Dr. James Graves who was found guilty of manslaughter has been sentenced to nearly 63 years in prison. Dr. Graves was convicted by a Milton, Fla. jury of manslaughter and racketeering in connection with the overdose deaths of four patients for whom he had prescribed OxyContin and other drugs. Graves is the nation’s first doctor to be found guilty in such a case and has set a precedent. Currently, in different areas of the country, many doctors are being prosecuted for what the government claims to be manslaughter. Now if a patient dies of misusing a drug the fingers will be pointed at the doctor instead of the patient, when in reality, it was the patient who did not use the drug for medicinal purposes, who became addicted to the drug, and who sold the drugs for profit. Hence, doctors are faultless and should not be criminally prosecuted for acts like these.
In the case of Dr. Graves, a pain management specialist, he gave out his prescriptions recklessly or to anyone who was willing to pay. The prosecutors in the case charged that Dr. Graves recklessly wrote prescriptions to anyone willing to pay for an office visit without asking the proper pre-prescribing questions, he endangered their lives which caused their deaths. “Dr. Graves argued that he followed medical protocols and legitimately prescribed OxyContin and other pain medication to patients he saw in his office. If the patients would have taken the medications as prescribed, they would not have died, he argued.” The jury went in favor of the prosecutor’s side.
The drug OxyContin that Dr. Graves has been prescribing to his patients is a very powerful pain killer. “OxyContin contains oxycodone, a very strong narcotic pain reliever similar to morphine. OxyContin is designed so that the oxycodone is slowly released over time, allowing it to be used twice daily. You should never break, chew, or crush the OxyContin tablet since this causes a large amount of oxycodone to be released from the tablet all at once, potentially resulting in a dangerous or fatal drug overdose.” Many of Dr. Graves’ patients have been doing such thing as breaking the tablets and chewing them or cooking them and then injecting them into their body, which is lethal. It is not the doctor’s fault if their patient uses the painkiller as a lethal drug. The doctor doesn’t intend for them to use the drug in such harmful ways.
Medical malpractice has been a controversial issue in the healthcare setting for centuries. Apparently, there are laws to protect patients’ from medical mistakes and errors that are the result of negligence. After researching various laws and medical liability cases based on allegations of negligence, this paper will discuss and provide details on the medical malpractice case of Dorrence Kenneth versus Charleston Community Memorial Hospital. The case analysis will briefly explain information from the beginning to end, including: laws that were violated, codes in the healthcare industry that were breached by the physician and Charlesto...
...92‘s Riggins v. Nevada, and 1990‘s Washington v. Harper. In Harper, the court determined that prison inmates could be forcibly medicated if they were a danger to themselves or others, and if the medication was medically appropriate. Riggins, in turn, decided that a defendant already on trial could be forcibly medicated to ensure his competency and allow for the proceedings to continue smoothly, in essence bulldozing one’s 14th amendment rights to “accomplish essential state policy” (Riggins, 1992, as cited in Breneman, 2004, p. 971). Riggins also proclaimed that forcible medication must be the least invasive means of treatment, and provide minimal side effects. Sell was clearly the child of these two rulings, fusing the competing interests of governmental prosecution with the liberty and safety of the defendant.
In the case of Tomcik v. Ohio Dep’t of Rehabilitation & Correction, the main issue present was the medical negligence demonstrated by the staff of the medical clinic at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction towards the inmate Tomcik. Specifically, nonfeasance, or the “failure to act, when there is a duty to act as a reasonably prudent person would in similar circumstances” (Pozgar, 2016, p. 192), was displayed when the employees at the medical clinic failed to give immediate medical attention to Tomcik when she continually signed the clinic list and “provided the reason she was requesting
Registered Nurse Pausits, a defendant out of the many involved with Parson’s case, has failed to provide Randy Parson with the correct prescription drug during his stay at Standish. The Plaintiff wanted to prove that she unsuccessfully administered medication to Randy Parsons and that a reasonable jury can conclude the fact Pausits was aware of the risks to Parsons. The court has reversed the grant of summary judgment to Nurse Pausits, because this case would rise to the level of deliberate indifference. Plaintiff Parsons revealed that Pausits perceived facts to infer substantial risk to Randy Parsons and drew the inference. She had to state she was aware, which she did, of a substantial risk. Evidence has shown that Nurse Pausits could have gotten Dilantian for Randy Parson if she viewed the situation as an emergency. Pausit’s case has discovered confirmation that she administered 100mg of Dilantin to Randy Parsons August 27, at 6:00 p.m. However, in Randy’s toxicology report, no Dilantin was shown in his body for 3 days before his death, which was August 28. Wellbutrin was shown in Randy’s body instead of Dilantin, which is a form of an anti-depressant that helps people suffering from seizures and can prevent causing a seizure. Displayed that Pausits signed Randy’s Medication Administration Record (MAR), when the prison log showed that Registered Nurse Alexander performed the medication August 27, raises a red flag as to who performed the medication and what prescription was given. The Plaintiff provided enough evidence towards Pausits in that she has unsuccessfully administered the medication to Randy and that Pausits was aware of a substantial risk to Randy Parsons. Because of this, a jury can place more significance on the t...
An ethical dilemma that is currently happening in the medical field regards pain management. Doctors and other medical professionals are faced with this ethical decision on whether to prescribe strong pain medication to patients who claim to be experiencing pain, or to not in skepticism that the patient is lying to get opioids and other strong medications. “Opioids are drugs that act on the nervous system to relieve pain. Continued use and abuse can lead to physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms,” (Drug Free World Online). Opioids are often prescribed to patients experiencing excruciating pain, but doctors are faced with prescribing these drugs as an ethical issue because only a patient can measure the pain they are in, it is simply impossible
Using Dr. Timothy Quill’s case in his article, “Death and Dignity”, where he prescribes barbiturates to his critically ill patient, the morality
In 1999 a well known physician, Jack Kevorkian, was convicted of second degree murder. One might think that Kevorkian committed the terrible crime of murdering someone, but that is actually far from the truth. Kevorkian was convicted because of something a little unusual; he helped a patient with assisted suicide. Alexander Stingl, a sociologist and science historian, and M. Lee, authors of “Assisted Suicide: An Overview,” define assisted suicide as “any case in which a doctor gives a patient (usually someone with a terminal illness) the means to carry out their own suicide by using a lethal dose of medication.” Kevorkian was convicted because as of right now, assisted suicide is illegal in the United States with the exceptions of Oregon, Montana, and Washington. Huge controversy rose over this case because some feel assisted suicide is a civil right whereas others feel it is unnecessary. Assisted suicide is a practice that has long been debated.
Medical error occurs more than most people realize and when a doctor is found negligent the patient has the right to sue for compensation of their losses. Debates and issues arise when malpractice lawsuits are claimed. If a patient is filing for a medical malpractice case, the l...
In all of history, "there are only three circumstances that have been an acceptable way for taking a life: killing in self-defense or in protection of another life, killing in war, and in the case of capital punishment, killing by agents of the state. This law doesn't allow anywhere in the United States the right for one person to kill another even if the latter requests it to be done" (Callahan. pg. 71). However, Dr. Jack Kevorkian has committed this last type of killing several times. In the Hippocrates Oath, a physician swears not to give poison to anyone, though asked to do so, nor to suggest such a plan (Biema).
Medical malpractice cases are difficult for the families who have lost their loved one or have suffered from severe injuries. No one truly wins in complicated court hearings that consist of a team of litigation attorneys for both the defendant and plaintiff(s). During the trial, evidence supporting malpractice allegations have to be presented so that the court can make a decision if the physician was negligent resulting in malpractice, or if the injury was unavoidable due to the circumstances. In these types of tort cases, the physician is usually a defendant on trial trying to prove that he or she is innocent of the medical error, delay of treatment or procedure that caused the injury. The perfect example of being at fault for medical malpractice as a result of delaying a procedure is the case of Waverly family versus John Hopkins Health System Corporation. The victims were not compensated enough for the loss of their child’s normal life. Pozgar (2012) explained….
The Lewis Blackman Case: Ethics, Law, and Implications for the Future Medical errors in decision making that result in harm or death are tragic and costly to the families affected. There are also negative impacts to the medical providers and the associated institutions (Wu, 2000). Patient safety is a cornerstone of higher-quality health care and nurses serve as a communication link in all settings which is critical in surveillance and coordination to reduce adverse outcomes (Mitchell, 2008). The Lewis Blackman Case 1 of 1 point accrued
“In 1999, Dr. Jack Kevorkian, a Michigan physician known for openly advertising that he would perform assisted suicide despite the fact that it was illegal, was convicted of second-degree murder” (Lee). The fact of the matter is human being...
By the year 2000 opioid medicine containing oxycodone etc., are being abused and misused and more than doubled in 10 years’ time.
Some feel that a terminally ill patient should have a legal right to control the manner in which they die. Physicians and nurses have fought for the right to aid a patient in their death. Many families of the terminally ill have exhausted all of their funds caring for a dying patient and would prefer the option of assisted suicide to bankruptcy. While there are many strong opposing viewpoints, one of the strongest is that the terminally ill patient has the right to die in a humane, dignified manner. However, dignity in dying is not necessarily assured when a trusted doctor, whose professional ethics are to promote and maintain life, injects a terminally ill patient with a lethal dose of morphine.
There were many ethical issues within this case; the first indication of an ethical problem was the administration of an incorrect medication to the patient. The doctor, administration, and providers involved in the care of the patient must decide what is ethically moral when informing the patient. I believe that it is the patient’s right to know that she received the wrong medication for a number of days. Although no major medical consequences occurred, I believe this