Rice, 24, died in 2006, while in Denver City Jail, 20 hours after she was released from a hospital. She had suffered a lacerated spleen and liver and bled to death from injuries she received in a drunken-driving crash.
The family of Emily Rice, who died while in custody at the Jail, reached a $4 million settlement with Denver Health Medical Center. Denver Health also agreed to significant changes in patient screening and treatment at both the medical center and the jail.
Denver Health agreed to make changes particularly checking patients for vital signs at intake and release and every four hours.
Denver Health was cited for failing to diagnose and treat Rice’s abdominal injuries before sending her to the Denver jail.
After she was taken by ambulance to Denver Health, Rice complained of pain to her shoulder and abdomen.
But the medical staff did not follow up with a physical examination of Rice’s abdomen before she was transferred to the jail. Denver Health failed to provide Rice adequate medical screening; failed to ensure that Rice received adequate assessment and treatment to stabilize her medical condition; and failed to ensure that her medical condition was stabilized before she was transferred to the jail.
Such deficiencies violate the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, designed to guard against hospitals dumping patients.
Legal Analysis: After motor vehicle accidents severe internal injuries can occur, and the only way to avoid cases like this is to have a high index of suspicion and to observe the patient in an in patient setting.
RI Orders Texas-based Southern Union to Pay $18 M in Mercury Storage Case — Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog — October 8, 2009
The Southern Union gas company was ordered to pay $18 million for illegally storing mercury waste, which was exposed to the public five years ago when vandals stole the hazardous liquid from a rundown building and spilled it at an apartment complex.
U.S. District Judge fined the Texas company $6 million and ordered an additional $12 million in payments to the community, saying it had committed a “serious crime” by storing liquid mercury at a neglected building in Pawtucket without the required permit.
“It must be enough to get the attention of other companies who might be doing the same thing,” the judge said of his penalty.
Southern Union in 2001 began removing old gas regulators containing mercury from customers homes’ and stored them at a building it owned in a densely populated section of Pawtucket. The mercury was initially removed from regulators and then shipped out of state, but the program lapsed the following year, and the regulators and loose mercury began accumulating in glass jars, a plastic jug and other containers.
A group of vandals broke into the building in September 2004, stole several vials and dumped the liquid on the ground and at a nearby low-income apartment complex, displacing and endangering residents, prosecutors said.
About 90 residents in July settled a lawsuit over the spill for undisclosed terms. Some residents had unacceptably high levels of mercury in their blood and showed other symptoms of mercury exposure, such as hair loss and rashes, but all have recovered, according to their lawyer.
Of the $12 million in community payments, the judge said, $11 million will go toward an endowed fund to dispense grants for environmental remediation projects and children’s health initiatives.
Southern Union faced a maximum fine of $38.1 million — or $500,000 for each day the mercury was stored without a permit.
Federal prosecutors sought a fine of more than $20 million, saying Southern Union tried to keep the spill quiet by failing to alert the city Fire Department and state fire marshal. Puddles of mercury remained on the ground for weeks.
“This thing could have been avoided, this whole situation, if they had a mind to comply with the law. They just didn’t care,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Terrence Donnelly.
The company was acquitted at a jury trial last year of two other charges of failing to report the spill and of illegally storing gas regulators that still contained the mercury.
"Please do not let your guard down. This is a very dangerous storm." — Brock Long, administrator at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, on Hurricane Florence. While the storm was downgraded to a Category 1 hurricane, it was expected to dump 40 inches of rain in areas of North Carolina. (Friday, The Wall Street Journal)
"I, frankly, haven't gotten in the middle of that." — U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, on President Donald Trump questioning the number of deaths attributed to Hurricane Maria. (Thursday, The Washington Post)
"There's no public figure who's ever liked their headlines. It's OK. It's part of the process. What the president should say is, 'This is right, I'm glad I'm being scrutinized.' That would be so secure and confident." — Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos at the Economic Club of Washington on Trump's attacks on the press. (Thursday, CNN)
"Bo made us all better. Bo didn't see color, he saw love." — Pastor Michael Griffin at the funeral service for Botham Jean, who was shot by a police officer who said she mistakenly thought he was an intruder. (Thursday, Dallas Morning News)
"When a woman is emotional, she's 'hysterical' and she's penalized for it. When a man does the same, he's 'outspoken' and there are no repercussions." — Billie Jean King after Serena Williams lost her U.S. Open tennis match final, losing a game because of penalties for which male players have not been so severely disciplined. (Saturday, Twitter)
"Not sure what went wrong in your life that would make you insult Willie Nelson. You can argue politics all you want but you cannot argue Willie." — Country singer and comedian Wheeler Walker Jr. on Nelson's support of Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke over Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. The news angered many of Nelson's fans. (Thursday, Twitter)
"We are seeing tens of millions of dollars flooding into the state of Texas from liberals all over the country who desperately want to turn the state of Texas blue. They want us to be just like California, right down to tofu and silicon and dyed hair." — Sen. Cruz, on contributions to his opponent in the senate race, O'Rourke (Monday, USA Today)
"Are we a nation of walls? Will we ban all Muslims, or all people of one religion? Will we describe the press as 'the enemy of the people'? Will we take kids away from the parents when they're trying to claim asylum, fleeing from the most brutal countries in this hemisphere, if not the planet? Or are we going to be defined by our ambitions, the big things that we want to do?" — U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-El Paso, during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. (Thursday, Esquire)
Shoulder joint replacement is a surgical procedure to replace damaged bone surfaces with artificial components to relieve pain and improve functional ability in the shoulder joint. Shoulder joint replacement can be done by a traditional "open" approach or through a minimally invasive approach. The incision in minimally invasive shoulder joint replacement is about 5 cm compared to 17 cm with the traditional approach. Other benefits of minimally invasive surgery include less damage to the soft tissues and underlying muscles enabling a faster recovery with less pain and a smaller scar. Blood loss during the surgery is also less and complications after the surgery are fewer when compared to the open technique.
When conservative measures such as medications, injections, physical therapy and activity changes do not help relieve pain from conditions such as arthritis, avascular necrosis and humeral head fractures, then shoulder joint replacement is considered as a treatment option.
The goal of surgery is to relieve pain and improve mobility by replacing the damaged bone surfaces of the shoulder joint with artificial humeral and glenoid components.
The shoulder is a highly movable ball and socket joint allowing for various arm movements. The head of the arm bone or humerus, articulates with the glenoid socket of the shoulder bone or scapula. The two articulating surfaces of the bones are covered with cartilage which prevents friction between the moving bones. The rotator cuff is a group of four tendons that joins the head of the humerus to the deeper muscles and provides stability and mobility to the shoulder joint.
The decision to perform shoulder replacement via the traditional approach or the minimally invasive approach depends on the pathology of the individual and the experience of the surgeon. Exposure of the glenoid is often difficult even when the incision is long as in the traditional approach. Therefore, if the pathology of the patient is such that more exposure of the joint is required for the surgical treatment then a traditional approach is preferred. The minimally invasive approach is generally preferred when the problem can be rectified by replacement of only the humeral head such as with the following conditions:
To check the pathology of the patient the surgeon orders an X-ray of the shoulder in the anteroposterior and axillary view. The axillary X-ray is especially important to check the condition of the glenoid. In case the condition is not very clear, the surgeon orders a CT scan of the shoulder to provide more detailed cross-sectional images of the bone and soft tissue of the shoulder including the glenoid.
The surgery is performed under sterile conditions in the operating room under regional or general anesthesia.
The humeral stem is then inserted into the humerus. This may be press fit relying on the bone to grow into it or cemented depending on several factors such as bone quality and surgeon’s preference.
If the glenoid also needs to be replaced the surgeon then proceeds to the preparation of the glenoid component.
Next, the glenoid is prepared to take the artificial component by drilling holes in the glenoid to fix the plastic glenoid component.
The soft tissue covering the joint is sutured back together and the incision closed with absorbable sutures.
Before sending the patient from the operating room, an X-ray is taken to verify the correct fit (size and position) of the implant.
After the surgery, your arm will be placed in a sling which you will wear for 2-4 weeks while your shoulder heals. Pain medications and antibiotics are given to keep you comfortable and prevent infection.
The rehabilitation program includes physical therapy which is started soon after the surgery and is very important to strengthen and provide mobility to the shoulder. Follow your therapist’s instructions for home exercises to achieve the best outcome.
It is critical to follow the postoperative instructions given to you by your surgical team. The postoperative instructions include the following:
Some of the possible risks and complications of minimally invasive shoulder replacement include: infection, nerve injury and prosthesis problems. Most of these can be treated successfully, however, prosthesis problems such as excessive wear, loosening of components or dislocation may require additional revision surgery.