Hi, I’m attorney David Hood and I’ve been practicing law across South Carolina for over 30 years. One of the areas that we focus on is mesothelioma. A question we often get from our clients is “How do I catch mesothelioma and what do I do once I’ve been diagnosed with it?” We’re going to answer those questions for you today.
What is mesothelioma?
Malignant mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer that develops in the linings of the lungs, stomach, heart or testes. The most common form of the cancer, malignant plural mesothelioma, affects the lining of the lungs. The only known cause of mesothelioma is by being exposed to asbestos.
What causes mesothelioma?
So how do you get exposed to mesothelioma? From mills, automobile and truck repair work, construction, and the military and several other areas. Secondary exposure, by workers bringing asbestos fibers home on their clothes also cause MESO in family members. One problem can be that there is typically a long latency time to get mesothelioma. You may not have any symptoms until 10 to 50 years after your exposure. So, it’s important to piece together your entire work history in order to pinpoint how you got exposed to asbestos.
What are the symptoms?
There are many common symptoms to look out for with mesothelioma: stomach pain & swelling, chest pain, coughing, fatigue, muscle weakness and unexplained weight loss. The earlier the symptoms are detected, the better your prognosis. So, if you’re having these symptoms, please see a doctor immediately.
Cars moving on the road, with a road sign that reads Exit 197, Summerville, North Maple St., next right.
Those of us who live in South Carolina have experienced the nightmare of slow-moving traffic due to aging roads: forcing drivers to leave extra early to make it somewhere on time, and then the chance of ending up in a traffic jam due to an accident.
Moving South Carolina Forward
Moving South Carolina Forward, a report by DC-based nonprofit The Road Information Program (TRIP), “looks at transportation in South Carolina. From conditions on bridges and roads to traffic congestion data, the report, released on September 22nd, highlights the biggest issues facing South Carolina’s transportation system.” (Counton2.com)
In the report (using data between 2015 and 2019), TRIP estimates that 43% of The Palmetto State’s roads “are in poor or mediocre condition,…and 8% of the state’s bridges are rated poor or structurally deficient.” (PostandCourier.com)
More statistics from the report indicate that Charleston drivers lost an average of 56 hours a year, and wasted 22 gallons of gas, totaling $1,165 annually, sitting in traffic. For Myrtle Beach drivers, an average of 32 hours were lost a year, 14 gallons of gas were wasted, totaling $745 a year. All this due to traffic congestion.
Aging Roads Cause Fatalities
Even worse than the cost for South Carolinian’s is the catastrophic number of fatalities caused by the aging conditions of roads and bridges. “In its 2021 report card, the American Society of Civil Engineers, a group that lobbies Congress to fully fund federal infrastructure programs, gave the state’s road and water infrastructure D-plus.”(TheState.com) The report card showed that in 2019, South Carolina roads had 1.72 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled; that’s the highest fatality rate in the nation.
TRIP’s Moving South Carolina Forward report estimates that, “From 2015 to 2019, there were 5,018 traffic fatalities in S.C., that’s around 1,000 people per year. ‘Clearly a number that’s far too high,’ said Rocky Moretti, the Director of Policy and Research for TRIP.”(Counton2.com)
For 2021, Department of Public Safety data from January 1 to September 8 reveals that South Carolina has already had 758 traffic-related deaths.(GreenvilleOnline.com)
Funding Infrastructure
“In 2017, the state Legislature passed the S.C. Infrastructure and Economic Development Reform Act, also known as Act 40, to fund repairs for the state’s crumbling roads and bridges.
Funded in part by increases in gasoline taxes and vehicle registration fees, Act 40 provides an approximate $600 million annual boost to the state’s transportation coffers until 2027, funding road repair and construction projects across the state.” (PostandCourier.com)
TRIP’s report estimates the SC Department of Transportation (SCDOT) will still face a $403 million gap in funds annually, for needed improvements to roads, highways and bridges.
Advocates hope a federal infrastructure bill will provide much-needed funds to help repair SC roads and bridges.
THE LAW OFFICES OF DAVID L. HOOD – SERVING MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT VICTIMS IN SOUTH CAROLINA
If you have suffered a collision in South Carolina, the legal team at The Law Offices of David L. Hood will help you navigate the situation professionally. We have years of experience in helping people involved in serious accidents figure out the legal requirements and details needed to move forward after an accident. After gathering all the necessary information, we will pour our efforts into building your case to get a fair settlement or take it to court if the need arises.
Our entire team has years of experience representing various clients and car accident victims in South Carolina. Having a passion to help, we offer a free initial consultation where we provide candid legal advice on what options you may have. If you choose to work with us, we promise a contingent-fee based case, where you don’t pay unless we get a recovery in your case.
You can find our contact information on the page here and schedule your free consultation session.
Hi, I’m Attorney David Hood and I’ve been practicing law in South Carolina for over 30 years. One of our primary focuses is wrongful death lawsuits. People often ask, how do you file one in South Carolina? We’re going to cover that right now.
What do we need to show to file a wrongful death lawsuit in South Carolina?
The first thing that needs to be established is that the person’s death was caused by someone else’s (and not their own) actions. An example would be the death was caused by being rear ended by a truck, as opposed to a drunk driver driving into a tree. Another example would be being killed because the person was given the wrong medication and not because of an illegal drug overdose.
The Personal Representative of the estate should file the lawsuit
If the person who died (called the decedent) had a will, it should name the representative of the estate and that person should file the lawsuit.
If the decedent died without a will, the family needs to get a Personal Representative appointed by the Probate Court. Once that’s done, the Personal Representative can file a lawsuit on behalf of the estate.
Intestate law dictates what should happen when someone dies without a will
Assuming the wrongful death lawsuit is successful, South Carolina intestate law (which is when somebody dies without a will) dictates how the proceeds are to be divided up. It’ll depend upon whether there’s a surviving spouse, any children or surviving parents.
Getting the wrong medication from the pharmacy and suffering serious harm sounds like a nightmare, but it’s shockingly common: according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), medication errors cause at least one death every day and injure about 1.3 million people annually in the United States. So what happens when a medication error puts your health and well-being in jeopardy? Do you have any legal recourse against the pharmacy or the person who made the mistake? In this article, we’ll answer those questions and go over the basics of pharmacy malpractice law so you know what to do if a prescription error hurts you or someone you love.
How Medication Errors Happen
Although most people will look to the pharmacy for responsibility when a medication error happens, things can go wrong at any step in the complex process of prescribing and dispensing drugs. Harmful medication errors can occur when a doctor prescribes a drug, when the pharmacy repackages or dispenses it, or when a medical professional administers it or monitors the patient afterward.
Common causes of prescription errors include:
Poor communication between pharmacy and medical professionals
Confusion caused by ambiguous product names, poorly-written directions, or hard-to-decipher medical abbreviations or handwriting
Failure to employ proper procedures and techniques for prescribing and dispensing medications
Lack of product knowledge or training on the part of pharmacy staff
Job stress, apathy, or outright carelessness on the part of pharmacists, pharmacy staff, or other medical professionals
Because medication errors can occur in so many ways and at so many separate points in the process of prescribing and dispensing drugs, the lawsuits that result from medication errors are often complex and require an extensive understanding of the prescription drug system on the part of the attorneys who handle them.
What to Do If You’ve Been Harmed by a Medication Error
Whether a medication error constitutes pharmacy malpractice (or) or both, depends on the behavior that led to the error. If a doctor, pharmacist, or pharmacy staff member failed to follow established guidelines and practices for their field and didn’t exercise the reasonable care that’s expected of a medical professional, then they might have committed malpractice.
A doctor or pharmacist could have committed malpractice (depending on the context) if they:
Prescribed the wrong medication
Gave you the wrong dosage of a medication
Failed to take an adequate history of your health and prescription drug use
Didn’t warn you about all the risks associated with the medication, including potential harmful interactions between different drugs
Dangerously mixed different prescription drugs that shouldn’t go together
If you or someone you love has been harmed by a medication error, you may be entitled to compensation. Since your case will hinge on whether the doctor’s office or pharmacy followed accepted standards of conduct for their field, you need to work with a lawyer who understands those standards and who has the resources and experts needed to investigate your case and determine whether someone else’s negligence played a role in your suffering.
David L. Hood: Representing Pharmacy Malpractice Victims Throughout South Carolina
Prescription errors can lead to untold pain and suffering for patients, but the legal system helps victims hold the people who hurt them accountable. For pharmacy malpractice victims, Attorney David L. Hood puts together a team (with co-counsel) that has years of experience handling pharmacy malpractice cases. This accomplished team can draw from a professional network of doctors, nurses, and other medical experts who will help determine the cause of a medication mistake and provide expert testimony if medical negligence played a role in your case. If someone else’s reckless or careless behavior caused you or your family suffering, David L. Hood will fight with determination and explore every available legal option to get you the justice and compensation you deserve.
If you or someone you love has been hurt by a pharmacy error in South Carolina, contact The Law Offices of David L. Hood today to speak with an attorney and get a free, no-risk initial assessment of your case. Call us at (843) 491-6025 or fill out our easy online contact form and we’ll follow up with you right away.
