Dennis Quaid is a well-known actor, staring in popular movies such as The Parent Trap, The Right Stuff, and The Rookie. Unfortunately Quaid also made headlines when his newborn twins were given an overdose of a blood-thinner medication shortly after birth. While medical malpractice claims are often challenging to win, the outcome was positive for the Quaid family.
How the Overdose Occurred
Quaid’s newborn twins, Zoe and Thomas, were hospitalized a couple of weeks after birth with a staph infection. A physician prescribed 10 unit/ml of the blood thinner Heparin, a standard drug used to treat infections. Unfortunately, the twins were both given 10,000 unit/ml of Heparin, 1000 times the prescribed dosage. At the same time a third child was given the same overdose of Heparin.
The hospital stated that a pharmacy technician took the medication from the hospital’s supply without confirming the dosage with a second pharmacist, which was hospital policy. The Heparin was delivered by a satellite pharmacy that administered drugs to the pediatric unit. Pharmacists again neglected to confirm the dosage at the satellite pharmacy. When the Heparin was finally administered to the twins, the nurse neglected to check the dosage for a fourth and final time.
Who Was the Medical Malpractice Against?
Even though Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s employees were negligent numerous times when administering the drugs to the twins and the third child, the Quaid family chose to primarily sue Baxter Healthcare Corporation, the manufacturer of the drug. The suit did name the hospital as a “potential defendant,” but the main target was Baxter Healthcare because the Quaids argued that the company failed to make its drug labels clear for pharmacists and nurses administering medication.
Statistics agreed with Quaid. According to U.S. Pharmacopeia, there were more than 16,000 Heparin dosing errors administered by hospital staff between the years of 2001 and 2006.
How Did the Suit End?
Quaid’s suit against Baxter Healthcare Corporation never made it to trial. The claim was dismissed because the overdose happened in California but the drug manufacturer was located in Illinois, so Quaid filed the claim in Illinois. The family did win $750,000 from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center due to the hospital’s gross negligence in caring for his newborn twins as well as a third child.
The children were in critical condition for over a week before recovering. At the point of publication it’s unsure whether the overdose will have any long-term effects on the children.
What Does This Case Mean for Attorneys and Claimants?
Personal injury attorneys are always hesitant to take medical malpractice lawsuits. At the end of the day, doctors and nurses generally try to help patients. Unfortunately, even the most well established doctor can make a grave error and may seriously injure a patient.
The vast majority of our personal injury leads are not medical malpractice. In fact, just 5% of our PI leads are med mal. We still recommend you call every lead received from any lead provider, because there’s always a chance of having a great claim, even if the case type isn’t preferable for your firm’s expertise.
Sources
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/gossip/la-me-quaid5dec05-story.html https://www.reuters.com/article/us-quaid/dennis-quaid-settles-with-hospital-on-twins-overdose-idUSTRE4BF6S920081216