Anesthesia During Surgery May Kill Or Seriously Injure If Not Administered Correctly

Cleveland, OH (Law Firm Newswire) August 15, 2013 – The job of an anesthetist is crucial. Without proper administration and care during surgery, a patient’s life may be in jeopardy.

“People facing surgery have an enormous amount of faith and trust in the person who will be putting them under for surgery. The anesthetist plays a crucial role before, during and after a surgical event, and if something goes wrong, and the doctor commits a preventable error, they may be held accountable for the results,” explained Tom Robenalt, a Cleveland anesthesia injury lawyer.

Administering anesthetic is a job that requires an alert, careful and experienced individual who closely monitors the patient as the surgical team does their job. If the anaesthesiologist gives too much or too little anesthesia, or administers the wrong anesthesia, the result may be permanent injury, coma, brain damage or death.

“The duty of care an anesthesiologist has for their patients is a particularly high one,” pointed out Robenalt. “They must take every possible precaution to ensure the patient does not experience any complications while under their care.”

The most common anesthesia errors may include, but are not limited to: failing to monitor vital signs, dangerous drug interactions, delayed anesthesia, preventable allergy reactions, conversion errors from ounces to millilitres, patients who wake up during surgery, being under too long and depriving the brain of oxygen, too much anesthetic, not enough anesthetic, and locked-in syndrome, where the mind wakes up during surgery and finds the body immobile, resulting in a severe psychological event.

The results of an anesthesia never event can completely alter someone’s life in ways they never expected. People do not go to the hospital for surgery expecting to come home with brain damage because they were kept under for too long, or suffered from a severe allergic reaction to the drugs administered to perform the operation.

“Not all medical events with bad outcomes are attributable to medical negligence,” Robenalt said, “but you need to know where you stand if you feel you have been a victim of an anesthesia error. If negligence is present, you are entitled to compensation, and the doctor must be held responsible for their error.”

To learn more or to contact a Cleveland medical malpractice attorney, or visit http://www.mellinorobenalt.com.

Mellino Robenalt LLC
200 Public Sq., Suite 2900
Cleveland, Ohio 44114
Call: (216) 241-1901

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