Ritter family lawsuit

[Joel1963]

John Ritter's family is claiming he was misdiagnosed when brought by ambulance to the hospital the day he died.

Here's the link. Very sad if his death was preventable.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/TV/09/09/ritter.lawsuit/index.html

[Evan L]

I understand his family's grief but do not see what good a lawsuit can do; it wont bring him back, that's for sure.


Evan

[Ed Bishop]

And quite the stretch to prove malpractice or misdiagnosis, also. He went fast, didn't see it coming...no one did! Unless you undergo serious evaluations on a regular basis--and who does that?--certain underlying health problems can stay hidden for years, even decades, until one day.....


:ed:

[Michael]

...grief makes one grasp at straws or they have a lawyer friend whispering in their ears...

[JohnG]

this is an ugly trend in our society...its like no one should ever die...it has to be someone's fault.

if you gotta blame someone....blame the creator.

[Mark]

And quite the stretch to prove malpractice or misdiagnosis, also. He went fast, didn't see it coming...no one did! Unless you undergo serious evaluations on a regular basis--and who does that?--certain underlying health problems can stay hidden for years, even decades, until one day.....


:ed:

Ed: As I read it, I think the allegation is misdiagnosis in the ER when he was brought there from the studio. I first thought it was before that time, but I guess not.

[RDK]

The sad fact is, doctors can and do make mistakes. I generally consider them miracle workers, though, and wouldn't consider suing unless it was an egregious error.

[cleandan]

Here is a direct look into one reason health costs are so very high.
AFTER the fact the actual cause was determined.
Hindsight being 20/20 seems to overshadow the reality of the situation at hand when it WAS at hand. His situation looked like a heart attack, and was diagnosed as such by the attending Dr.
The doo gooders like to say IF all the time. If the diag was correct John would still be here. If pigs could fly....
I am not advocating complete removal of all responsibility Dr.'s have, but the last time I checked they were human...and subject to error. The guys Aorta ruptured instead of having a heart attack. The symptoms are very similar in some instances and a ruptured Aorta is much less common than a heart attack...especially when no outside trauma is involved. By the way, I bet the Dr will not be personally sued. There is not enough money to be had. Nope, the Dr.s hospital organaziation will be the target because they have really deep pockets. The sue happy saps don't realize they are taking from their own pockets to get the lottery however. John Ritter died of a massive heart problem. The chances of him living because of this, no matter what the cause, were slim at best. He came out on the wrong side of those odds, and that is a shame. They should let him go in peace and not exploit this for personal gains.

[JohnG]

btw....John Ritter's widow is the actress Amy Yasbeck of "Wings" fame.

http://us.ent4.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/universal_pictures/van_helsing/amy_yasbeck/vanprec.jpg

[Michael]

The sad fact is, doctors can and do make mistakes. I generally consider them miracle workers, though, and wouldn't consider suing unless it was an egregious error.


...especially if they removed ones conscience!:laugh:

[Rachael Bee]

Maybe doctors should start filing countersuits against these looney Litigants? Mr. Ritter, apparently, failed to have sufficent check-ups. Mr. Ritter should have known that he had an expanding aortal anurism. It's very, very if-y to save someone after the aorta has burst, and even if they are saved, they'll proably never be particularly healthy again. You need to repair the aorta before it comes to this. Mr. Ritter was proably having abdominal pains that he was ignoring or playing off as stomach gas?

The very idea that this condition should be quickly diagnoised at an E.R. is absurd. Even if it were, the outcome would likely be the same.

[Mark]

Maybe doctors should start filing countersuits against these looney Litigants? Mr. Ritter, apparently, failed to have sufficent check-ups. Mr. Ritter should have known that he had an expanding aortal anurism. It's very, very if-y to save someone after the aorta has burst, and even if they are saved, they'll proably never be particularly healthy again. You need to repair the aorta before it comes to this. Mr. Ritter was proably having abdominal pains that he was ignoring or playing off as stomach gas?

The very idea that this condition should be quickly diagnoised at an E.R. is absurd. Even if it were, the outcome would likely be the same.

I'm not sure how it works in other states, but here in Connecticut, in order to maintain a medical malpractice case, the plaintiff (the one who brings the case) must file a "certificate of good faith," indicating, under oath, that another doctor has reviewed the record and chart and is of the medical opinion, and will testify, that malpractice occurred. However, it is ultimately up to a jury to make the final determination, because the next step is that the defendant doctor/hospital, whatever, will retain their own expert to testify there was no malpractice. BTW, the cost of prosecuting a civil malpractice case, at least in Connecticut, usually runs over $100,000, so there are only handful of attorneys who have the resources to handle them.