Podiatry Malpractice Lawyer & Attorney : Michael A. Quinn Law Firm : Surgery, Amputation, Podiatric Medicine : New Jersey

From 2002 through 2006, Ernest Nwani, D.P.M. submitted claims, which Medicare paid, for 539 surgical procedures of various types regarding 442 patients and claims for the permanent removal of 1,082 toenails from 394 patients, according to court records. Medicare paid $171,760 for the surgeries and $100,180 for the toenail removals. Thirty-three patients were interviewed and of those, "none of the surgeries billed for these 33 patients and for which Medicare paid, could be verified as having been performed," court records state.

The charge of healthcare fraud, which he pleaded to, has a maximum prison term of 10 years.

Source: Andy Kravetz, Peoria Journal Star [4/26/08]

Stieby was also writing Percocet prescriptions for the patient's girlfriend, according to court records. The prescription was originally for 40 pills per week, but was bumped up to 60 pills per week in October. Sometimes Stieby would pay the patients for a portion of the pills, according to court records. One patient told agents he received $20 for each deal.

Source: Jim Hannah, The Enquirer, [4/18/08]

a podiatrist in Illinois who had been accused of providing prescription painkillers to patients in exchange for sex—and illegally recording the encounters—was sentenced Wednesday to 6 years in prison after pleading guilty to drug and eavesdropping charges.

Under a deal with prosecutors, Dr. Steven P. Loheide, 64, of Algonquin pleaded guilty in Kane County Circuit Court to one count of illegal delivery of a controlled substance and three counts of illegal eavesdropping.

Loheide, who had offices in East Dundee, also agreed to never again practice medicine.

"I consider your conduct in this case an enormous betrayal of your trust as a physician," Judge Donald Hudson said.

The Berks County jury set Davis' damages at $3.4 million, but found he was 40 percent responsible, lowering the award to almost $2.07 million. Davis did not tell Rinaldi about his circulation problems when he first visited her office, according to court records. Davis alleged that Rinaldi did not review his medical records before removing the corn from his small toe on Sept. 27, 2000, at Pottstown Memorial Medical Center.

Davis, who was also treated at St. Joseph Medical Center, also sued surgeons and both hospitals, but they were dismissed as defendants before the two-week trial. Rinaldi's attorney said he plans to appeal.

Source: Associated Press [10/7/06]

The victim, now 77, testified she had made an appointment with Overton about an ankle injury June 2, 2006, because her regular podiatrist had moved. Though Overton had her strip and change into a gown, violated her and ordered an x-ray, he did not examine the injured foot, she said. But defense attorney William Hooks said Overton "was within the standard of care for podiatric medicine." Overton's license to practice as a podiatrist was suspended in July last year after as many as six other women came forward with similar allegations.

Prosecution expert Dr. Adolph Galinski, a podiatrist for 40 years, testified there was "no reason" for Overton to have conducted a full physical exam on the victim. "A podiatrist is trained to deal with the ankle and the foot. If I started dealing with the elbow, the back and all the other parts of the body, I'd expect to be a defendant in this courtroom pretty soon," he said. Overton is free on $250,000 bail.

Source: Kim Janssen and Eric Herman, Southtown Star [3/27/08]

Plaintiff's decedent, 59 year old Walter Chapton, presented to defendant podiatrist in May 2000 with a 3 cm. lump on the top of his right foot. Defendant diagnosed the lump as a ganglion cyst and was able to aspirate only a small amount of fluid from the lump. Defendant injected the lump with corticosteroids. Chapton returned to see defendant two weeks later. Defendant's notes indicated the cyst was somewhat decreased in size and he told decedent there was no need to undergo further treatment unless the cyst got bigger, became painful or changed in color. On May 17, 2001, Chapton returned to defendant as the lump had grown to 4" to 5" in length and 3" in diameter over the previous several months. Defendant recommended its removal, which was not accomplished until July 18, 2001. Pathologists identified the mass as a high-grade myxoid chondrosarcoma (cancer), for which surgery was futile as the cancer had already metastasized to Chapton's lungs. Chapton died in May 2002.

Plaintiff's experts opined that, had the cancer been diagnosed in or around May 2000, Chapton's chances of survival were 80% to 90%. However, when the diagnosis was made in July 2001, his survival chances were zero. Plaintiff alleged that, because defendant was unable to aspirate much fluid from the mass in May 2001, the standard of care required further testing, such as an MRI, ultrasound, or CT scan, or referral to an orthopedic surgeon.

Defendant contended that, despite retrospective knowledge that the diagnosis was incorrect, it was not a violation in the standard of care to miss the cancer. He claimed he was not negligent because primary cancerous lesions to the foot, , particularly chondrosarcoma, are extremely rare.

RESULT: Defense verdict

PLAINTIFF EXPERTS: Jonathan A. Haber, DPM, Caldwell, NJ, Charles F. Fenton, III, DPM, JD, Atlanta, GA, J. Sybil Biermann, MD, Ann Arbor, MI, Michael J. Kraut, MD, Southfield, MI

DEFENDANT EXPERTS: Charles G. Kissel, DPM, Warren, MI, Marshall Solomon, DPM, Farmington Hills, MI

The plaintiff further contended that the defendants negligently failed to send her for a bone density study and to institute other measures to correct the bone loss. The plaintiff maintained that after she ultimately suffered an ankle fracture, a non-party orthopedist sent her for a bone density study and that it was determined that the plaintiff suffered severe osteoporosis, which is particularly pronounced in the spine and hip, and that the condition of her bones was similar to that of a woman in her 70s.

The defendants maintained that the care was reasonable. The plaintiff contended that although the condition has stabilized, it will never improve and that she will permanently be very susceptible to compression fractures in the spine.

The defendant podiatrist maintained that he had a right to rely on the physicians and the internist maintained that any fault primarily rest with the ob/gyn.The ob/gyn contended that he acted appropriately, especially since he treated the plaintiff correctly with birth control pills and was able to achieve the return of her menstrual cycle.

Result: The case settled prior to trial for $ 375,000, with the most significant portion paid by the defendant ob/gyn.

Plaintiff Experts: Richard Luciani, M.D., Millburn, NJ, Myron Boxer, D.P.M., Woodmere, NY, Kevin Bell, M.D., Watchung, NJ

Source: Medical Litigation Alert Volume 16, Issue 2

Januska is accused of making repeated visits to the CVS Pharmacy in Simsbury to have the prescriptions filled, the sergeant said. A pharmacist who suspected the transactions were fraudulent alerted drug control agents at the state Dept. of Consumer Protection in late January, Sifodaskalakis said. Those agents then notified Simsbury police, he said. Charges against Januska include 25 counts of obtaining or attempting to obtain controlled drugs by fraud or forgery, 17 counts of illegally possessing prescription narcotics, eight counts of illegally possessing a level four controlled drug, and 23 counts of insurance fraud.

Source: Loretta Waldman, The Hartford Courant [3/5/08]

As a result of the defendant's negligence, the plaintiff contended that she was forced to undergo two subsequent remedial surgical procedures to her foot in order to remove the remainder of the mass and correct and/or repair nerve damage allegedly caused by the initial surgery. The defendant contended that he performed the surgical excision of the mass appropriately and properly and that he had complied with the standard of care in all aspects of the procedure.

The evidence revealed that the female plaintiff was a nurse in her early 50's at the time of the surgery. The evidence indicated that the plaintiff had been treating with the defendant podiatrist for approximately four months prior to the surgery for a mass that was found in her right foot. The plaintiff was diagnosed with a neuroma in her foot requiring surgical excision that was performed on October 10, 2003. The plaintiff also maintained that prior to excision of the mass, the defendant failed to perform an MRI in order to properly determine the exact size and depth of the neuroma. As a result, the plaintiff contended that the defendant negligently left part of the neuroma in her foot during the surgery and that she ultimately required two additional surgeries to remove the remainder of the mass and repair nerve damage she allegedly sustained in the initial surgery. The plaintiff maintained that she missed some ten months of work due to her injuries. However, no lost wages claim was made.

The plaintiff related that she underwent a second surgical procedure in mid-2004 to remove the excess mass in her foot. The plaintiff then underwent a third surgery in 2005 to repair nerve damage allegedly sustained in the initial surgical excision of the mass. The plaintiff's expert podiatrist testified that the defendant departed from the standard of care in failing to perform a pre-surgical MRI to properly determine the size and position of the plaintiff's mass. In addition, the expert opined that the plaintiff's neurological injuries were causally related to the defendant's negligent performance of the procedure. The expert opined that the plaintiff suffered some permanency in that she is no longer able to stand for extended periods of time and/or apply complete pressure on her foot, as required in her nursing position.

The defendant introduced an expert podiatrist who opined that the defendant had, in fact, complied with the standards of care in performing the surgical excision of the plaintiff's neuroma. In addition, the defendant called a second expert podiatrist who opined that the plaintiff's injuries were not permanent and would resolve.

Result: The plaintiff made a pretrial demand of $75,000. The trial lasted three weeks with deliberations lasting approximately two hours. The jury returned with a 5-1 verdict awarding the plaintiff $300,000 for past pain and suffering and $ 50,000 for future pain and suffering for a total award of $450,000.

Plaintiff's Expert: John Mancuso, DPM, NY, NY
Defendant's Experts: Edwin Wolf, DPM, Michael Trepal, DPM, NY, NY

Source: New York Jury Verdict Review & Analysis, Volume 24, Issue 12