Prior to surgery, a woman with the initials K.P was an accomplished business owner and a fit and healthy exercise enthusiast. After an elective abdominal surgery, K.P. lost her business, and started a new life of suffering long-term medical issues from a botched operation. According to Michigan Live, the woman went in for a surgery in June 2009 and suffered severe complications, leaving her with a gaping stomach wound. The wound would not heal, leaving her with severe pain and the constant need for medical assistance and treatment.
K.P. underwent an abdominoplasty, which is a liposuction of the abdominal flap. She says that she was almost 40 years old and in the best shape of her life. As a result, she decided to treat herself with an abdominoplasty to further tone and slim her shape. She now says that she wishes she had never thought about receiving the abdominoplasty, and had simply been content with her body.
K.P. claims that from the start there were warning signs about the surgery. After the procedure was complete, she claims that she experienced dark-colored drainage and clots. She also suffered painful burning sensations after the surgery. The doctor who performed the surgery later cleaned the wound area without anesthesia, and repeatedly prescribed ointment and pain medications to subdue K.P.'s complaints. K.P. kept asking for a reference to a wound care specialist, but the doctor refused.
Eventually, the doctor admitted to K.P. that the wound was infected, but she was not referred to a specialist. The wound only worsened, and K.P. finally went to an emergency room eight weeks after the surgery. She was send to a wound care clinic, and diagnosed with a staph infection. She remained in the hospital for six days.
K.P. says that the surgeon's error caused her to lose everything, including her independence. She was able to effectively argue for a $1.3 million settlement from the medical facility that caused the incident. K.P. and her attorney argued for the settlement for 10 days before a circuit judge. They were able to convince the jury that a doctor had a duty to meet a standard of care and that he breached that duty, causing K.P.'s injury. K.P. also claimed that the doctor caused her physical suffering and serious economic loss.
The jurors awarded the plaintiff $500,000 in damages for pain and suffering as well as the scarring and disfigurement from her injury. They also allowed her $382,000 in loss of income, and discovered that she needed $430,000 in reimbursement for income she would have earned at her former job through the year 2017.
K.P. is thankful for the settlement which will help her to provide for her family, but says that no amount of money can erase what the negligent doctor did to her. The doctor acting as a defendant in the case says that he disagrees with K.P.'s claim and that there wasn't any negligence in the case. The doctor says that he hopes to take the case to the Court of Appeals because he does not think he should have to pay the victim the verdict value.
It is common to award a plaintiff more than $1 million in a medical malpractice case, especially in Jackson. If you have been injured by a doctor, nurse, or hospital staffer and would like to seek compensation, you need to locate a skilled medical malpractice attorney nearest you. With the right medical malpractice lawyer on your side, you may be able to seek a high settlement or verdict that will result in financial compensation.