Tennessee Injury Lawyer Blog

A statute of limitation sets forth the amount of time a would-be plaintiff has to bring a claim before a court. Most statutes of limitation begin on the date of injury or the date the injured party reasonably discovered the injury. In a Tennessee medical malpractice action, the statute of limitation is one year from the date of injury or one year from the date the plaintiff reasonably discovered the injury.

A “statute of repose,” on the other hand, is an absolute deadline that cuts off the plaintiff’s legal right to file a lawsuit. In a medical malpractice action, the absolute deadline is three years from the date of injury.

However, both the statutes of limitation and repose are extended 120 days from the date of expiration of the applicable limitation period if the plaintiff provides notice to all defendants in compliance with TCA 29-26-121.

As with most legal rules, there are certain exceptions that can suspend the statutes of limitation and repose upon a judicially acceptable excuse or justification. The first justification or excuse is called fraudulent concealment. This occurs when the defendant, by his actions or words, hides facts that would lead a plaintiff to believe that he or she has no cause of action. In this case, the plaintiff has one year from the date he or she learns that a cause of action exists.

Another situation that can extend the medical malpractice statutes of limitation or repose is when a doctor leaves an instrument or other foreign object in the patient’s body. Because objects left in the body can take years to cause damage to tissues and organs, the Tennessee legislature extended applicable limitation periods to one year from when the instrument or object was discovered or should have been discovered by the plaintiff, regardless of the 3-year absolute bar.

In Tennessee, the medical malpractice limitation periods are short; therefore, when injured, you have very little time to hire an attorney, investigate the merits of the claim, and bring a suit. If you feel you have a medical malpractice claim, it is imperative that you consult with an attorney as soon as possible so that you can preserve your legal rights. Call 866-853-2888.

Patients expect to receive proper and adequate medical care when they are fully informed about their medical condition, potential treatment options, and each option’s associated consequences and risks.

Under Tennessee law, healthcare providers who recommend treatment have a duty to discuss with the patient the consequences and potential risks of any proposed course of treatment. The healthcare provider is also under a duty to discuss other acceptable alternatives and the pros and cons of each. When this information is provided, the patient is then in a position to give informed consent.

Informed consent is a term used to describe the legally sufficient amount of information a doctor must provide to his or her patient prior to the patient’s written consent to treatment and/or surgery. Such informed consent allows the patient to play a more active role in his or her treatment. It also allows parents to know the results of prenatal tests, allowing them to make crucial decisions bearing on both their lives and their children’s lives.

Continue reading "Informed Consent and How it Applies to Medical Malpractice" »

The failure to timely diagnose and/or treat a patient isn’t always caused by Tennessee medical malpractice of a healthcare professional or physician. Sometimes injuries in a healthcare setting are caused by defective laboratory kits and medical screening devices (such as MRIs and CT scans).

To give an example as to how difficult it can be to find the culprit of an injury, we consider the recent recall of Covidien’s Mallinckrodt Sodium Chromate Cr-51 Injection. The Mallinckrodt Sodium Chromate Cr-51 Injection is used to diagnose a rare bone marrow disorder called Polycythemia by injecting chemicals into the blood stream that assists in the determination of blood volume and blood loss. Using a subpotent product could lead to an incorrect result in red blood cell volume or mass. Consequently, Polycythemia could be easily ruled out as the cause based upon a false lab result.

Since the disorder causes too much production of white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets, a misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis followed by a delay in treatment would put a patient at an increased risk of stroke or embolus. A person suffering from undiagnosed Polycythemia could suffer serious personal injury while never knowing that the actual cause was a defective product in Tennessee conducting the diagnostic test.

Continue reading "Failure to Diagnose/Treat Due to Defective Healthcare Products" »

Those who have had children are familiar with the word “jaundice.” Jaundice is typically associated with a child having yellowish skin.

Jaundice is also called “hyperbilirubinemia,” which means that there is an excess amount of the protein bilirubin in the newborn’s blood. Normally the condition is harmless, but sometimes, when there is too much bilirubin in the system, there is a chance that the infant will develop Kernicterus, which is a type of brain damage associated with neurological impairments leading to cerebral palsy, deafness, and various learning disabilities.

All newborn babies are at risk for jaundice—particularly premature babies, males, breastfed babies, and infants of Asian descent. Given the sheer number of children who are at risk, the medical community has uniformly adopted a standard to check bilirubin levels at least once after a child’s birth. Abnormal test results should alert healthcare providers to closely monitor the baby while the baby is still in the hospital. Prior to discharge from the hospital, the healthcare provider should provide proper instructions to the child’s parents. In particular, the parents should be instructed about the dangers and signs of jaundice.

Continue reading "Jaundice and TN Medical Malpractice Risks" »

At Baker Associates, we understand how suffering from a gynecological or obstetric injury can be one of the most traumatic and emotionally draining challenges you can face over a lifetime. As has been stated elsewhere, these types of injuries strike at the very heart of what it means to be a woman and a mother. If you have suffered such an injury, call the Tennessee medical malpractice attorneys at Baker Associates for a free case evaluation.

The personal injury attorneys at Baker Associates can provide legal representation for a wide range of gynecological and obstetric malpractice claims, including:

• Surgical errors during a hysterectomy or other gynecological surgery


• Inappropriate examination


• Screening and testing errors


• Inaccurate analysis of screening and testing procedures from CAT scans, MRIs and pap smears


• Failure to diagnose cancer (such as cervical and breast cancer)


• Labor and delivery errors

Continue reading "Obstetric and Gynecological Injuries in Tennessee" »

In our ongoing efforts to keep you informed about the risks associated with prescription and over-the-counter medications and dietary supplements, the Knoxville personal injury attorneys at Baker Associates today wish to provide you with information regarding a recent FDA warning. On June 4, 2009, the FDA warned health care professionals about the risk of serious liver injury associated with Propylthiouracil treatment.

Propylthiouracil is an anti-thyroid medication administered for the treatment of Graves' disease. Graves' disease is an autoimmune disorder that leads to over activity of the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland is located in the front of the neck just below the Adam’s Apple. It releases hormones that regulate the rate of the body’s metabolism and is critical for body temperature control, energy, weight, mood, and blood calcium levels.

The FDA issued the warning after analyzing adverse event reports, which showed that a number of individuals with Grave’s disease had sustained serious liver injury while taking the Propylthiouracil treatment.

A standard of care for physicians administering Propylthiouracil therapy seems to be developing. According to Amy Egan, M.D., "health care professionals should carefully consider which drug to initiate in a patient recently diagnosed with Graves' disease. If Propylthiouracil therapy is chosen, the patient should be closely monitored for symptoms and signs of liver injury, especially during the first six months after initiating therapy." Failure to follow this standard of care, could give rise to a cause of action for medical malpractice in Tennessee if it is also the standard of care adopted by Tennessee’s medical community.

According to medicinenet.com, patients with serious liver disease develop symptoms that include:

• fatigue,


• weakness,


• vague abdominal pain,


• loss of appetite,


• yellowing of the skin (jaundice)


• itching, and


• easy bruising.

You should consult a physician immediately if you are experiencing any of the above-listed symptoms. If upon diagnosis you learn that you have sustained a serious liver injury, you may be able to recover money damages for your medical bills, loss of income, and pain and suffering. For an experienced medical malpractice attorney in Knoxville, call Baker Associates at 866-853-2888.

Since the 1970s, several states have reformed their medical malpractice laws in response to nation-wide concerns over increasing insurance premiums and a belief that physicians leave their specialties and geographical areas because of suits filed against them. Unfortunately, some state Legislatures have gotten over-zealous in reducing the number of “frivolous lawsuits” filed by creating procedural traps that cleanse dockets of both meritorious and non-meritorious claims. Tennessee is no different.

After four amendments to what was originally SB 2001, Governor Bredesen on May 15, 2008, signed into law House Bill 1993, which is now codified as Tenn. Code Ann. sections 29-26-121 and 122. Section 121 codifies a pre-filing notice requirement, and section 122 codifies an expert pleading requirement.

The pre-filing notice provision requires the Plaintiff’s attorney to provide written notice of any potential Tennessee medical malpractice claim to each “health care provider” within 60 days of filing suit. Simply put, a claimant cannot file suit until 60 days has passed from the date of serving notice. During this sixty day period, all parties are entitled to obtain complete copies of claimant’s medical records. Section 121 also provides that if notice is filed, the one-year statute of limitation is “extended up to a period of ninety (90) days” and “applies to all parties and potential parties.” Failure to adhere to similar provisions in other states has resulted in dismissal of the case.

The expert pleading requirements apply after the complaint is filed. Within 90 days of filing the complaint, the Plaintiff’s attorney must file a certificate with the court stating that he or she has consulted with a competent expert. Further, the expert must provide to the attorney a statement indicating that he or she believes there is a good faith basis to maintain the Tennessee medical malpractice action based on available medical information. As with the pre-filing notice requirement, failure to strictly adhere to this provision may result in permanent dismissal of the claim.

Although the Legislature has enacted the new legislation to curb the number of frivolous medical malpractice suits filed in Tennessee, there is a great potential for meritorious claims to get denied simply because an unwary attorney failed to file notice or a certificate of good faith. Don’t risk having your valid medical malpractice claim get dismissed because of a procedural pit-fall; call the skilled Knoxville personal injury attorneys at Baker Associates for a free consultation.

The medical literature is clear: chiropractic neck adjustments carry the risk of stroke. According to the literature, a chiropractor performing a neck adjustment may inadvertently cause a stroke by rupturing the vertebral or the carotid artery. Once bleeding occurs, blood clots form, eventually break off and block blood flow to the brain resulting in stroke.

While there are a small but growing number of cases reported each year, there is a high likelihood that many go unreported. This is due to two reasons. First, the victim of the stroke may suffer irreparable brain damage whereby he or she cannot remember the chiropractic manipulation. Second, the family of a stroke victim is not likely to be aware that a chiropractic manipulation had been previously performed. The family would have no reason to make the connection as to what caused their loved one's serious personal injury.

The next question is whether the risk of stroke is worth it? Chiropractors perform thousands of neck adjustments everyday to treat everything from ear infections in babies to high blood pressure and epilepsy in adults. However, there is no scientific evidence showing any benefit for the majority of ailments treated by neck adjustment procedures.

So, the real concern here should not be the frequency of occurrence, but whether the risk of stroke outweighs the benefits of the neck adjustment. This determination clearly should be made by the patient; but where the chiropractor fails to inform the patient of the risks, the patient’s right to be fully-informed is violated, thus resulting in medical malpractice.

Where there is little or no benefit to a procedure, a complication as severe as stroke or death cannot be risked. If you or a loved one has suffered a stroke, which has occurred within hours, days or weeks following a chiropractic neck manipulation or adjustment, please contact the experienced Pigeon Forge personal injury lawyers at Baker Associates. Call 866-853-2888 for a free consultation today.