Can You Sue OSF HealthCare for Medical Malpractice in Illinois?
If you or a loved one suffered a serious injury while receiving care at an OSF HealthCare hospital or facility, you may be wondering whether you can sue OSF HealthCare for medical malpractice in Illinois.
The answer depends on what happened. A poor medical outcome does not necessarily mean medical malpractice occurred. However, when a hospital, doctor, nurse, or other healthcare provider fails to meet the appropriate standard of care and that failure causes a patient harm, the patient may have grounds for a medical malpractice claim.
OSF HealthCare is an integrated health system headquartered in Peoria, Illinois. The OSF HealthCare health system provides care through hospitals, medical groups, and other healthcare facilities in communities throughout Illinois and Michigan.
Hurley McKenna & Mertz, P.C. has direct experience handling medical malpractice litigation involving OSF HealthCare. In 2024, HM&M attorneys obtained a record-setting $41 million jury verdict against OSF HealthCare System and other healthcare providers on behalf of a patient who suffered a catastrophic stroke.
When Can You Sue OSF HealthCare for Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare provider fails to meet the applicable standard of care and that failure causes or contributes to a patient's injury.
Generally, an Illinois medical malpractice case requires evidence that:
A healthcare provider owed the patient a duty of care;
The provider failed to meet the applicable standard of care;
That failure caused or contributed to the patient's injury; and
The patient suffered damages as a result.
The fact that a patient experienced a complication or did not recover as expected is not enough on its own to establish malpractice. Medical malpractice cases require an investigation into the care the patient received and what a reasonably careful healthcare provider should have done under similar circumstances.
What Types of Medical Malpractice Can Happen at a Hospital?
Hospital medical malpractice can take many forms. Depending on the circumstances, a claim involving care at an OSF HealthCare facility could involve:
Failure to diagnose or delayed diagnosis
Medication errors
Failure to monitor a patient's condition
Failure to respond to abnormal laboratory or test results
Surgical errors
Emergency room errors
Birth injuries
Failure to order appropriate testing
Improper discharge or inadequate follow-up care
Communication or care coordination failures
Determining whether any of these situations amounts to medical malpractice requires looking closely at the patient's treatment and the applicable standard of care.
Who Is Responsible When Multiple Healthcare Providers Are Involved?
Hospital care often involves several healthcare professionals. A patient may be treated by hospitalists, nurses, cardiologists, surgeons, nephrologists, or other specialists during the same hospital stay. Other providers may become involved after the patient is discharged.
When multiple providers are involved, determining who was responsible for a particular part of the patient's care can become complicated.
For example, who was responsible for monitoring medication? Who should have reviewed an abnormal laboratory result? Was a specialist supposed to follow up with the patient? Did one provider assume another provider was handling an important part of the patient's treatment?
More than one healthcare provider or organization may potentially be responsible for a patient's injuries. Medical records, test results, physician orders, discharge instructions, communications between providers, and hospital policies can all become important evidence in determining what happened.
This issue was at the center of a medical malpractice case HM&M successfully brought against OSF HealthCare and other healthcare providers.
HM&M's $41 Million Verdict Against OSF HealthCare and Other Providers
In May 2024, Hurley McKenna & Mertz attorneys Christopher T. Hurley, Mark R. McKenna, and Clint T. Pierce obtained a $41,149,942.38 jury verdict against OSF HealthCare System, Fresenius Medical Care of Illinois, RenalCare Associates, and Dr. Sudha Cherukuri on behalf of Craig Pierce and his wife, Susan.
Craig Pierce had been admitted to OSF HealthCare System's St. Francis Hospital in Peoria for pneumonia. During his hospitalization, he was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, or AFib, and prescribed the blood thinner Coumadin to reduce his risk of stroke.
Patients taking Coumadin require regular blood testing to ensure the medication is working as intended. When Pierce was discharged, his INR level was below the therapeutic range, and there was no discharge plan to monitor his outpatient INR levels. His INR continued to fall after discharge, but his Coumadin dosage was not increased. Four weeks later, Pierce suffered a catastrophic stroke that left him paralyzed on the left side of his body, with severe cognitive deficits and in need of 24-hour care.
A major issue in the case was determining who was responsible for managing Pierce's Coumadin and monitoring his INR levels after discharge. HM&M presented evidence that OSF had a Coumadin Clinic available to manage Pierce's therapy, but OSF personnel did not refer him to it. The defendants disputed which providers were responsible for monitoring his medication.
As HM&M partner Mark McKenna explained following the verdict, HM&M ultimately argued to the jury that — nobody was monitoring it.
On May 7, 2024, the Cook County jury returned a verdict against all four defendants. At the time, the $41,149,942.38 verdict was the largest verdict in Illinois history for a stroke case and the largest Illinois medical malpractice verdict for a plaintiff over 70 years old.
You can read more about HM&M's record-setting OSF HealthCare medical malpractice verdict and the circumstances that led to the case on our website.
What Should You Do If You Believe You Were Harmed at an OSF HealthCare Facility?
If you believe you or a loved one was harmed because of negligent medical care at an OSF HealthCare hospital or facility, you may not immediately know what went wrong or who was responsible.
There are a few steps you can take to help protect yourself and preserve important information:
Get the medical care you need. If you are experiencing complications or worsening symptoms, seek appropriate medical attention.
Request your medical records. Your hospital records, physician notes, laboratory results, imaging, medication records, and discharge instructions can help establish what happened.
Document your experience. Write down the timeline of your treatment, the providers you saw, what you were told, when your symptoms changed, and how the injury has affected your life.
Keep records of your losses. Save information about medical bills, rehabilitation, lost work, home care, and other expenses related to your injury.
Speak with an experienced Illinois medical malpractice attorney. You do not need to know whether malpractice occurred or identify every potentially responsible provider before contacting an attorney. An attorney can investigate the care you received and work with qualified medical experts to determine whether you may have a claim.
How Long Do You Have to File a Medical Malpractice Claim in Illinois?
Illinois has strict deadlines for filing medical malpractice lawsuits.
Generally, a medical malpractice action must be filed within two years from the date the patient knew or reasonably should have known of the injury
There are exceptions that can affect these deadlines, including certain cases involving minors or legal disabilities.
Because the deadline depends on the specific circumstances of the case, it is important to speak with an attorney as soon as possible if you believe medical malpractice may have occurred.
Talk to an Illinois Medical Malpractice Attorney About Your OSF HealthCare Experience
If you believe you or a loved one suffered a serious injury because of negligent care at an OSF HealthCare hospital or facility, you do not have to determine what happened on your own.
Hurley McKenna & Mertz has decades of experience representing patients and families in complex medical malpractice cases throughout Illinois. Our experience includes obtaining a record-setting $41 million jury verdict against OSF HealthCare System and other healthcare providers after failures involving the management of a patient's blood-thinning medication led to a catastrophic stroke.
Our attorneys can investigate what happened, work with medical experts, identify the healthcare providers who may be responsible, and help you understand your legal options.
If you would like to learn more, contact Hurley McKenna & Mertz for a free consultation. We would be honored to fight for you, too.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every medical malpractice case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
