Medical Malpractice
Montgomery Medical Center is located in Olney, Maryland. MMC is one of the entities in the non-profit MedStar Health system. It was founded in 1920 by Dr. Jacob Wheeler Bird. Originally Montgomery County General Hospital, the hospital became part of MedStar Health in 2008 and is now known as MedStar Montgomery Medical Center.
MMC admitted its first patients during an influenza epidemic and was the first acute care hospital in Montgomery County. The hospital grew from 28 beds to today’s 138-bed hospital and changed its rustic country origins to a state-of-the-art center.
MMC offers a lot of services for a non-profit, community-oriented hospital. Its emergency department includes pediatric emergency services and the hospital is a Primary Stroke Center. Their Addiction and Mental Health Center has been serving the community for decades. They offer bariatric weight loss surgery and provide extensive cancer, orthopedic, women’s health, and rehabilitation services. Additionally, MMC uses robotic surgery techniques, including robotic-assisted joint replacement and urologic surgery.
- Holy Cross malpractice claims
- Suburban malpractice claims
As with all hospitals, this facility has faced negligence claims in the past, both as a defendant and tangentially involved in claims against its doctors. Here are a few of the cases either where the hospital was a defendant or where the alleged negligence occurred at the hospital:
- Failure to adequately monitor a patient after a fall and pelvic fracture, leading to untreated internal bleeding, hemorrhagic shock, organ failure, and death. Our law firm handled this case against the doctor (not the hospital). $2,500,000 Verdict.
- Failure to prevent negligent conditions that resulted in bed sores and infection. The jury determined that Montgomery General was negligent in its care of the patient, but the negligence was not a cause of the injuries. The jury further determined that a nursing home was negligent in its care of the plaintiff and that negligence was the cause of her injury. $1,300,000 Verdict against the nursing home.
- Failure to monitor a patient who was recovering from surgery — her blood pressure dipped into unsafe levels for hours, resulting in stroke and brain damage. This claim was against the hospital itself. $1,097,000 Settlement.
It is worth noting these are the winners. The defendant prevailed in most of the jury verdicts that involved this hospital.
Common Montgomery County Medical Malpractice Claims
Our Montgomery County medical malpractice lawyers see the same types of mistakes over and over again. But the starting point is that mistakes alone do not make a medical malpractice claim Yes, we start with whether the doctor or nurse failed to provider reasonable care. But the second piece of that puzzle can be a challenge in some cases — proving that the negligence caused the injury and would have made a difference for the patient. Our lawyers “won” a case in Montgomery County where the jury found the doctor negligence but unfortunately did not find the negligence was the cause of the death.
We see a lot of surgical error cases. A Montgomery County surgical error lawsuit might involve a whole host of different time of mistakes and injuries: damage to an artery, nerve, organ, or other structure during surgery, failure to recognize internal bleeding, anesthesia mistakes, or inadequate monitoring after the procedure.
Medication errors are another common problem. Prescription mistakes unbelievably common but they are usually harmless. When they are not the injuries can be extreme. We also see a lot of Montgomery County medical malpractice cases involving missed cancer diagnoses, strokes, pulmonary embolisms, infections, birth injuries, and emergency room mistakes.
Again, the key is usually proving that the mistake caused the injury. A Montgomery County medical malpractice lawyer has to work through the medical records and expert testimony to show what should have happened and how the patient’s outcome probably would have been different with proper care.
Where to File Montgomery Medical Center Malpractice Lawsuits
Most cases against this hospital are going to be in Rockville. But if there is a legitimate chance to get venue in Baltimore City or Prince George’s County because the doctors are in those jurisdictions or for any other proper venue reason, you take that opportunity.
Suing a local hospital on its home-county turf is a double-edged sword. Jurors often want to defend their own hospital from allegations of negligence. On the other hand, if the jurors might find themselves at that hospital getting treatment, they may be more inclined to raise the standards off the floor because they know they might find themselves in the same spot that the plaintiff once was: vulnerable and in desperate need of competent medical care.
Montgomery Medical Center Defense
Gleason, Flynn, Emig & McAfee, based in Rockville, has defended this hospital. An experienced team of lawyers, GFEM prides itself on its defense of healthcare providers, employers, insurers, and large self-insured claims in the Maryland and D.C. area. They also occasionally dabble in personal injury claims, representing plaintiffs in motor and construction accidents. GFEM is also known for using alternatives to traditional trials, such as mediation or arbitration. Can they be beaten? Of course. But you want to hire the best lawyer you can and have them bring their “A” game. (Note: we always do.)
Ordering Medical Records from This Hospital
If you believe you have a Montgomery Medical Center malpractice case, you can either order the medical records yourself, or your lawyers will do so. Hospital records can be obtained from:
MedStar Montgomery Medical Center
18101 Prince Philip Drive
Olney, Maryland 20832
Phone: 301-774-8661, press 1
Contact Us
If you believe you have a medical mistake lawsuit, contact us at 900-553-8082 or get a free online consultation.