Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Maine

shoulder surg. not done right

i was injured on the job. the town's doctor sent me to a surgeon to fix my shoulder. now, 1 1/2 years later my shoulder is still bad. worse than it was in the start. the top shoulder surg. told me (in writing) that the first surg. did a poor job. i know he is liable, but is the towns doc. liable for the recomendation? i have had only trouble since i got hurt. lost my job, pain constantly, hurt my other shoulder as a result of the first one not healing. basically my life has been a wreck. i could use any help in these matters, as i also have no money to seek out legal help in any other manner at this time. thank you.


Asked on 4/10/98, 12:04 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Phillips O'Shaughnessy

Shoulder Surgery

No attorney client relationship is formed by this reply, which is simply offered for constructive thought as you consider engaging an attorney: it would seem that in addition to a potential case against the surgeon who operated on you that, depending on the law in your state, a claim would lie against the recommending surgeon if s/he knew or should have known that the recommended surgeon had a history of bad outcomes or was otherwise known to be unreliable in matters of this type. The idea being that there was potentially negligence in the selection of the surgeon recommended to you. Cases of this type -- negligent recommendation -- generally are harder to prove than cases against the actual surgeon for mishandling the procedure. Good luck.

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Answered on 4/29/98, 9:25 am


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