ARTICLES

10/25/2013· Healthcare Facilities - Hospitals

A Better Response to Clinical Errors

By: Paul B. Hofmann, DrPH, FACHE

In 1989, I agreed for the first time to serve as an expert witness in a case brought by the family of a terminally ill pregnant patient who had a cesarean section performed against her will in a prominent university teaching hospital. Since then, whether retained as a plaintiff or defense expert, I have been surprised and disturbed by the number and types of cases in which hospitals and other health care facilities have been sued.

10/24/2013· Digital Forensics

Imaging Forensics: Countering Bad Science

By: George Reis

When attorneys get a copy of opposing counsel's expert reports, sometimes they are quite surprised by what they read - it's just bad science. And, in these cases they will then retain their own expert to counter, and possibly quash, the other experts opinion. I've been retained in numerous cases to do this, and I'll discuss four to illustrate the benefit this has, and to help illustrate the kind of work that I do.

10/17/2013· Warnings & Labels

Synthetic Drug Retailers Sued By New York A.G. For Failure to Warn

By: Dr. Gerald M. Goldhaber

New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman filed 12 civil lawsuits on July 10,2012 throughout New York State against 16 head shops that sold synthetic drugs which were marketed as different products such as glass cleaner, potpourri, bath salts and spice. The main claim in these lawsuits is that the products violate consumer protection laws for labeling by failing to warn consumers of the products' content, safety and health risks.

10/15/2013· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Forensic Clues: All-Terrain Vehicles

By: John Ryan, BSME, PE

Between 1982 and 1996, 2,795 people died riding all-terrain vehicles, ATV's. This was found in a study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Over thirty percent of the riders killed were under the age of sixteen.

10/14/2013· Elevators - Escalator - Automatic Doors

Automatic Doors Maintenance: The Importance of Checking Your Doors Daily

By: Michael Panish

I have been involved in many automatic door cases during the past few years working for both plaintiff and defense. As discussed in one of my previous articles (The Ins and Outs of Automatic Door Operation), automatic doors are highly complex pieces of equipment that require daily attention. Most injuries occur when some component of the automatic door system malfunctions.

10/11/2013· Transportation

Making More Money, Part 10: The Homeless Bus

By: Ned Einstein

As with every installment in this series of articles, this particular model or vision is highly unusual, has only limited application, and requires considerable creativity and effort to bring to life, and still contains some constraints even if and when one can develop it beyond the womb of an idea.

10/9/2013· Dental - Dentistry

Cone Beam Computed Tomography for Evaluation of Impacted Teeth: Case Report

By: Dr. Lee (Mac) Whitesides

Supernumerary teeth in the absence of syndromes such as cleidocranial dysplasia or Gardner's is a rare event1-3. The most common supernumerary tooth is the mesiodens which appears in the maxillary midline.3 The exact etiology of supernumerary teeth is unclear but many theories exist in an attempt to explain why extra teeth are present in some individuals.

9/27/2013· Warnings & Labels

Do Football Helmet Warnings Prevent Injury?

By: Dr. Gerald M. Goldhaber

Anyone who bas seen a football helmet in recent days may be swprised at the bluntness of the warnings advising players that the very product they are wearing to prevent injury may not do that at all. For example, the warning that appears inside helmets manufactured by both Schutt Sports and Rawlings contain Oris conclusion:

9/27/2013· Construction

Discrete Damages/Cost Variance Analysis Method for Quantifying Damages in Construction Claims

By: Long International

The "discrete damages/cost variance analysis method" for quantifying construction claim damages involves the specific distribution of all costs incurred on the project rather than quantifying only certain parts of the cost or damage analysis as may be used in the other methods.

9/26/2013· Failure Analysis

Forensic Clues: Seat Belt Failure

By: John Ryan, BSME, PE

In 2007, an estimated 15,147 lives were saved from seat belt use. Seat belts save five times more lives than airbags, according to statistics released by NHTSA. Seat belt use has increased over the years, due to cultural trends, and possibly due to the enactment of seat belt use laws. Seat belt systems do not always function as predicted. Seat belt systems can fail during a collision, often resulting in serious injury or death to the vehicle occupant.