VA Hospital Wrongful Discharge Lawsuit
Our personal injury team is currently litigating a medical malpractice lawsuit against the U.S. government on behalf of a military veteran suffering from schizophrenia who was wrongfully discharged from a Veteran’s Affairs medical facility and subsequently struck by a car outside the facility.
VA Provided Inadequate Psychiatric Care, Lawsuit Says
The plaintiff served 11 years in the United States Marine Corps, after which he was honorably discharged. As a veteran, he developed schizophrenia and sought treatment at the VA Hospital in La Jolla, California. He was treated there for a number of months in 2009, and continued to receive periodic care from the hospital after he was discharged.
However, the lawsuit alleges that due to systemic problems with the VA system, the plaintiff was unable to receive antipsychotic medication on a regular basis. As a result, he started experiencing psychotic episodes.
Psychiatric Patient Discharged to the Streets
According to the lawsuit, in November 2013, without word to his caregiver, the plaintiff boarded a bus from San Diego to Phoenix, Arizona, where he was found wandering in a disoriented state by an officer with the Phoenix Police Department. When the officer learned that the plaintiff had been reported as a missing person, he immediately contacted the plaintiff’s caretaker, who advised of his diagnosis. On the request of the caretaker, the plaintiff was transported by the officer to the nearest VA hospital emergency room at Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center.
According to the complaint, the caretaker was adamant that the plaintiff remain at the hospital until she could arrive. Instead, the lawsuit alleges, the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center negligently, recklessly, and in total disregard for the safety of the plaintiff, discharged him to the streets from its emergency department less than three hours after her was admitted.
Veteran Struck by Car in Street Outside Hospital
Within hours after being discharged, the plaintiff was run over by a car in the middle of the street in front of the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center. He was found unconscious and near death by Phoenix Police Department officers who promptly transported him to the trauma unit of another nearby hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The plaintiff sued the VA Medical Center, through the United States, in the federal District Court of Arizona to recover for his injuries and pain and suffering. The complaint alleges that due to the VA Medical Center’s negligent acts, his daily living functions have been permanently impaired, including his ability to speak and walk. He also suffers from severe emotional distress.
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About Us – Nationally Recognized Personal Injury Lawyers
Our team of personal injury lawyers has over twenty years of experience representing individuals injured by the negligence or wrongdoing of healthcare professionals, pharmaceutical companies, and insurance providers.
We have been recognized among the top attorneys for professional ethics and legal skills by our clients, our peers, and the Courts.
Our attorneys currently represent another former U.S. serviceman in a medical malpractice case against the U.S government concerning a VA hospital’s failure to diagnose terminal prostate cancer, as well as thousands of individuals injured by Granuflo dialysis drugs, Transvaginal Mesh implants, the Mirena IUD, and testosterone supplements.