Opioid Painkillers Possible Cause of ‘Dead in Bed’ Patients

Southfield, MI (Law Firm Newswire) February 2, 2017 – Medical malpractice lawsuits involving patients found “dead in bed” while in hospital after successful operations are on the rise. The patients were recovering in their rooms and not considered to be at risk.

The sudden and unexpected death of patients recovering after successful surgery, sometimes within hours of an operation, is posing a significant problem. Research by top U.S. doctors into this issue has shown opioid painkillers suppress the respiratory system and starve the brain of oxygen, resulting in death.

An in depth review of cases involving respiratory depression found the number of deaths and serious brain injuries due to opioid use were increasing at a concerning rate. The great majority of such cases were deemed preventable.

According to medical experts, the adverse effects of opioid pain relievers have affected an estimated 50,000 patients over the last decade. If the patient receiving opioids did not die, they stood a good chance of sustaining a serious brain injury. Opioids are frequently used in hospitals across the nation. If opioid use were partnered with e-monitoring of a patient’s oxygen level, the number of “dead-in-bed” cases would drop. Such technology does exist, but few hospitals use it.

Hospitals not using electronic monitoring to check a patient’s oxygen levels are finding themselves facing medical malpractice lawsuits. Consider a recent case in Akron, Ohio where a man’s wife died after surgery as a result of her respiration dropping so low it resulted in brain injury. The man had to take his wife off life support. Court documents filed in this case indicated the hospital did not routinely monitor all surgical patients no matter where they were recovering post-surgery.

“Medical malpractice or not, this was a totally avoidable situation,” said Litigation Funding Corporation representative, Daren Monroe. “Nonetheless, the use of opioids allegedly resulted in the death of this man’s wife. He would need to pay his medical expenses, funeral and burial costs and his usual financial obligations if he filed a lawsuit. A viable solution for him may be to apply for a lawsuit loan.”

Obtaining a lawsuit loan starts by completing an online application. From there, a professional staff member requests case documentation from the applicant’s attorney of record. Once the application has been reviewed and approved; Litigation Funding Corporation prepares a contract for signature by the plaintiff and their attorney. Funds are then sent via wire transfer or overnight mail.

“There are no credit checks, applications fees, or any requirement that a plaintiff be employed. This means an applicant’s credit remains intact,” added Monroe. “Additionally, the most appealing benefit about litigation funding is that there are no monthly payments and if the case is lost, the lawsuit loan does not need to be repaid.”

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