Q&A with Lishani Sunday: What do I do if I was injured by a failed medical device?

Medical devices are intended to increase and improve an individual’s quality of life. You would not expect them to cause additional anguish. Unfortunately, some medical devices are defective causing long-term suffering and sometimes fatal injuries. Since 2008, medical devices for pain and other medical conditions have caused more than 80,000 deaths.

Lishani Sunday, one of KBG’s personal injury lawyers, discusses the common questions regarding injuries caused by defective medical devices.

Who is responsible?

While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for protecting the public from any hazardous defective medical device, sometimes defective medical devices are introduced to the public. When a defective medical device is the cause of additional pain and suffering, the manufacturer is liable.

Depending on when the medical equipment became defective, you may be able to hold every entity, or chain of commerce, liable for your injuries. This can include:

• The designer
• The medical sales representative
• A testing facility
• A pharmacy or medical supplier

A qualified attorney will help investigate when the defect occurred to identify who is responsible.

What steps should I take after being injured by a defective medical device?

There are important steps you need to take once you notice symptoms, side effects or a medical condition that could relate to a medical device.

The first step is to contact your primary doctor. This will help document your injury. Preserve any evidence by taking photos and saving the device along with any packaging or labels that came with it. This will help you pursue a claim against the manufacturer.

How long do I have to report an injury?

In Pennsylvania, the statute of limitation to file a lawsuit for an injury caused by a defective medical device is two years. However, not all injuries are immediately discovered. The statute of limitation does not begin until when the injured individual discovers that the defective medical equipment has caused an injury. This is known as the discovery rule.

How do we prove a medical device is defective?

To have a successful personal injury claim, there has to be enough evidence to prove your injuries are a direct result of a defective medical device. For a product to be considered defective, it has to be unreasonably dangerous when used in the intended way. This could include a manufacturing defect, design defect or marketing defect — a failure to warn or provide sufficient instructions.

You must be able to prove the following to have a case:

• You sustained an injury
• The product was defective either in design, manufacturing or marketing
• Injures sustained were caused by the product’s defect
• You were properly using the product at the time of the injury

If you or a loved one has been injured due to a defective medical device, you may be entitled to receive compensation for your medical bills, lost income, physical pain, emotional suffering and other damages.

Contact KBG Injury Law today to get the Results You Deserve®.