Surgical Injuries. Cleveland Surgical Injury Lawyers

Injured by a Preventable Surgical Error in Ohio?

If you were the victim of a surgical error, contact The Mellino Law Firm. You may also download or request our free, easy-to-read guide to filing a medical malpractice claim in Ohio. Our Cleveland surgical error lawyers have represented injured clients for almost 40 years, and Chris Mellino has litigated landmark cases, such as Moskovitz v. Mt. Sinai Medical Center and Watkins v. Cleveland Clinic Foundation, which have changed state law.

At The Mellino Law Firm, we strive to hold negligent surgeons, anesthesiologists, hospitals, and others accountable for the harm they cause. We are dedicated to not only helping you secure the compensation you deserve but also to ending systematic problems within the medical field. We are a small firm with the resources, skill, and experience of a large team, committed to fighting for justice and a fair recovery on your behalf.

Contact us online or call (440) 333-3800 today. We offer free, confidential case evaluations and have offices located in Cleveland and Rocky River.

Statistics on Surgical Errors & Injuries

A recent Johns Hopkins study of medical malpractice claims revealed that surgical errors—which are also called “never events” because they are 100 percent preventable and should never happen—occur more than 4,000 times per year in this country. Nearly 33 percent of those patients suffered permanent injury and 6.6 percent died.

“[Researchers estimated] that at least 39 times a week a surgeon leaves foreign objects inside their patients, which includes stuff like towels or sponges. In addition, surgeons performing the wrong site surgery or operating on the wrong body part occurs around 20 times a week,” a Medical News Today article stated.

Common Surgical Errors

Surgery is a complicated procedure and, as such, there are many different types of surgical mistakes that can occur. While surgeons are highly trained to prevent these types of mistakes, they can and do still occur. This could be the result of improper training, inexperience, fatigue, carelessness, or outright malpractice.

Some of the most common surgical mistakes include:

• Leaving a foreign object, like a sponge, or instrument inside the body
• Puncturing organs or arteries, such as perforating a bowel, kidney, or intestine
• Anesthesia mistakes, such as administering too much or too little anesthesia
• Wrong-site surgery, including removing the wrong organ or amputating the wrong limb
• Causing nerve damage during the procedure
• Performing the wrong surgical procedure

This list is by no means exhaustive; there are many other examples of surgical errors, many of which can be attributed to medical negligence. Often, these mistakes lead to serious complications, including infections, illness, and death. Victims and their families may find themselves facing additional surgeries and other costly medical procedures to fix previous mistakes, which can be physically and financially demanding.

The Mellino Law Firm differs from other firms in that we only represent patients who have suffered severe and debilitating injuries or death. Surgical error lawsuits are time-consuming and labor-intensive. By only accepting a few cases at a time, our surgical malpractice attorneys in Cleveland are able to give each one the unique and personalized attention it deserves.

Why Choose The Mellino Law Firm?

First, you will never see us on TV, the side of a bus, or a billboard. Attorneys and satisfied clients send us the majority of our caseload. For instance, another firm was representing Cathy S. in another matter when her 78-year-old mother died of septic shock.

“When I took her in for surgery, there was absolutely nothing wrong with her. Nothing,” she says. But fifteen hours later, she was gone. “She passed away at University Hospital due to septic shock from a kidney stone and a urinary tract infection. The doctor performing the surgery failed to give her an antibiotic… She should have had an antibiotic for this kidney stone because it’s a highly infectious kidney stone—I looked it up on the computer. On top of that, he didn’t give her a urine culture, and she had a urinary tract infection that nobody knew about. So that’s two things he did wrong. As soon as he cut that kidney, she started getting infected. It was that quick.”

Cathy’s mother was rushed to University Hospital by ambulance, where they put her on dialysis, but it was too late. When Cathy told her lawyer what happened, he recommended Chris Mellino.

“I would recommend [Mellino Law Firm] to anybody if they ever needed a medical malpractice attorney,” she says. “Chris was thorough and understanding. Compassionate. He is very, very good. Always returned my calls, answered all my questions. The staff was wonderful, and we won our case. It didn’t bring my mom back, but I got justice for my mom.”

If you suspect that a surgical mistake caused permanent injury or death, we welcome you to contact our office for a free consultation. At The Mellino Law Firm, we can help you navigate the entire process from start to finish. Our surgical injury attorneys in Cleveland have more than three decades of experience and are prepared to aggressively fight for your rights. Call now to get started on your case with a free consultation.

Get in touch with our Cleveland surgical error attorneys at The Mellino Law Firm LLC today. Call us at (440) 333-3800 to request a FREE initial consultation.