The death of a former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Dwight White has culminated in the filing of a lawsuit alleging medical malpractice and wrongful death against a Pittsburgh hospital. White’s family, who filed the lawsuit, is claiming that negligent care of doctors at the Pittsburgh hospital caused the early death of the otherwise healthy former player, who entered the hospital for routine back surgery.
Mr. White was a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers “Steel Curtain” defense from 1971 through his retirement in 1980. In 2008, nearly twenty-eight years after his retirement, Mr. White elected to have a discectomy: a surgery where part or all of a herniated disc is removed from a patient’s spine. Mr. White was admitted to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in May, 2008, where doctors performed the surgery. But following his release from the hospital, White’s family states his condition deteriorated.
Mr. White’s neurosurgeon and long-time physician was out of town following the surgery. So as his condition worsened, an on-call doctor at the hospital prescribed an over-the-counter medication to treat his symptoms. A day after being prescribed the medication, Mr. White was rushed to the hospital by ambulance where upon arrival, a pulmonary embolism was found. He was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit but passed away shortly thereafter.
The lawsuit brought by White’s family alleges, among other things, that White was not given the proper dosage of Heparin to manage his blood clots. The family’ attorney told Pittsburgh media that the athlete’s doctor missed chances to save the former Steelers’ life. Dwight White was fifty-eight years old when he died on June 6, 2008.
Preliminary reports indicate that the lawsuit seeks more than $25,000 in damages. In general, medical malpractice suits often claim not only pain and suffering damages for the patient, but also compensation for the family’s loss and potential punitive damages against the doctors and hospital. Further, the wrongful death claim is a separate claim for damages.
Medical malpractice is professional negligence, by act or omission, by a health care provider in which care provided deviates from accepted standards of practice in the medical community and causes injury or death to the patient. Medical malpractice affects the quality of life for not only the victim, but the victim’s family, friends and loved ones. Malpractice lawsuits are complex in nature and malpractice is often difficult to prove.
The lawyers at pamedicalmalpracticeattorney.com are experienced and successful in the area of medical malpractice lawsuits. For a free and confidential consultation, please visit www.pamedicalmalpracticeattorney.com and fill out our “Get help now” section.
