Anesthesia Errors Lawyer in Massachusetts

Anesthesia Errors and Patient Safety

Anesthesiologists and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) bear responsibility for maintaining patient safety throughout the perioperative period: before, during, and after surgery. Anesthesia errors, errors in drug dosing, airway management, patient monitoring, or response to complications, can cause permanent neurological injury, cardiac arrest, and death. While modern anesthesia is far safer than it was in previous decades, anesthesia-related complications continue to occur, and a significant proportion of them result from departures from the anesthesia standard of care. Attorney Jeffrey C. Lavey represents anesthesia error victims throughout Massachusetts.

Types of Anesthesia Errors

• Dosing errors: administering too much or too little anesthetic or analgesic
• Airway management failures: failure to intubate correctly or to recognize and manage a difficult airway
• Failure to monitor oxygen saturation, blood pressure, and cardiac rhythm at required intervals
• Failure to recognize and respond to signs of intraoperative awareness
• Drug interaction errors: failure to recognize dangerous interactions with the patient’s regular medications
• Failure to perform a complete pre-anesthesia evaluation identifying risk factors
• Post-anesthesia care unit failures in monitoring patients emerging from anesthesia

Intraoperative Awareness

Intraoperative awareness, where a patient becomes conscious during surgery but cannot communicate this because they are still paralyzed by neuromuscular blocking agents, is a recognized and traumatic anesthesia complication. Monitoring technology is available to reduce the risk of awareness, and the anesthesiologist is responsible for maintaining adequate depth of anesthesia throughout the procedure. A patient who experiences intraoperative awareness and develops PTSD and other lasting psychological harm from the experience may have a valid anesthesia malpractice claim. Attorney Lavey handles intraoperative awareness cases throughout Massachusetts.

Failure to Evaluate Pre-Operative Risk

Before administering anesthesia, the anesthesiologist has an obligation to conduct a comprehensive pre-anesthesia evaluation to identify risk factors: cardiac and pulmonary disease, difficult airway indicators, drug allergies, relevant medication interactions, and other factors that affect anesthesia safety and planning. A failure to identify and account for pre-operative risk factors in the anesthesia plan may constitute negligence when those factors contribute to an intraoperative complication. Attorney Lavey evaluates pre-operative evaluation quality in every anesthesia error case.

Compensation for Anesthesia Error Victims

Anesthesia error compensation covers all medical treatment required to address the harm caused by the error, including neurological rehabilitation for anoxic brain injury, cardiac care for cardiac events, and psychological care for intraoperative awareness PTSD; all lost wages during treatment and recovery; pain and suffering from the resulting injury; and future medical costs for lasting consequences. In fatal anesthesia error cases, wrongful death compensation is available for the family. Attorney Lavey pursues every element of compensation in every anesthesia error malpractice case.

Frequently Asked Questions