Kaiser Malpractice Attorneys
At Cutter Law P.C., our experienced Kaiser malpractice lawyers are ready to stand up to Kaiser Permanente and fight for your rights. As one of the largest insurers in the U.S., Kaiser requires a skilled legal team on your side. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Who is Kaiser Permanente?
Kaiser Permanente is one of the biggest non-profit healthcare insurance providers in the United States. They have over 10.5 million members, over 16,000 physicians, and over 48,000 nurses on staff at over 38 hospitals throughout the country. Kaiser also has more than 174,000 employees working at their various offices in a variety of positions.
Unfortunately, with such a large organization that employs and represents such a massive number of people, incidents of medical malpractice are inevitable. Thankfully, thanks to our Kaiser Permanente malpractice lawyers in California, you always have someone to turn to in the event of a medical malpractice incident.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
According to the American Board Of Professional Liability Attorneys (ABPLA):
“Medical malpractice occurs when a hospital doctor or other heal care professional, through a negligent act or omission, causes an injury to a patient. The negligence might be the result of errors in diagnosis, treatment, aftercare, or health management.” – ABPLA
Additionally, for an act to constitute medical malpractice, it must meet the following criteria:
- The act violates the accepted standards of care
- Medical negligence injured a patient
- The act caused an injury that results in significant damages
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Featured Medical Malpractice Attorney Brooks Cutter
Brooks represented more than 5,000 individuals who had defective Guidant cardiac defibrillators and claimed shares of the $240 million fund as part of a 2008 nationwide settlement.
They will go the extra mile to make sure your specific case is handled with the utmost care and diligence.
Should You File a Kaiser Malpractice Lawsuit?
Even if you’re unsure of whether you should file a Kaiser malpractice lawsuit, contact our attorneys for a no-obligation consultation. You may be entitled to compensation without even knowing it! That said, the most successful malpractice claims involve the following:
- Your healthcare provider owed you a duty of care
- The provider violated their assumed duty of care
- You suffered harm that deserves compensation
- The provider’s breach of their duty of care caused you harm
Why Hire Our Kaiser Malpractice Attorneys?
Having an attorney familiar with the legal process of arbitration is vital in Kaiser malpractice claims because every Kaiser patient signs a binding arbitration agreement before receiving care of any kind.
Besides our experience in arbitration, the attorneys at Cutter Law P.C. received several awards for top-tier legal representation. Super Lawyers recognized us as a top firm in 2019, we’ve received an Avvo Rating of 10.0 (Superb), we’re members of the American Association for Justice Leaders Forum, and we’ve even received an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
What Is Arbitration?
In short, arbitration is a widely-used and accepted alternative to the traditional court-based lawsuit system.
In arbitration cases, there are no judges or juries. Instead, plaintiffs negotiate with the defendants through a third party known as an arbitrator. During the arbitration, both cases present their sides to an arbitrator. Then the arbitrator decides what kind of compensation the plaintiff deserves. Other than those key differences, arbitration works similarly to traditional trials. There’s a discovery period as well as other pretrial processes, such as settlement conferences. But, the rules for evidence are far more relaxed, and the trial itself often occurs in an office instead of a courtroom.
Examples Of Kaiser Malpractice Claims Highlighted by Nurse Allegations
Nurses from Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center’s maternity ward have lodged a complaint with the state Department of Public Health. The core of their grievance revolves around the consistent understaffing of their ward, leading to unsafe conditions for both mothers and infants. Key instances cited in their complaint include:
- Inadequate staffing ratios, often falling below state guidelines.
- Assigning multiple laboring mothers to a single nurse, surpassing recommended limits.
- Circumstances where only one nurse was present during childbirth.
- Babies being delivered in unsuitable locations, such as triage rooms.
This ward comprises of antepartum, labor and delivery, neo-natal intensive care, and postpartum units, with issues reported across all sectors. The nurses further claim that understaffing pressures have led to patient conditions being downgraded improperly to manage workload.
Historically, this isn’t the first time Kaiser has faced such allegations. In 2014, staffing concerns arose at the Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center, where expectant mothers faced prolonged waits. Similarly, in 2016, a significant nurses’ strike at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles highlighted concerns about persistent understaffing. The nurses documented hundreds of instances of unsafe staffing within a short span of months.
How can a medical malpractice lawyer help you? Well the answer is that they’re essential… it would be a unicorn of a case that got resolved without representation
Brooks Cutter,
Founder of Cutter Law
How Does Understaffing Affect Delivery?
Expectant mothers and their unborn or newly-born infants must be monitored closely to ensure the labor and delivery progress properly, and to ensure there are no complications immediately following birth. Incidents that happen during birth can arise quickly and put the health and safety of the mother and her baby at risk, causing catastrophic and permanent damage if not addressed immediately.
When Kaiser maternity wards and delivery rooms are understaffed, expectant mothers and their infants are not monitored adequately. Further, because the nurses are expected to cover more patients than they should they are often rushed and the potential for a disastrous error increases. Nurses attending to one emergency could be called to another, leaving mothers in labor without a nurse to watch them.
Even when mothers come into the maternity ward for monitoring—due to issues with the pregnancy such as decreased movement—they may not be put on the proper monitoring equipment right away thanks to staffing shortages. Wait times to go on monitoring equipment can reportedly be more than 30 minutes, which can lead to life-threatening issues for the baby.
401 Watt Avenue Suite 100 Sacramento, CA 95864
1901 Harrison Street Suite 910 Oakland CA 94612
51 E St Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Contact Our Kaiser Malpractice Lawyers Today
Attorneys at Cutter Law have years of experience fighting on behalf of patients who have been victims of devastating medical injuries. We know how catastrophic an injury to an expectant mother or her infant can be, and we are dedicated to getting justice for both. When maternity wards are understaffed, lives are put at risk unnecessarily, either through improper patient monitoring or because overworked staff are more likely to make an error.
If you or someone you love suffered injuries as a result of medical malpractice, delivery room understaffing, or other issues at a Kaiser Permanente medical center, you need an experienced lawyer to ensure you obtain the best possible results from your lawsuit. Contact a personal injury attorney at Cutter Law today to discuss your claim. Our attorneys are available for a no-obligation consultation. We’ll go the extra mile to get justice for you and your infant.
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Start with a free consultation. We listen to what happened, how it’s affected your life, and what you need to move forward.
You’ll have a direct line to our attorneys. We keep communication open and ensure you always know what’s happening with your case.
From day one, we go all in—gathering evidence, negotiating with insurers, and preparing for trial if needed. You pay nothing unless we win compensation for you.
Depending on the year when your case goes to trial, the medical malpractice damages cap could be anywhere from half a million to a million dollars, roughly.
In general, the California statute of limitations for medical malpractice is one (1) from when you knew or should have known about the malpractice.
As a family run California law firm we pride ourselves in providing every client personal attention and representation. The outstanding results we have gotten for our fire clients are a direct result of our commitment to understanding and presenting all aspects of their case.
Hear from our previous clients about the relationships we build together.
The representation that Cutter law represents is one from the humble truth. I am grateful to have had the experience I have had and to recommend them to anyone seeking representation as a first choice based upon the foundation they carry as those that stand for what is right to help those they serve. Thank you Cutter Law.
Collaborating with Cutter Law P.C. was exceptionally positive. Guided by attentive legal professionals, the firm distinguishes itself with excellence and a seamlessly organized process. The lucid presentation of material deepened comprehension, and the relaxed atmosphere fostered my active engagement. Anticipating future opportunities, I would readily choose Cutter Law for my legal needs.
Brooks has a long-established, respected reputation as a skilled trial attorney and a record of proven success.