Despite the fact that the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) is a leading American hospital and health care provider, it is not immune to medical mistakes. Earlier this year, a young man received a kidney transplant from his longtime girlfriend in an operation that was performed at UPMC Presbyterian. Although the surgery was completed without any problems, doctors later discovered that the girlfriend’s donated kidney was infected with hepatitis C.
As a result of this oversight, UPMC’s living kidney donor transplant program was shut down for two months. Both the man and his girlfriend filed medical malpractice lawsuits in response to the hospital’s failure to diagnose the woman’s condition. According to the cases, UPMC overlooked a series of positive test results six times before the surgery took place.
Results from an initial blood test that revealed hepatitis C were available over two months before the transplant took place. To make matters worse, when the woman was finally informed of her infection, a UPMC surgeon apparently suggested to her that she should keep the information from her boyfriend.
Negligent doctors and healthcare professionals should be held accountable when they put patients in harm’s way. If you or a loved one has been injured because of a medical error in Philadelphia, please contact the experienced medical malpractice lawyers at Atlee Hall & Brookshart, LLP today for a free case evaluation.
