Syracuse Injury Lawyer Blog

Defense medical examinations, also known as IMEs, performed by Central New York doctors working for insurance companies are were recently the subject of a statewide investigation conducted by the New York Times.

According to a New York Times review of workers' compensation case files, medical records, and patient interviews, "independent medical examinations" and the reports that follow are are frequently conducted or prepared in a fashion that benefits insurers by minimizing injuries or by attributing injuries to some other cause or event. Unlike a visit to a treating physician, an IME physician may meet with an injured worker for less than ten minutes. During that ten minute period, the IME doctor may take an abbreviated history, skim medical records, perform a very limited physical examination and send the patient on his or her way without an ounce of compassion. After that examination, the majority of IME reports conclude that the patient is not injured or, if injured, is not disabled.

Many refer to Syracuse-area IME doctors as "Dr. No" or "Dr. Says-No," because no matter how badly injured, certain doctors will consistently find no injury or no disability. The New York Times interviewed Dr. Alan Zimmerman, an orthopedic surgeon practicing in Queens, New York. According to Dr. Zimmerman, "[b]asically, if you haven't murdered anyone and you have a medical license, you get certified." Dr. Zimmerman added that its "clearly a nice was to semi-retire." Dr. Zimmerman, 75, conducts orthopedic IMEs.

IME examinations are very profitable for doctors (some earning nearly $1,000,000 per year performing examinations and testifying in court), and were poorly regulated until 2001. In 2000, a Long Island doctor conducted five IMEs in a Long Island bar. Some examiners, of course, do furnish honest examinations.

A small study conducted a few years ago at the Central New York Occupational Health Clinical Center in Syracuse, New York, revealed that the clinic's treating physicians and local independent medical examiners almost always disagreed on whether an injured worker was disabled.

Continue reading "Central New York Injured Worker Compensation Lawsuits Limited By Independent Medical Examinations" »

Residents in Herkimer County and Oneida County are not breathing the worst air in the nation, but it could be better. According to the American Lung Association's 2009 State of the Air Report, residents in Herkimer County and Oneida County are not among the more than 186,000,000 Americans breathing air that received a failing grade, but their air is only a "C."

A "C" is indicative of air quality that, on at least one day a year, is unhealthy for sensitive groups of people. According to the American Lung Association in New York, "every day that residents in the region are forced to breathe in harmful air is one day too many."

Area officials are committed to reducing pollution and bettering air quality in order to reduce the risk of lung damage and associated diseases, such as asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, adult respiratory distress syndrome, and lung cancer.

Continue reading "Unhealthy Air In Herkimer and Oneida May Lead To Lung Damage" »

A portion of the New York State Thruway was closed earlier this week following a UPS trandem tractor trailer accident in which the UPS big rig crashed in the Town of Catskill, south of Albany, New York. The New York State Thruway was closed for several hours from exit 20 to exit 21. The cause of the accident, which occurred around 4:20 a.m., is under investigation. The driver of the UPS 18 wheeler was injured in the accident to Albany Medical Center for medical care. No other drivers were injured.

Continue reading "Albany UPS Tractor Trailer Crash Closes New York State Thruway" »

Earlier today, a Syracuse area teenager was hospitalized after rear-ending a school bus on Kasson Road in the County of Onondaga. According to the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office, the school bus was stopped with red lights flashing when a seventeen (17) year old drove into the back of the bus. The 17 year old struck the bus with enough force to wedge his car underneath the rear bumper of the bus. Rescue crews were called to the scene to pull the negligent driver from the wreckage.

As many as 500,000 school buses transport newarly 24,000,000 children to and from school each day. While school bus accidents are common, the damage is usually minor and where there are injuries, they usually are to the driver of a car that came into contact with the bus (67%) or with a pedestrian (25%), and not to school bus passengers (9%).

Continue reading "School Bus Accident In Camillus Injures Onondaga Teen Who Struck Bus From Behind" »

The New York State Department of Health recently approved a $3.3 million expansion of the St. Camillus Health and Rehabilitation Center (Syracuse, New York) in order to increase outpatient services available for brain injury patients, including those with brain damage and disability caused by a stroke, trauma, fall, or accident. The 12,000 square foot expansion will include a new entrance, exercise rooms, recreation facilities and rehabilitation counseling for brain injury patients. As part of the project, the day care facility will expand from 40 to 52 beds per day.

The brain injury rehabilitation program at St. Camillus is well established. The treatment team includes a case manager, dietitian, neuropsychologist, occupational therapist, physiatrist, physical therapist, recreation therapist, rehabilitation counselor, rehabilitation nurse, social worker, and speech/language pathologist.

Continue reading "Syracuse Brain Injury Center Expands To Treat Stroke, Crash and Fall Victims" »

Earlier today, a plane crashed within Madison County, just off of Wescott Road in the Town of Eaton, New York. The crash occurred near Hatch Lake. One person was killed in the accident. Damage to the plane was significant. The aviation accident is under investigation.

Continue reading "Madison County Plane Crash Kills One In Eaton, New York" »

According to Dr. Elizabeth Murray, of the Golisano Children's Hospital, soon coming to Syracuse, New York, children are safer in rear-facing car seats, even after they are old enough or large enough to ride in forward-facing car seats.

It was once thought that children should be turned-around or moved into a forward-facing car seat when they are 12 months old, or weigh more than twenty pounds. Recent studies suggest that children should stay in a rear-facing car seat for as long as possible. The American Academy of Pediatrics is on the verge of releasing new recommendations that would urge parents to keep children in rear-facing car seats until age two in order to prevent neck injuries, such as cervical fractures (i.e., a broken neck).

In order for a car seat to be effective in preventing injury, it must be installed properly. Remember that rear-facing car seats are installed tightly and are not placed in the front seat of a car with an active passenger air bag. Also make sure that car seat harnesses are at baby shoulder level, that a car set is installed at the correct angle, and that seatbelts are buckled correctly. Use the LATCH system were possible.

Continue reading "Syracuse Doctor Urges Parents To Use Rear Facing Car Seats To Decrease Babies Injured In Car Accidents" »

A portion of the facade of The Warehouse building collapsed today, leading to the closing of West Fayette Street, from West Street to Frankling Streets, in downtown Syracuse, New York. At one point in time, The Warehouse building housed the Syracuse University School of Architecture. It now houses departments for the University's School of Visual and Performing Arts.

The building collapse cause rubble to fall onto the sidewalk and street below. Fortunately, no Syracuse University students or any others were injured.

The block remains closed until construction workers have an opportunity to remove additional portions of the building's southwest exterior which appear unstable. The loose exterior is approximately eighty-five feet off the ground, so laborers will have to use a lift to perform repairs to the building. According to the Syracuse Fire Department, the building failure was not structural.

Continue reading "Falling Rubble From Structure Failure Closes Syracuse Block" »

According to the Utica Regional Director for the New York State Department of Transportation, motorists should travel through roadway construction sites with care. Due to an increase in funding secondary to the economic recovery package, there will be more construction sites than usual during the Summer of 2009.

The New York State Department of Transportation has asked drivers to obey posted signage, obey flagpersons, maintain a safe distance between you and the car in front of you and, most importantly, slow down. After speeding, most roadway construction accidents are due to driver negligence, such as inattention due to conversations with passengers, or talking on a cellular telephone.

Continue reading "Utica Construction Site Accidents Can Be Avoided By Safe Travel Through Work Zones" »

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a new standard today with regard to testing paint and painted products, such as children's toys, for lead. The new standard document (CPSC-CH-E1003-09) can be found here. Rules contained in the Ban of Lead-Containing Paint and Certain Consume Products Bearing Lead Containing Paint, CFR, Title 16, Part 1303, remain unchanged.

In short, the new protocol includes a standard for composite testing, as recommended by the Toy Industry Association Working Group. Composite testing, whether composite-testing-like-parts or composite-testing-different-parts involves sampling paint from several different product parts in order to secure a sample size sufficient for lead (pB) testing.

Continue reading "Syracuse Lead Paint Lawyers On New Consumer Product Safety Standard" »

While much of the country is experiencing a housing slump and a decline in construction, the City of Syracuse seems immune from the trend. Last year, nearly 5,000 building permits were pulled for projects totaling more than $200,000,000.

A look around Syracuse reveals where the construction dollars are being spent. Current construction sites in and around downtown Syracuse include a $21,000,000 office building at the intersection of South Clinton Street and West Jefferson Street, a $6,000,000 renovation of the old Dupli building on West Jefferson Street, and O'Brien & Gere's move to a new building adjacent to Armory Square at Franklin and West Fayette Streets.

In addition, new townhomes are planned for Prospect Hill, the Kirk Hotel is under renovation, a new section of the Onondaga Creekwalk will be complete soon, and SUNY Upstate Medical University will soon break ground on the Central New York Biotech Center in the former Kennedy Square apartment complex. According to Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll, as many as 231 rental and/or owner-occupied units will be constructed or renovated by the end of the year.

With construction underway throughout Syracuse, construction injuries are also expected to rise as unsafe jobsites, defective machinery and tight deadlines cause falling objects, falls from a height, and various other dangerous work environments that can lead to severe injury, permanent disability, and even death.

Continue reading "Syracuse Work Injury Lawyer On Onondaga Construction In 2009" »

At St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center in Syracuse, New York, infants born with select brain injuries, which can be due to a labor and delivery complication or obstetrical malpractice, are now receiving cold therapy treatments.

Research suggests that cold therapy, which consists of placing a newborn baby on an icy cold blanket for 72 hours after birth, may reduce brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen or blood flow at birth, known as hypoxia, ischemia, or asphyxia. A lock of oxygen or blood flow can lead to brain damage, including cerebral palsy, mental retardation and other developmental problems.

Practically speaking, cold therapy slows metabolic activity in the brain which may prevent the second stage of injury due to oxygen deprivation - second stage injuries occur as blood and oxygen flow returns to portions of the baby's brain deprived during delivery. Swelling is common during this time period, which the cold therapy is intended to reduce.

At St. Joe's, the therapy was recently applied to two babies born following placental abruption, which is a life-threatening condition (for the mother and baby) where the placenta separates from the uterus. Crouse Hospital, which operates Syracuse, New York's largest neonatal intensive care unit, has plans to introduce cold therapy during the Spring of 2009.

Continue reading "Syracuse Newborn Brain Injuries To Be Reduced By Cold Therapy Available At St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center" »

At 3:00 p.m. today four Ogdensburg Railway freight cars carrying salt derailed approximately one mile off of Buck Road, on the New York and Ogdensburg Railway line. The train cars were carrying more than 800,000 pounds of salt from the CSX Interchange to the Port of Ogdensburg.

According to investigators, the accident was caused by "sun-kinks," which are warped or buckled sections of track caused by cold-to-warm temperature changes associated with the change of seasons. Fortunately, there were no injuries and no salt was spilled. There was minor damage to the tracks and rail cars.

Continue reading "Ogdensburg New York Train Accident Damages Tracks But Injures None" »

Nearly ten years ago, a run man was struck by a freight train and lost his right arm and both of his legs. Recently, the young man, who once thought he would die from his injuries but now runs triathlons, returned To Lourdes Hospital as an inspirational speaker.

Continue reading "Train Accident Amputee Visits Lourdes Rehabilitation To Discuss Prosthetics" »

Earlier today, a tractor trailer traveling north on Interstate Route 81 (I-81), in Syracuse, New York, struck a twelve year old boy who was attempting to cross the highway. The accident occurred near Interstate Route 81 (I-81) exit number 28, for Taft Road, which is an exit north of Syracuse's Hancock Airport.

According to witnesses, the boy entered the shoulder of Interstate Route 81 (I-81) and proceeded to run in front of the tractor trailer. The boy was transported to University Hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. A portion of Interstate Route 81 (I-81) was closed after the accident.

Statistically, every sixteen minutes a person is injured or killed in an accident involving a tractor trailer, big rig, or 18-wheeler. Surprisingly, most tractor trailer accidents occur during the week (88%), during the daytime (75%), in good weather (71%), on dry roads (71%).

Continue reading "Tractor Trailer Hits Syracuse Child On Interstate Route 81 Near Hancock Airport" »

On April 12, 2009, at or about 4:00 p.m., four Syracuse residents were injured in a rollover crash while traveling westbound on the New York State Thruway, near North Chittenango.
Witnesses observed the driver of the car attempt to move into the right hand lane, move out of the right lane to avoid a car, overcorrect his steering to the left, and lose control of the vehicle.

The backseat passengers were ejected from the car, causing one to sustain internal internal bleeding and a collapsed lung. All four of the car's passengers were transported to University Hospital in Syracuse, New York for treatment. The driver was charged with driving while intoxicated.

Continue reading "Syracuse Residents Injured In Rollover Crash On New York State Thruway" »

On March 30, 2009, the Honorable David R. Demarest dismissed a negligence and wrongful death action filed against St. Lawrence County by the family of a New York State trooper killed in a 2007 shootout.

Justice Demarest ruled Monday that St. Lawrence County Probation Department was not negligent in the manner in which it handled a warrant for fugitive Travis Trim. Trooper David C. Brinkerhoff was shot and killed by friendly fire on April 25, 2007, during a gunfight that occurred during the execution of the warrant to arrest Trim. Trim was also killed.

Trooper Brinkerhoff's family alleged that St. Lawrence County was negligent, careless and reckless in allowing Trim to remain free despite multiple probation violations. Our investigation revealed that a warrant for Trim was issued by a Canton Village Court on December 29, 2006. The warrant was faxed to the St. Lawrence County Probation Department on January 2, 2007; however, the Probation Department shredded the fax and waited for the official copy, which never arrived. Trim remained free.

Justice Demarest ruled that the Probation Department's handling of the warrant for Trim several months before the shooting "was not a factor which indirectly produced the tragic result."

Continue reading "Watertown Wrongful Death and Negligence Action Filed By Trooper's Family Dismissed" »

Adirondack Medical Center, located in Saranac Lake, New York, reopened recently following a partial collapse of the hospital's chimney, which many believed was an explosion originating in the boiler room. Following the chimney collapse, the hospital was without heat or hot water. Patients were transferred to area hospitals until repairs were complete. Fortunately, no one was injured as a result of the structural failure.

Continue reading "Adirondack Medical Center Reopens After Chimney Collapse" »