Lake Charles Personal Injury Law Blog

Take these steps to document a car accident

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC on Monday, January 14, 2019.

Even a minor car accident has the potential to result in a serious injury. Furthermore, it can cost you quite a bit of time and money, especially if you don't know which steps to take.

One of the most important things you can do following a car accident is begin the documentation process. Don't assume that you'll have time in the future to collect everything you need. Not only can this complicate things regarding your insurance claim, but it does the same if you want to file a lawsuit in an attempt to collect compensation from the negligent driver.

Disney World trip results in tragedy for 5 Louisiana kids

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Truck Accidents on Tuesday, January 8, 2019.

A trip that was supposed to take a group of Pentecostal church members from Louisiana to the purported "happiest place on Earth" ended in tragedy when a semi truck collided head-on with their church van, as well as another big truck, killing five children in the group and injuring others, including a pregnant woman. Two truck drivers, including the one who allegedly caused the accident, also lost their lives in the fiery crash that closed part of Interstate 75 in north Florida in both directions.

The five children killed in the crash ranged in age from nine to 14. A volunteer at the church reacted to news of the tragedy by saying that the crash claimed the lives of "half of our babies" in the congregation. Though not present in the vehicle, the pastor of the church lost his granddaughter, and his wife, who was along for the trip, sustained bruises and multiple broken bones. Hospitals in the area treated at least eight people injured in the crash, one of whom is a pregnant woman whose unborn baby should suffer no ill effects, according to reports.

These commonly misdiagnosed conditions can cause big trouble

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC on Friday, January 4, 2019.

You rely on your medical team to diagnose any concerns in a timely and accurate manner. When this happens, you give yourself the opportunity to make a fast and full recovery.

Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen. There are many commonly misdiagnosed conditions, all of which can lead to big trouble.

Allergens and their relation to medical malpractice

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Medical Malpractice on Thursday, January 3, 2019.

Louisiana residents trust doctors and medical staff with their lives. Unfortunately, there are instances in which negligence can bring a patient into harm's way. Today, we examine how allergens are tied to medical malpractice.

FindLaw examines some common examples of medical negligence or malpractice, which can take many different forms, affecting people in numerous ways and to various degrees. In general, it's considered any situation in which a medical emergency occurs that could have been avoided or prevented with proper attention.

Louisiana chemical plant named in wrongful death suit

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Wrongful Death on Saturday, December 22, 2018.

An activist claims that a chemical plant in LaPlace, Louisiana has poisoned the air of the entire parish by emitting fumes of a potentially carcinogenic byproduct into the atmosphere. The plant is now one of several parties named in a wrongful death and negligence suit filed by the families of 20 children and young adults. Other parties named in the suit include individual managers and leaders at the plant, the Louisiana Department of Health and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.

At issue is a substance called chloroprene. It is an invisible compound, a by-product of the manufacture of neoprene rubber, and the Environmental Protection Agency considers it likely to be carcinogenic, or cancer-causing. The chemical plant has been emitting chloroprene into the air since at least 2015, and air-monitoring results continue to show chloroprene in the area around the plant. One of the closest locations to the plant is an elementary school that children still attend.

The difference between medical malpractice and battery

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Medical Malpractice on Friday, December 21, 2018.

Louisiana residents rely on medical practitioners to provide them with safe ways to care for themselves and their loved ones. When those standards aren't met, it can cause critical damage and long-lasting ripples in a person's life. Today, we will take a look at the differences between medical malpractice and medical battery.

Of the two aforementioned terms, medical malpractice is the one that the general public is most familiar with. According to the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys, medical malpractice is a situation in which the negligent actions of hospital staff contribute to - or cause - the injury or death of a patient in their care. Negligence can come in many different forms, including:

Mixing up medications
Misreading a chart
Not performing thorough diagnoses
Not checking in on a patient often or thoroughly enough

Why do birth injuries still happen?

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Medical Malpractice on Saturday, December 15, 2018.

You may think that birth injuries to newborn children and mothers are next to impossible. Birth has become extraordinarily safe over the last few decades. That makes it all the more distressing if you experience one of these tragic incidents.

Any doctor is likely to tell you that childbirth is a risky process. Regardless of the painkillers, surgeries or specialized tools obstetricians and their teams might use to get better outcomes, there are still many things that could go wrong. When these events occur, it is often essential to determine whether everything happened naturally or if it was the responsibility of a negligent medical professional.

Building a strong claim after a commercial truck accident

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC on Thursday, December 13, 2018.

Recovering from a commercial truck accident can take many months or even years. Without a strong legal strategy to help navigate tricky legal issues, victims often find themselves drowning in medical debt or losing income while fighting for justice for their injuries. Because the stakes are often very high for both the victim and the business using the commercial vehicle, a strong claim must include as much evidence as a victim and their legal team can gather.

Like any car accident, the evidence begins to disappear and degrade quickly, especially if rain or other inclement weather is present. It is always wise to gather as much evidence as possible at the scene of the accident when it occurs, but for many victims, this is simply not feasible. After all, if a person suffers serious or life-threatening injuries in a collision with an enormous truck, their first concern should be their own safety and receiving proper medical care.

What causes cerebral palsy?

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Medical Malpractice on Friday, December 7, 2018.

If your child receives a diagnosis of cerebral palsy in Louisiana, you may have questions about what caused it. Similarly, if you are soon to give birth to a child, you may want to know if there is anything you can do to prevent your child from developing cerebral palsy.

According to the Mayo Clinic, cerebral palsy is a disorder that develops when a child is still in infancy, in many instances even before birth. In cases of cerebral palsy, damage to the developing brain can cause disorder of posture, muscle tone and/or movement. Neurological dysfunction, such as epilepsy, vision/hearing problems, urinary incontinence or psychiatric conditions, may be present as well. Depending on the extent of the brain damage, the severity of cerebral palsy can vary widely; some patients may be completely paralyzed, while others may only have a slight dysfunction of one limb.

3-vehicle crash in Louisiana leaves one dead

On behalf of Lee M. Schwalben, M.D., J.D., LLC posted in Car Accidents on Monday, November 26, 2018.

Authorities in Louisiana took the opportunity to remind motorists not to drive while impaired, fatigued or distracted, and not to exceed the posted speed limit, after a three-vehicle accident on Monday morning that resulted in a fatality as well as minor injuries. The cause is currently unknown, and the collision is still under investigation.

The accident occurred in Ouachita Parish on Louisiana Highway 34 near milepost 84 in the community of West Monroe. For unknown reasons, the 19-year-old driver of a westbound pickup truck allegedly struck an eastbound passenger car after crossing over the center line. He then collided with a second eastbound passenger car. The driver of the second vehicle was a 25-year-old man; both he and the 19-year-old driver sustained only minor injuries for which they received treatment at a nearby hospital. However, authorities pronounced the driver of the first vehicle struck, a 69-year-old man, dead at the scene of the accident due to the severity of the injuries sustained.