Safe Driving Over Holiday Weekends

A recent news article by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that there were a large number of accidents on Pennsylvania highways over Memorial Day weekend, killing 13 people and injuring 294 others. In addition to the increase in accidents and injuries, there were 357 DUI arrests and 7,934 speeding tickets.

We cannot stress to you enough how important it is to remain safe and alert while driving during periods of increased motor activity, especially summer holiday periods like Memorial Day, 4^th of July, and Labor Day. Motor vehicle accidents, bicycle accidents, and pedestrian accidents can be easily prevented with a few simple, common-sense tips:

1) BE ALERT. Do not drive while fatigued.

2) BE FOCUSED. Do not be distracted by others in the car, do not use your cell phone while driving, and especially do not text while driving.

3) BE DEFENSIVE. While you may be a responsible and respectful driver, this does not mean that everyone you are sharing the road with is also a good driver. Be alert for aggressive drivers, those who frequently switch lanes or swerve, or those who are tailgating others.

4) BE SAFE. Always wear your seatbelt. In 5 of the 13 deaths recorded this weekend, the victim was not wearing their seatbelt. Additionally, do not consume alcohol before driving or get into a car with a driver who has been drinking. 83 of the 808 crashes this weekend involved alcohol.

Douglas V. Stoehr works with clients who have been injured in motor vehicle, pedestrian, and bicycle accidents. If you feel that you have been wrongly hurt in an accident, please contact our office for a free consultation. Safe driving and here’s to the start of long-overdue warm weather and a great summer!

Pain Management for Back Pain

It is very likely that you or someone you know has suffered from back pain. There are many causes of back pain including traumatic injuries. Douglas V. Stoehr represents individuals who have suffered back injuries through the fault or carelessness of another individual. Back pain can develop because of car accidents, pedestrian accidents, construction accidents, and slip and falls. In fact, I have represented several people who have sustained back injuries while residing in a nursing home.

Back pain does not necessarily mean you need back surgery. There are a variety of techniques known as "interventional pain management techniques" which can provide effective and minimally invasive relief for these back injuries.

The type of treatment any given patient receives depends upon several factors including the location of pain, chronicity and age of patient. The following are some of the better-known intervention methods for treatment of back pain:

• Trigger Point and Facet Injections: Trigger point injections are singular injections into painful muscles and facet joint injections involves an injection into the actual facet joint which can be done in the lower back and, at times, the shoulder blades.

• Medial Branch Nerve Blocks: This is an injection of sorts which is typically done if the facet joint injection is unsuccessful. This injection temporarily blocks the nerve and is a diagnostic tool for the physician to determine the exact location of your pain.
  Radiofrequency Ablation: The end of the nerve in the low back is literally burned away to prevent it from sending pain signals to the brain.

• Epidural Steroid Injections: These injections use an anesthetic and steroid medication which is injected into the epidural space (you may receive this type of injection if you suffer from sciatica).

• Intradiscal Electrothermal Therapy: This involves heating up a disc when the disc itself is causing pain. That is, the pain is not caused by the disc compressing a nerve but, rather, the disc itself is causing pain.

• Percutaneous Vertebroplasty: This treatment focuses on the fracture that can be a warning sign of osteoporosis. The doctor injects cement into the central vertebral body so that it won’t move and cause pain any more. This procedure can help eliminate the need for back surgery.

• Spinal Cord Stimulation: This is one of the last stops for someone suffering from back pain who has not experienced any relief from other treatments. The goal is to send electrical impulses to block pain from being perceived in the brain. Technically, this is a surgical procedure because the stimulator needs to be implanted in the body. However, there is no surgery done to any of the lumbar discs.
  

Douglas V. Stoehr works with physicians who provide interventional pain management treatment. Contact our office if you would like a referral or simply want to discuss your chronic pain symptoms. We wish you much relief from your back pain!

Attorney Doug Stoehr

COVERAGE CONFUSION> underinsured and Uninsured Motorist's Coverage

One of the most important yet confusing coverage decisions that one must make in deciding what might be the most beneficial automobile insurance coverage to purchase in Pennsylvania involves the issues of how much underinsured and uninsured motorist coverages should be purchased to protect you and your family. Remember that most importantly, uninsured and underinsured motorists coverages serve to protect you and your family if injured by the carelessness of another driver. These coverages, as their names indicate, come into play when the at-fault driver is uninsured or underinsured such that their liability coverage is not sufficient to compensate you for your full recoverable wage loss, medical expenses, pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life's pleasures. Unfortunately, some people drive without insurance coverage in Pennsylvania and others drive with only the minimum required liabilty coverage of $15,000.00 per person, $30,000.00 per accident. Should you become seriously injured as a result of the carelessness of someone uninsured or underinsured with minimal or inadequate limits of liability insurance, your injuries and losses could go uncompensated unless you have first adequately protected yourself through the purchase of substantial uninsured and underinsured motorists coverages. These coverages are relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of liability coverage, and there are ways to balance out the cost of purchasing sufficient liability coverage to protect others with the cost of uninsured and underinsured motorists coverages that you purchase in order to protect yourself. The lack of appropriate uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages can have a very catastrophic and regrettable impact upon your financial welfare and security if you find yourself seriously injured in a car collision and inadequately insured with these types of coverages. Should you wish to discuss your automobile coverage limits with knowledgable and experienced attorneys who have nothing to gain other than your thanks from suggesting that you may not be adequately protected, please feel free to contact Doug Stoehr.

WHAT IS A PATIENT NAVIGATOR

Patient Navigators are specially trained healthcare workers who provide services and support for the ill and aging. This concept was originally created to assist with the poor, uninsured, and those with low literacy levels. It is my understanding that it then developed to assist those suffering from cancer. Now Patient Navigators can help anyone.

Patient Navigators help people "navigate" the maze of doctor's visits, diagnostic testing, visits to the hospital, outpatient centers, insurance and payment issues, and other components of healthcare. For example, a patient navigator may coordinate your doctors' visits, maintain telephone contact between you and your physicians, arrange for transportation and assist with insurance paperwork. Patient Navigators are former nurses, social workers, or community health workers.

Admittedly, I only recently learned of this service. However, it makes sense: conceivably millions of people are not adept at all of the issues one faces in today's healthcare world. For example, one may be undaunted at arranging his or her medical appointments, but becomes easily flustered dealing with insurance or Medicare paperwork. Another individual may be in a nursing home and needs transportation. Yet many others do not know what to ask their doctor during a visit and even become embarrassed, feeling that they are taking up too much time of their physician.

If you feel that this type of service can help you, but do not know where to turn, I would simply Google the phrase "Patient Navigator" to learn more. I also became aware of a particular website which may be helpful: http://www.patientnavigator.com/. While I cannot vouch for this website, it may be a good place to start.

Attorney Doug Stoehr is interested in healthcare problems and is concerned about individuals who become injured through no fault of their own. Contact our office if you should have any questions or concerns.

Attorney Doug Stoehr

What is a problem with tort reform in the medical malpractice arena? Part II

In an op-ed in the New York Daily News (12/5), New York State Bar Association President Michael Getnick wrote, "Lawyers and lawsuits have been attacked politically for years, but in reality, civil lawsuits shine a spotlight on wrongdoing, call the offenders to account, deter future misbehavior and provide justice for people who have been hurt. Repeated studies have shown that approximately 100,000 people die each year due to medical malpractice in our nation's hospitals." Getnick argues, "Anyone who wants to reduce the number of lawsuits should focus on reducing the type of negligent behavior that harms people and causes them to sue".

Attorney Douglas V. Stoehr seeks justice for our injured clients, not political correctness according to some insurance companies idea of that concept. In doing so, we professionally and diligently represent honest individuals in their unfortunate injury claims resulting from the careless acts of others. When you come to us for help, you can expect integrity on our part, respect and dedication to your cause.

What is a problem with tort reform in the medical malpractice arena?

In a December 6 article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, it was reported that "Next month, the Missouri Supreme Court will hear arguments" in a case challenging the state's cap on jury damage awards. "There and in Illinois' highest court, judges ultimately will rule on an issue that pits doctors and businesses against lawyers and advocates for victims." Medical malpractice attorneys say that the state's $350,000 cap is "bad for consumers...because it means that people...will have a hard time finding a lawyer willing to take their cases".
-Placing caps on jury damage awards merely injures the victim a second time.
-Attorney Douglas V. Stoehr believes that the best way to control medical malpractice is to develop medical practices that reduce or prevent medical errors and malpractice that carelessly cost tens of thousands of lives each year.

Pain Management Resources

Recently I posted a blog about suffering from chronic pain. I have located some pain management resources which I would like to share with you. These are pain advocacy and support groups. They are as follows:

American Diabetes Association - www.diabetes.org

American Fibromyalgia Syndrome Association - www.afsafund.org

American Geriatrics Society - www.americangeriatricssociety.org

American RSDHope - www.RSDHope.org

American Society of Law, Medicine and Ethics - www.aslme.org

Amputee Coalition of America - www.amputee-coalition.org

Arthritis Foundation - www.arthritis.org

Association of Oncology Social Work - www.aosw.org

Band Against MS-Clay Walker - www.bandagainstms.org

Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities - www.c-c-d.org

Dia de la Mujer Latina, Inc. - www.diadelmujerlatina.org

Disability Advocates of America - www.disability-advocate.com

Disabled American Veterans - www.dav.org

Ehler-Danlos National Foundation (connective tissue disorder) - www.ednf.org

For Grace - www.forgrace.org

Lupus Foundation of America, Inc. - www.lupus.org

Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America - www.myasthenia.org

National Fibromyalgia Association - www.fmaware.org

National Association of Area Agencies on Aging - www.n4a.org

National Headache Association - www.headaches.org

The National Migraine Association - www.migraines.org

National Multiple Sclerosis Society - www.nationalmssociety.org

National Organization for Rare Disorders - www.rarediseases.org

National Palliative Care Research Center - www.nprc.org

National Stroke Association - www.stroke.org

National Womens Health Resource Center - www.healthywomen;org

Patient Advocate Foundation - www.patientadvocate.org

Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome Association - www.rsds.org

Sickle Cell Disease - www.sicklecelldisease.org

United States Bone and Joint Decade - www.usbjd.org


At Stoehr & Smith, LLC, we are interested in issues regarding pain and pain management. Feel free to contact our office if you would like to discuss any pain problem brought about because of an accident or injury.

Attorney Doug Stoehr