Can I sue my daughters Pediatrician?

Question

am not going to but I am VERY mad with my daughters 1st doctor. Its a very long story but if you want to read it this is what happen...

My daughter (who is 5months today) was really sick almost since birth! At 1st the doctor told me nothing was wrong. I had gone to the doctors pretty much every week for a month before they told me she had acid reflex and so we switched her from regular enfamil to enfamil ar and zantac and she was still sick all the time throwing up and throwing up and not gaining any weight and was not sleeping much crying in pain 24/7. Her doc kept saying she was fine. So we went back often and he kept telling me it was her acid reflex and would up her dose and sometimes she would make it a day with out crying but it was still bad. When we went back to her 4month apt i told him she is still always in pain he said we will up the dose of the meds I asked should i try to change the formula and he said no way because it will make it worse. Being a 1st time mother i listened even though i though he was wrong. A few days later we called she had been crying for 3 days non stop not eating and thowing up they said give it more time for the meds to kick im (this was a friday so we had to wait til monday to see them again) this means it was almost a full week of her throwing up more then she was eating she would scream in pain most the day sleep maybe 3 twenty minute naps a day and again he said nothing was wrong we just need to up the dose, at this point i was mad and knew something was very wrong,so we switched to a new doctor. She thinks she has a milk allergy so she switched her to Alimentum similac and prilosec and that was the problem she was allergic to the formula. It got to the point she has blood in her stool because she was on the wrong stuff and it hurt her belly. I am told she can not start food right away and now has to be on a certin formula. There was many times i asked to switch her formula and every time he shot it down. Also a time I went to him asking if she had an ear infection he said no a week later i went back saw a differnt doctor and all of a sudden she had an ear infection. I als at the 4 month apt asked if she had teeth coming in he said no way and the next day they came through. I think this doctor should not have his job. I am a 1st time mother and what if i had stayed with him? How much worse then p**p in her stool would it have gotten? She was in pain for almost the whole 1st 5 months. Does any one know if i can sue? And how much i can sue for? I want him fired or at least for people to know he is not a good doctor.

Answer 1

what would you be suing him for?  you can't sue a doctor based on a "what if i kept going to this doctor what would have happened".

and frankly it's rather greedy to think of using your baby's milk allergy to find out how much you can get for suing him.

and if she is still on prilosec then she DOES have acid reflux since prilosec is meant to treat reflux, part of which he told you so he wasn't even totally wrong.

Answer 2

Milkmakingmomma should be ashamed of herself!!! Trying to pin this on the mother since she didn't breastfeed? Its people like you that give all of us breastfeeding mothers a bad name for being so rude to formula feeding moms. Anyway, that extremely irritated me!!!

I think you can consult an attorney but I don't think you really have a case.

Answer 3

Actually, no. Diagnosing reflux or milk allergies is a very tough thing to do for infants.. it is all trial and error. Blood in the stool os a common side effect from milk allergies in babies, not a sign of malpractice. It sounds like you would be happier if you switched pediatricians.. but to answer your question, no- def NOT malpractice or a lawsuit.

add: Ear infections can accompany teething in many infants... if you know your baby has had an ear infection while teething this time, don't be surprised if it reoccurs as she goes through bouts of teething. My youngest daughter was like that.

Answer 4

yes get a lawyer. that is not acceptable. the lawyer will be able to give you your options. i agree that man should not be in a job like that. you think you should be able to trust your baby's doctor, but obviously they dont always know best. so glad you trusted your mummy instinct!!! glad your little girl is feeling better

Answer 5

I'm so sorry for all of the problems and heartache that you had to go through and I'm glad to hear that everything is doing better now.  

Something that you are learning, though, is that you can't hold your doctor responsible for what happened.  As a parent it is your job to research and find the best options for your child.  Doctors should be a good source of information, but they aren't the only source.  You have to search and gather and then apply what you know to your baby's problems.  As sad as it is, we aren't supposed to just blindly do whatever someone tells us.  We have to decide for ourselves what we do.  But, you're learning that.  Next time your daughter has a problem you'll make some decisions about how to fix it and won't have to worry about what the doctor says.

Answer 6

you can always sue and even report him to AMA. If he is affiliated with a hospital you can report him there aswell.

remember that you are your childs only advocate, when something doesnt seem right get a second opinion, if you have to go to the ER

Answer 7

you can consult an attorney, but I highly doubt you have a case.  You will have to prove that he was negligent.  Like others said, milk protein allergies can be had to detect.

You *knew* in your heart something was wrong, yet you waited 5 months before seeking out another opinion.  If you were not comfortable with his advice, you should of consulted with someone else.

Answer 8

that was a long read....goodness that situation sucks! yes- get a lawyer! no telling how bad your baby could've gotten and how much longer she could've suffered! that doctor should not be working!

Answer 9

Get an attorney. That's absolutely ridiculous. The moment my daughters bowel movements changed, our doc switched her to soy. She was fine on that for a few weeks then developed colic so he switched her to Nutramigen (hypoallergenic). A pediatrician should know better, not just keep shoving more meds down a poor baby's throat when they obviously weren't helping.  

Answer 10

You could have avoided ALL of this if you had nursed your baby (She is allergic to COWS milk, not your milk)  And unfortunately you cannot sue since no permanent damage was done.  You CAN however, report him to the APA (American Pediatric Association)  or the AMA (American Medical Association)  I would do that if I were you!  You are right he should not have his job!