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Hernia Mesh Case Criteria in Michigan

Legally Reviewed and Edited by: Terry Cochran

The vast majority of medical professionals provide excellent care, but, despite their best efforts, things sometimes do go wrong. You could have side-effects to the treatment, and sometimes the consequences can be quite serious. If you have suffered serious injuries after hernia mesh repair surgery, contact a good hernia mesh lawyer in Michigan, for a free evaluation of your case and to assist you with a possible claim.

Negligence refers to a failure in Duty of Care, by medical professionals, hospitals, or medical device manufacturers. It is important, though, to understand the difference between an error of judgment, an unavoidable injury or medical negligence.

Thousands of personal injury cases have been filed against hernia mesh manufacturers since 2005, with some settlements reached and many still ongoing or in early stages.

Which hernia mesh firms are involved in these cases?

Several hernia mesh manufacturers are involved in these cases, most notably Bard (Bard Davol), Atrium Medical and Ethicon (a Johnson & Johnson Company); these companies have several MDLs (multi-district litigations) due to the large numbers of cases. Gore and Covidien/Medtronic also have many cases filed against them.

What criteria are used to check if I qualify?

You need to be able to prove actual harm as a direct result of negligence on the part of the party against whom you are filing a case. Medical negligence cases have to satisfy four different components before you can file, which include:

  • Duty of Care owed by the party you are suing
  • That there was a direct breach inf that duty of care
  • You must prove the direct causal connection to the harm; and
  • Prove actual loss or harm in monetary terms

Duty of Care

You must prove that you were owed a duty of care before you can file a case.

Please note that if your local general practitioner referred you to a surgery center, for example, and you suffered an injury from a faulty hernia mesh product, he did not breach his duty of care. Make sure that you understand the criteria well and check the validity of your claims with your personal injury lawyer at Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C.

Check if you were you owed a duty of care and by whom?

Doctor – It could be any of the medical professionals that took care of you, such as the doctor that diagnosed the condition, the surgeon, or any other professional staff. Professionals have to provide you with the skills and care that is reasonably expected from a similar professional under similar or the same circumstances. It includes providing enough information to give informed consent. Courts would test this principle against the specialty standards, acceptable practices with the facility and equipment used, and any other exigent circumstances.

Surgical Facilities or Hospitals – This will be the hospital or clinic where the surgery was performed, and you received your post-op care.

Medical Device Manufacturers – They must ensure a safe product with proper instructions for use and to provide adequate warning of the potential side-effects and risks. Manufacturers have a duty of care to consumers, professionals, and hospitals.

Breach of Duty of Care – how do you tell if it was breached?

Doctors – you must demonstrate that appropriate standards were NOT met, as could be reasonably expected from other medical professionals under similar or same circumstances, or as prescribed by state laws. This is difficult and often require witness and expert testimony. Unavoidable injuries and error of judgment is not always negligence.

Hospital – must ensure a safe facility, qualified medical professionals, and properly working equipment. You will need medical records, facility records, hiring records, and testimony here.

Hernia Mesh Manufacturer – Need to prove the product was defective, additionally, that the company failed to provide adequate warning of foreseeable side-effects and complications.

Causal Connection – were you harmed by the breach and can you prove a direct causal connection?

In filing against a hernia mesh manufacturer, you must prove the defective implant was the direct and proximate cause of the harm suffered.

Quantify the harm in monetary terms – can you prove actual loss or harm?

You must be able to quantify the harm suffered in hernia mesh surgery in terms of money. It may include economic damages such as medical bills, travel cost, and lost wages. Non-economic damages such as pain and suffering, are much harder to prove.

A good hernia mesh lawyer will be able to help you clarify criteria for Michigan, give advice on MDLs and class-action suits and deal with the myriad of tasks to gather evidence and do appropriate filings.

Contact us

For a free case evaluation, please contact Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C. at 866-MICH-LAW or complete our online contact form so our team can help you fight for the compensation and justice you deserve.

Nikole Parsons

Nikole has a special interest in medico-legal issues and holds post-basic degrees in medical law and business. She has developed quality improvement and safety plans for many practices and facilities to prevent medico-legal issues and teaches several courses on data protection and privacy, legal, medical examinations and documentation, and professional ethics. She has been writing professionally on legal, business, ethics, patient advocacy, research and medico-legal issues in articles, white papers, business plans, and training courses for over thirty-five years.

Disclaimer : The information provided is general and not for legal advice. The blogs are not intended to provide legal counsel and no attorney-client relationship is created nor intended.

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