In This Issue:

- Winter Traffic Dangers

- Surgical Tools Left in Patients

- Construction Site Dangers

Winter Traffic Dangers

Car accidents are far too common year round, but the winter months bring a larger percentage of accidents due to bad weather. There were nearly 6.5 million auto accidents in the United States in 2005. These accidents injured nearly 3 million people and killed about 43,000. That's one death every 13 minutes.

Icy roads and high winds can make even the safest driver lose control of his vehicle and cause a car wreck. Just about everywhere in the country is affected by dangerous winter conditions that increase the chances of having a car accident.

Drivers in the northern states have more experience driving in winter weather and the department of transportation is better equipped to handle snow and ice. However, the longer duration of bad weather, snow and ice opens up more opportunities for traffic accidents. Overconfidence also increases the likliehood of car accidents - no matter how safe and experienced a driver is, no one can easily control or stop a vehicle on ice.

Drivers in the warmer southern states don't have to deal with icy winter roads as often. When the weather does turn cold and icy, southern drivers are more likely to be involved in a car accident because they do not have as much experience driving in icy conditions. Drivers that do not deal with winter weather very much aren't aware of how difficult it is to control a vehile when it's icy.

When these car accidents happen, it's not just our cars that get damaged. Homes and other property can be damaged from cars sliding off the streets. Most car accidents cause drivers, passengers and pedestrians to be seriously injured or even killed due to unsafe driving.

If you have been in a car wreck and believe another driver caused the accident, you may be entitled to compensation for property damage, medical bills, time away from work and pain and suffering. Contact the auto accident attorneys at The Rasansky Law Firm to see if you have a case.

Surgical Tools Left in Patients

According to the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH), about 2500 surgery patients leave the hospital with surgical devices such as clamps, and tweezers or pieces of surgical devices that unintentionally fell off during surgery. These foreign objects are left in the patients typically due to improper maintenance, incorrect usage, and/or failure to properly clean up the patient after surgery.

The CDRH receives about 1000 reports annually of pieces of medical devices found inside surgery patients and about 1,500 surgery patients are reported to have medical equipment left inside their bodies after surgery. Many more cases could go unreported or misdiagnosed.

These items left after surgery can cause serious injuries such as internal infection, blood vessel damage and even death depending on the item and placement. The body will try to remove foreign objects on its own. As the body tries to move the objects, they can damage organs, blood vessels and even become lodged in bones. In cases where a patient receives an MRI, the metal objects can shift under the force of the powerful MRI magnet causing internal tearing and bleeding. Radiology equipment can cause the metal objects to reach high temperatures and can burn internal organs, tissue and blood vessels.

These medical mistakes are unaceptable and can only happen due to hospital staff being careless. Medical devices should be examined and accounted for immediately after surgery to prevent leaving anything in the patient, but this common sense practice is seemingly not done in many cases. What's worse is the possibility that doctors and nurses realize their mistake and possibly not informing the patient or taking corrective measures.

If you are in unexpected pain or discomfort after surgery, seek medical advice as soon as possible. You may be entitled to compensation for the surgeon's mistake to cover time off of work, medical expenses and pain and suffering. Contact a medical malpractice attorney to see if you have a case.

Construction Site Dangers

Construction sites are eveywhere in Dallas. Hotels, offices and other large buildings are popping up on every corner it seems. Each site has at least one large crane moving heavy equipment around, large trucks coming in and out and dozens of tractors moving around, sometimes into the public roads.

With all this activity and heavy dangerous equipment, construction site accidents and injuries seem imposible to avoid. Even with safety precautions, chances are someone is bound to get injured or even worse, die while working on a construction site.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 1 out of 10 construction workers are injured each year. Construction accident fatalities account for about 40% of all workplace fatalities in the U.S.

OSHA reports that the leading cause of construction injuries are from construction workers falling, wether from an elevated height such as a roof or scaffolding or on the same level due to tripping over objects.

The construction site danger isn't limited to the site itself. Pedestrians walking on the sidewalks and drivers on the ajacent streets have to deal with semi trucks driving in and out, heavy materials overhead and debris falling into the street.

If you have been injured or sustained property damage at or near a construction site, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries and damage. Contact a construction accident attorney to see if you have a case.