zohydro was developed by pharmaceutical giant Zogenix. One capsule of the painkiller packs enough hydrocodone to kill a child, a doctor wrote recently in the Huffington Post. If taken by an adult unaccustomed to opioids, the medication could result in death.

158362155“It’s a whopping dose of hydrocodone packed in an easy-to-crush capsule,” said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, chief medical officer at Phoenix House, an addiction treatment center. “It will kill people as soon as it’s released.” Continue reading →

Malpractice Case Sparks Change in Washington Law

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When he was 9 years old, Jaryd Schroeder was taken to the hospital for a variety of painful symptoms. He suffered from double vision, headaches, dizziness and weakness in his legs. He was examined by a doctor at a Richland radiology clinic; the MRI test showed that everything was normal.

After another eight years of suffering the same symptoms, Schroeder had another MRI. This time, he had it done elsewhere, and the test revealed that his brain was protruding into his spinal canal.

On the eve of his 19th birthday, Schroeder brought a medical malpractice suit against the Richland clinic and Dr. Steve Weighall.

The case quickly became something much bigger. Continue reading →

Detecting Birth Defect Negligence

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In today’s progressive climate of neonatal medicine, birth injury is rare enough that few people anticipate it. After centuries of childbirth being known as a dangerous and unpredictable undertaking, an average of 6 to 8 injuries per 1000 live births seems like a great step forward.

However, for the percentage of those affected, it might as well still be the Middle Ages. The experience of seeing your newborn child suffer within moments of entering the world cannot be reduced to a statistic. Continue reading →

Attorney Helps Grieving Family Obtain Answers

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Ever since September of last year, local and national news has been thick with suspense over the case of 24-year-old Jonathan Ferrell, who was gunned down by a police officer while seeking help from a motor vehicle accident in Charlotte, North Carolina.

At 2:30 a.m. on that fateful early morning, Jonathan Ferrell was on his way home from an after-work party when his car slid off a rural road. The wreck was intense, but Ferrell managed to kick out his back window, crawl from the embankment where the car landed, and make his way to a nearby house. Continue reading →

A Parents’ Guide to Preventing Birth Defects Before It’s Too Late

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Download Guide to Preventing Birth Defects eBookEach year approximately 120,000 babies are born with birth defects. In an effort to battle this statistic and to provide support to expecting parents, we have created a free resource with comprehensive information about how to prevent birth defects from occurring. While not all can be prevented, awareness, education and proactive efforts can help increase your chance of having a healthy baby. Since development of many of these defects begins in the first trimester of pregnancy, prenatal care is the best method for prevention.

We created this e-book for soon-to-be parents to serve as a helpful guide. The e-book identifies an action plan to help prevent birth defects and focus on lifestyle improvements. It also shows evidence of how certain medications can affect you and your baby during pregnancy. The key to prevention begins with awareness. By using this resource, parents can better prepare their baby for a healthy future.

Download the free eBook “Expecting Parents Guide to Preventing Birth Defects.”

$30 Million Awarded to Washington Woman After Surgical Blunder

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A woman in North Central Washington who went to the hospital for laser surgery and left unable to speak will receive a total of $30 million after succeeding in her medical malpractice case.

Becky Anderson, 55, was undergoing laser surgery last year at Central Washington Hospital to remove polyps from her vocal chords when “a fire occurred in her throat,” according to a recent report by the Yakima Herald.

Due to the severity of her injuries, Anderson was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle to undergo extensive care and numerous surgeries. She was still a patient there when she filed a lawsuit in May 2012. Continue reading →

Keep Your Children Safe From Defective Toys

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With the holidays now upon us, the season of gift giving has begun. Children will receive all sorts of presents this month, to their delight.

While you enjoy the holidays, however, we urge you to be aware of product safety issues that can affect your children. Oftentimes, seemingly harmless things can mean injury or even death to young ones.

How to Keep Your Kids Safe

Of course, no one wants to spend their holidays fretting and worrying. But taking just 3 simple precautions can help prevent a tragic accident. Continue reading →

Backhoe Accidents Not Always Due to User Error

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Backhoes are commonly used on construction sites for digging, moving piles of dirt or stone and a number of other tasks. Like most large machines, they perform functions on a larger scale than a person could do alone thanks to their sheer size and the aid of hydraulics.

backhoe on green grassWhile undoubtedly useful, they may also be dangerous.

On Oct. 15, a Cle Elum man died in a backhoe accident, the Yakima Herald reported. This is the most recent such death, but it is certainly not the first.

Shawn Tolbert was killed while standing beside the running machine when the boom arm used for digging suddenly swung, pinning him against another part of the backhoe. Continue reading →

Simple Changes Can Help Prevent Stroke

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Today, Oct. 29, is World Stroke Day. As part of its awareness campaign, the American Stroke Association is reminding people that they can and should be aware of how to identify stroke, and they’ve offered an acronym to help. All you need to learn is the word “FAST”:

  • 164072293Face drooping
  • Arm weakness
  • Speech difficulty
  • Time to call 911

Being able to identify stroke is critical. But preventing stroke is even better. There are many factors that increase your risk of stroke, including smoking, high blood pressure, medications and more. Being familiar with those risk factors is very important.

Beyond that, though, adding these 4 things to your life can help to reduce your risk of stroke: Continue reading →

4 Subtle but Serious Ways Doctors Can be Negligent

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Success in a medical malpractice case in Washington state requires proving three seemingly straightforward things. It must be shown that:

  1. An injury occurred
  2. The accepted standard of care was breached
  3. The breach and the injury are connected

Within these three categories, however, the law becomes complex and nuanced. A breach in the standard of care is not always obvious. There may be clear wrongdoing, such as when a surgeon operates on the wrong body part or an oncologist diagnoses pneumonia when it’s really cancer. But, more commonly, the negligence is not so glaring. Continue reading →