Surgeon Punctures Colon, Leaving Patient with Permanent Injuries

Southfield, MI (Law Firm Newswire) August 18, 2014 – Vivian Gagliano, 65, filed a medical malpractice lawsuit after sustaining a punctured colon during what was to have been a routine hernia operation.

“As a result of the colon puncture, the patient spent a month in a coma, battled a virulent abdominal infection and had multiple surgeries. She lost most of her large intestine,” said Daren Monroe of Litigation Funding in Michigan. When the case went to trial, jurors handed down a $12 million award.

Neither of two doctors was aware that Gagliano’s colon had been perforated until she succumbed to a fast moving virulent infection, slipped into septic shock, went into cardiac arrest and began suffering from multiple organ failure.

Connecticut’s Danbury Hospital indicated that it would consider an appeal. The two named defendants, Dr. Venkata Bodavula and Dr. Joseph Gordon, spent most of the trial suggesting that the other perforated the colon. Bodavula, then a surgical resident, performed the operation, but the plaintiff was not informed that her operation would be performed by a resident. Bodavula stated that Gordon began the surgery and that and he merely assisted him.

“The court heard that Dr. Gordon was the lead surgeon and was responsible for Dr. Bodavula’s training. Gagliano’s lawyer also stated that his client’s lawsuit was also designed to send a message that a teaching facility has an extra responsibility to ensure patients are safe. That entails taking responsibility for what their residents-in-training do,” Monroe added.

The Gaglianos faced staggering medical bills and probably found paying them a struggle. They may have wished to reach out to a litigation funding company and apply for pre-settlement funding. A lawsuit loan is approved funds sent to a qualified plaintiff for them to get back on their feet financially. The funds are assessed according to what the attorney of record suggests may be the jury award.

Pre-settlement funding may not be for all plaintiffs, but it is worth researching whether the process would alleviate the heavy burden of owing money that cannot be paid back without help.

Learn more at http://www.litigationfundingcorp.com