People expect medical professionals to provide consistent quality care that will ultimately help them recover from an illness or injury. Thus, when Joan Rivers allegedly died as a result of oxygen deprivation while under medical supervision, concern about incidents of medical malpractice resurfaced for the general public. The medical team caring for Rivers during an endoscopy, a routine gastrointestinal procedure, reportedly failed to realize that the celebrity lacked sufficient oxygen levels.
Rivers’ daughter is now filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the medical professionals, claiming that the staff’s disregard for her mother’s safety ultimately led to her death. The suit further alleges that the doctors performed unauthorized procedures and failed to act accordingly when Rivers’ vitals began to slip.
While River’s death was officially labeled as a therapeutic complication, the daughter believes that overconfidence, mismanagement and incompetence constituted as negligence. She is seeking an unspecified amount in damages, insisting that the event was traumatic for her family and her mother deserved better medical care.
Malpractice claims can be complex and require evidence to support the victim’s claim that the hospital, doctor or nurse failed to meet the standard of care necessary to avoid harm to the patient. Such medical mistakes often result in overwhelming medical expenses, lost wages and longer recovery periods. In the event of a wrongful death, the victim’s family may be entitled to compensation for emotional pain and suffering.
If a patient is harmed while being treated by a medical professional, it is possible that medical negligence is involved. A personal injury lawyer familiar with malpractice claims can be instrumental in negotiating any warranted compensation for the victim or the family.
Source: The Huffington Post, “Melissa Rivers Files Lawsuit In Mother Joan Rivers’ Death”, Associated Press, Jan. 28, 2015
