Inova Health Care Malpractice Claims

Inova Fairfax Hospital, located in Fall Church, Virginia is the largest hospital in the Washington DC / Northern Virginia area and is the flagship hospital of the Inova Health System. Carrying 923- beds, the medical center serves mostly the Northern Virginia and the Washington, DC metro area. It is currently the only Level 1 Trauma Center in Northern Virginia and flagship location of Inova Heart and Vascular Institute. It is one of the only six community hospitals in the nation offering a full spectrum of organ transplantation and has been named among the top 50 hospitals for gastrointestinal disorders, gynecology, and heart surgery.

Additionally, Inova Fairfax Hospital is a satellite clinical campus for students from Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Medicine and the University Of Virginia School Of Medicine. It has been awarded an "A" in patient safety, and been designated a Top Teaching Hospital. The hospital is partnered with eight different nursing schools and seven different pharmacy schools including George Mason, George Washington, Marymount, Shendandoah, Georgetown, Catholic, Stratford, University of Maryland, and University of Pittsburgh.

Inova Fairfax Hospital offers a wide range of services including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, amputee treatment, lymphedema program, neuro rehabilitation, orthotic/prosthetic assessment, post-mastectomy rehabilitation, swallow evaluation and treatment (dysphagia), vestibular/balance rehabilitation.

Inova is the center health care provider for all the five Inova hospitals. They include more than 1,800 licensed beds and 16,0000 employees. Inova encompasses the full array of health services, including the Level 1 Trauma Center and Level IV neonatal intensive care unit. The medical center is also the home to nationally and internationally recognized Inova Children's Hospital, Inova Neuroscience and Spine Institute, Inova Translational Medicine Institute, Inova Heart and Vascular Institute, and Inova Schar Cancer Institute. Below are the list of hospitals under Inova.

• Inova Alexandria Hosptial
• Inova Fairfax Medical Campus
• Inova Fairoaks Hospital
• Inova Loudoun Hospital
• Inova Mount Vernon Hospital

Despite the hospital's many services and qualifications, Inova Fairfax Hospital has been involved in many incidents of major medical negligence and has been sued on numerous occasions. Specifically, the hospital has caught media attention for negligently disclosing medical records (Fairfax Hospital v. Curtis) and allowing a patient to be burned during surgery. Although, these medical accidents were highly publicized, there are even more medical malpractice cases that are not as publicized to protect the identities of the parties. It is important to know that medical accidents and negligence can happen at any facility, even in renowned and recognized hospitals.

Below are recent jury verdicts and reported settlements involving medical malpractice claims against Inova Medical Hospital:

• Bronley v Inova Health Care (Virginia 2019) $3.4 million: 28-year-old patient goes to emergency room at Inova Fairfax Hospital for abdominal pain and doctors conclude that he needs surgery to remove a lap band and port from a prior gastric bypass surgery. After being administered anesthesia he develops pneumonitis and acute respiratory distress syndrome after aspirating his own vomit during the surgery and he eventually dies. His family sues alleging that doctors at the hospital negligently failed to suction his stomach prior to operating and failing to stop the procedure after he began vomiting. Jury in Fairfax County awards $3.4 million in damages.
• Raznoff v American Anesthesiology of Virginia (Virginia 2017) $7 million: patient, 55-year-old female, undergoes a neuro-endovascular "coiling" procedure under general anesthesia at Inova Fairfax Hospital. During the procedure a balloon catheter device fails to administer enough anesthesia causing her head to jerk suddenly and her cerebral artery is accidently lacerated. She eventually dies from a massive brain bleed. Jury awards $7 million in damages.
• Robinson v Inova Health Care (Virginia 2012) $455,000: patient undergoes hip replacement surgery at Inova Mt. Vernon Hospital. Complications arise afterwards and he is readmitted to hospital with postoperative ileus. Hospital staff place him on a CPAP machine and hours later he is found dead from inhalation of gastric contents through the CPAP mask which blocked his airway. His estate sues the hospital for negligently using the CPAP mask when it was contra-indicated for a patient with ileus. His attorneys were demanding $2 million but ultimately agreed to settle the case for $455,000.
• Abdallah v. Inova Health Care Serv. (Virginia 2007) $350,000: plaintiff experienced excruciating pain in his left testicle. He was taken in Inova Fairfax for treatment where a physician in the emergency room ordered a sonogram which showed clear asymmetric flow and decreased flow to the lest testicle. After consulting with a urologist, the urologist sent a resident to examine the plaintiff. The resident discharged the plaintiff. The plaintiff came back the next day with continued and increased pain. A different urologist sent the plaintiff for emergency surgery where plaintiff's testicle was surgically removed. Plaintiff claimed the delay in diagnosing the testicular torsion prevented his testicle from being saved. Jurors found in favor of the plaintiff and awarded him $350,000 in damages.
• Yao v. Inova Fairfax Hospital (Virginia 2006) $3.3 million: deceased was seen by a radiologist who determined that the scan was within normal limits and did not notice signs of cerebral edema. The deceased was transferred to pediatric intensive care unit at Inova Fairfax Hospital the same day without a copy of the CT scan. She died two days later from significant cerebral edema, hyperammonemia, and brain stem herniation. Plaintiff as personal representative of deceased filed a lawsuit against the radiologist and Inova Fairfax Hospital. The plaintiff alleged the defendant deviated from the standard of care by failing to properly read CT scan. The plaintiff sought damages for sever sorrow, anguish, loss of comfort and companionship and funeral and burial expenses. The defendant denied the allegations of negligence, breach of duty, breach of the standard of care and proximate cause. The cases proceeded to a jury trial and awarded 3.3 million dollars.
• Elnour v. Baker (Virginia 2006) $75,000: plaintiff underwent a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, or the removal of her gallbladder at Inova Fairfax Hospital. The physician performing the surgery allegedly improperly cut the plaintiff's common bile duct and later revealed a bile leak from the inferior duct and there was no communication within the duct between in her liver and intestines. The plaintiff subsequently suffered severe stomach pain. The plaintiff sued the physician for medical malpractice and alleged he failed his duty to render appropriate medical care. She claimed he improperly performed the surgery, and his error was the sole and proximate cause of her injuries. She sought damages for sustained pain and suffering, past and future medical expenses, permanent injury, emotional distress and pecuniary damages. The jury found in favor of the plaintiff and awarded her $75,000.

The medical malpractice attorneys at Miller & Zois regularly handle malpractice claims involving hospitals in Virginia and Washington DC. If you have a potential malpractice case involving treatment at Inova Fairfax Hospital or one of the other hospitals in the Inova Health Care System, call us at 800-553-8082 or request a consultation online.