Let’s have some fun! Who thinks I have a case??

[EndTime]

Against medical malpractice!! Or however it’ll be worded.

Gonna be a bit of a story but I’ll try my best to keep it within reason.

I’m 45 yo pretty healthy dude who played hockey most of my life since I was 12. Up til the end of high school and afterward in competitive leagues. In my over 30yo league we play in the 2nd beat division and we’ve never won this division and I wanted to win it! Lol. And I can still hang with all these young 30 yo, who all look like 25 to me these days. But anyway, just saying it’s a competitive league. I play defense and I’ve blocked many a shot off the foot. It always kinda sucks but this one stung me pretty damn good. Finished my shift and I was sorta waiting for it to get better as most pucks to the foot do, but as I played the rest of the game it only felt worse. I was pretty hobbled but I could still do some things. And yeah, hockey just tough shit out, finished the game on a broken foot. Even now. Old habits hard to break! Pun intended.

But as soon as the game was over I went to the ER cause I couldn’t put any weight on it and it hurt pretty bad. I gimped barely out of the rink, and on the drive as it just seemed to get worse I knew I had to go in.

Tell em Im pretty sure I broke my foot. Eventually get called back and into X-ray but they are taking X-rays of my ankle. I’m like “Ey-yo, it’s my foot”. And the technician walks away, takes the shot and then comes back and is like “Sorry, what was that?” Lol. I say it looks like you are imaging my ankle, she says Hmm I think we can still see the foot…. ok whatver.

Er nurse(I know she wasn’t a doctor) comes back and says “No fracture. Your ankle is fine.” Again I say it’s not my ankle it’s my fucking foot. Mind you she already brought out an ankle brace. But says, ok we’ll take a couple more shots but it was this portable machine. She comes back again and says No break!! I’m sitting there knowing it’s broke. You just know when something is broke. Regardless she puts the ankle brace on, which at this point I didn’t care, I was ready to go, and told me I had a bad bruise…

Next week or so, I’m in severe pain everyday. Legit needed the crutches the first 3-4 days. After 10 days, it still feels like day 3. Go back to an “Immediate Care” center. The reason why is my wife recently changed my insurance to an HMO since I never go in to doctors and I didn’t have a primary guy.

Go into immediate care and say, I need an MRI cause they say it’s not broke but it sure feels broke and I’m sure something is seriously not right. She orders more regular X-rays anyway. Comes back. “NO Break! It’s just a bruise. Mind you my foot is swelled twice it’s size and completely discolored the entire foot… Bit at least she give me a walking boot…

Spend time finding a “primary” guy who can see me within reason. Found a dude who could see me a week later. Nice enough guy. So 17 days after injury, still swollen and I can’t walk without a bad limp and sharp pain… he listens and says, “All I can do is go off your description so I’ll order the mri. He orders and Ankle and foot MRI, apparently those are seperate. Of course. Insurance oks the ankle but not the foot!! Lol. I’m like, it’s all cause this dumb bitch in the ER prolly writing ankle. So I had to cancel my ankle MRI have the doctor call in and fix it. He does. Get MRI done 25 days after injury. Don’t get my results from them until over the weekend now a full 28 days.

Turns out I have 2 full breaks, running almost parallel thru the navicular. So it’s essentially in 3 pieces. . Refers me to foot specialist.
I see the specialist today almost 5 weeks after injury. Mind you I was told I have a bruise and can resume walking when the soft tissue pain goes away. Despite knowing it’s broke in my body, or maybe a ligament was torn, , I had to be on my feet and I sorta took their word it wasn’t broke.. so I’ve just been nutting up and dealing with the pain while walking/working…etc

Foot specialist informs me today this break is actually very severe. It’s not displaced or anything but this bone has VERY slow heal time and can definitely lead to bone death if it doesn’t. I should have been in a cast and crutches from Day 1. So even tho I’m 5 weeks in, I’ve finally have proper diagnosis and a 24/7 walking boot and use crutches for the next 3 weeks and then another mri to see if it’s healing…

But here’s where I’m gonna talk to a lawyer, I asked if he can see the breaks in the original X-rays. And he sorta softly said “I can’t speak to what May or may not have happened, sometimes it gets missed. It happens. But yeah, I can see the breaks in the first X-rays”. He then loads em up on the computer and shows me the images and it looks fucking obvious to me. And he SEES it just the same on the 2nd set of X-rays I had 10 days later.

I’m not saying I’m gonna lose major function in my foot if this doesn’t heal right. But of all the “systems” out there, the medical community gets my wrath and I really feel I was giving horrible treatment and improper diagnosis that Definitley made the possibility of further complications a reality. Nevermind, legit pain and suffering.

[GuitarBilly]

Moving it to the OT forum.

Read the paperwork that was given to you on the 2 first places and see if the paperwork says that you should follow up with a primary doctor. That could make a difference as far as legal liability goes.

BUT You should definitely talk to a lawyer about it.

Because here's a secret that my dad (who's been a layer for almost 60 years) taught me:

You don't have to have a case that you can win. You only have a case that's expensive to defend. Meaning, would they rather spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawyers, experts etc OR just give you $50k and call it a day? Even because they are covered by malpractice insurance.

The vast majority of lawsuits don't ever make it to court, because it's a financial decision more than a legal decision. So yes, talk to an attorney that specializes in malpractice.

[EndTime]

Moving it to the OT forum.

Read the paperwork that was given to you on the 2 first places and see if the paperwork says that you should follow up with a primary doctor. That could make a difference as far as legal liability goes.

BUT You should definitely talk to a lawyer about it.

Because here's a secret that my dad (who's been a layer for almost 60 years) taught me:

You don't have to have a case that you can win. You only have a case that's expensive to defend. Meaning, would they rather spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawyers, experts etc OR just give you $50k and call it a day? Even because they are covered by malpractice insurance.

The vast majority of lawsuits don't ever make it to court, because it's a financial decision more than a legal decision. So yes, talk to an attorney that specializes in malpractice.

Oops I thought I did click Offtopic…

Paperwork from ER referred me to a foot specialist. Now I’m not saying they HAVe to know every doctor in my HMO, but they should have known it was an HMO and I remember telling em I didn’t have a primary doctor yet. But he specialist they gave me from the ER wasn’t in my Network. So it was worthless. I even called em anyway.

But yeah I’m def calling a lawyer. Apparently the chances this goes south even 5-10 years later is very real. It needed immobilization and no weight bearing for 6 weeks. I was given an improper “brace” and said once it’s ok to walk, you can resume to light duty. Lol.

[ajaxlepinski]

I never hired an attorney other than to buy or sell a hoese. I heard from others that, if you have a winning case the attorney will takes it for a percentage of the settlement. If the attorney wants to charge you, it means he thonks there is a good chance that you'll lose.

[GuitarBilly]

I never hired an attorney other than to buy or sell a hoese. I heard from others that, if you have a winning case the attorney will takes it for a percentage of the settlement. If the attorney wants to charge you, it means he thonks there is a good chance that you'll lose.

Yeah most good malpractice attorneys won't charge you unless you recover funds. Meaning they take your case unless they think you can either win or settle.

If you are asked for an upfront fee, keep looking.