Tennessee Injury Law Center : Lawyers for Personal Injury and Wrongful Death : Serving Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville

The Tennessee Department of Health has posted on its website thousands of pages of inspection reports on Tennessee nursing homes.

The Affordable Care Act passed under President Obama required that the reports be more accessible to consumers. 

The new postings include one year of reports for each licensed facility.  Eventually, four years of reports will be included.

The increased availability of these reports will help Tennesseans make more informed decisions about which nursing home to choose for a loved one and also monitor the quality of care given in the facility.

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My mother was in a nursing home for rehabilitation after hip replacement surgery.  She was given a double-dose of blood thinner and had a stroke.  Now, she will be in a nursing home the rest of her life.  What are her rights? 

The answer to those question can be fully answered only after a review of relevant medical records and consultations with one or more doctors and other health care professionals.

An experienced medical malpractice lawyer will want evaluate those records and talk with the health care professionals to confirm that given the extra dose was medical negligence and that it actually caused your mother's stroke.  

Then, this attorney will also want to understand how this stroke is going to effect your mother's quality of life and her future medical expenses.

No experienced medical malpractice attorney will be able to tell you whether your mother has a valid case without doing to work mentioned above.  If a lawyer offers you an opinion about your case without doing this work I recommend you find another lawyer - immediately.  Medical malpractice cases are very complicated and a lot of work must be done before an a valid opinion can be given on a case.

To learn more about medical malpractice cases, read our Legal Guide 'Understanding Medical Malpractice Cases in Tennessee."

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How many jurors will hear a medical malpractice case in Tennessee?

Usually there are twelve.  The parties to the lawsuit can agree on less than twelve, but usually no such agreement is reached.

The jury must reach a unanimous verdict.  That is, all must agree on the decision.  If there is not a unanimous verdict, a mistrial is declared by the judge and there is another trial.

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I believe that my doctor committed medical malpractice on me and injured me for life.  What is the deadline for filing a medical malpractice case in Tennessee?

The short answer to this question is one year plus one hundred-twenty days. But the issue is really more complicated than that.

Generally, medical malpractice cases must be initiated within one year of the incident which causes the injury. For example, if a doctor performs surgery on the wrong arm of the patient, the patient will have one year from the date of the surgery to initiate a claim. A new Tennessee law requires that medical providers be given 60 days advance notice in the proper form before being sued for medical malpractice. The notice must be given before the expiration of the time limit for initiating the claim, so generally within one year. If proper notice is given, the deadline for filing the lawsuit is then automatically extended by 120 days.

Medical malpractice claims are subject to what is known as a “statute of repose.” A statute of repose imposes an absolute time limit for bringing a claim regardless of the age of the injured person or when the person became aware of an injury. The statute of repose for bringing a medical malpractice claim is three years. This means that a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed within three years of the date of the malpractice, regardless of the age or competency of the injured person or when the injury is discovered.

Certain exceptions apply to these general rules such as instances when an instrument or sponge is left inside the patient and the patient is unaware. In this instance, the time limit for bringing the lawsuit is one year from the date of discovery.

There is lots of room for error here, and all lawyers would tell you that determining the deadline for filing suit in a particular case is very complicated. Therefore, the safest course of action is to contact an attorney as soon as possible if you believe you may have a claim. Unless a lawyer with knowledge of all of the relevant facts advises you to the contrary, you should assume that you have one year from the date of the incident causing you an injury to give the formal notice of medical malpractice claim described above. In the malpractice resulted in the death of the patient, you should assume that proper notice must be given within one year of the injury that later caused the death unless a lawyer with knowledge of all of the relevant facts advises you that you have more time.

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I think I was injured by medical malpractice.  I talked to a lawyer at church and she said that another doctor would have to testify against my doctor.  Is that right?

Generally, yes. In fact, most cases require testimony from more than one expert medical witness. The expert(s) must testify (1) what level or type of care was necessary in the community given the medical issue; (b) that the appropriate level of care was not provided; and (c) that the inappropriate care caused the injury or death of the patient that would not have otherwise occurred.

This is a very complicated area of the lawyer, and I strongly suggest that you consult an experienced medical malpractice lawyer to evaluate your case.

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My dad was dropped in a nursing home.  He broke his hip.  He never recovered from it and died two months later.   Do we have a wrongful death case or a personal injury case?

First, no one can tell you if you have a case at all without doing an investigation into the circumstances of the fall.

Second, if you do have a case, it will only be a personal injury case unless a doctor will testify that more likely than not the death was a result of the fall.   To make this determination, a doctor will need to review your father's medical records.  An autopsy may also be necessary.

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I was hurt in a head-on automobile accident.  The driver that crossed the centerline and hit me died in the wreck.   Do I have legal rights against him even if he is dead?

Yes.   Although you can't sue someone who is dead, you can sue his estate.   If an estate is not opened for him, you (through your lawyer) can petition the court to have an estate opened so that you can sue it and collect the monies you are entitled to recover.

The fact that the person who hit you died does not relieve his insurance company of the obligation to defend the case and pay the monies to you that you are entitled to receive under the law (up to the liability insurance policy limits). 

An experienced personal injury lawyer will know how to help you through this process.   Remember that in Tennessee a personal injury claim must be filed against the responsible people within one year of the date of the accident.   Under these circumstances you will need act even more promptly than usual because the lawyer you hire will need to do extra work to get an estate opened for the decedent so that suit can be filed within one year of the date of the accident.

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I believe I was injured as a result of gross negligence at a local hospital.  What they did to me was outrageous - the media will have a field day with it.   In fact, it may force the hospital out of business.   Doesn't this mean I will get a quick settlement?

Perhaps.  It is true that some cases are settled to avoid publicity.  But these cases are relatively rare and in my opinion many people over-estimate the impact of the threat of a public airing of a situation will have on the ability to resolve the case.   Most (not all, but most) of the time those who are sued or who are at risk of a lawsuit place more importance on the merits of the case and the provable damages than they do on the threat of publicity.

An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you determine whether and when to bring the treatment you received to the public eye.  I recommend that you not seek media attention or even speak with the media until you discuss the matter with an experienced lawyer.

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