don't be afraid to sue...
Hi, everyone. I've read on this board a lot about how to raise ENS awareness. I agree that media coverage is key to that. This is a serious issue that deserves attenton. It's insane that surgeons are still doing these surgeries. It's boderline criminal, if you ask me. In addition to going after media coverage, I'd go after the ENTs who are doing these types of surgeries. I've started down the road toward a major lawsuit against my ENT. I can't share any details of this lawsuit, but I believe that I am probably going to win. And I daresay that he'll think twice about removing so much tissue from future patients. And that's mainly why I am doing the lawsuit. After I pay the attorneys and the expert witnesses, there probably won't be a ton of money left for me (but enough to pay future medical bills and such). More important to me is that this prominent ENT, who does a ton of sinus surgeries, will have learned a lesson. And he needs to be taught one. I don't want him hurting other innocent people just so that he can do an expensive surgery. Don't be afraid to look into an attorney. It shouldn't cost you anything. My attorney will take basically 35% of any winnings. But I don't get charged along the way. If you feel like your doctor messed up and you can prove that, I would recommend putting your thoughts together and talking with a good lawyer. Just my two cents. I probably won't be able to post about whether I won the case, but if I can, I'll certainly let people know. I just started the process, so I have a long way to go. Take care. J

j, Good for you for taking action!! I'm always telling others to the same, I was unfortunate because too mucht ime passed by but Im always telling people do it before the statue of limitations is up.. In NY the statue of limitations is a lot more harsh than other states.. Here, its not when you discover you have it that the s.o.l. goes in effect it goes right into effect after the procedure, so those who are in NY please take a note of that.. Do not go to a second doctor for a second opinion, if you have a strong feeling something is wrong go to a lawyer and let them find you a doctor who has no agendas. Others in diff states check your Statue of limitations, its only one call away.

j, Good for you for taking action!! I'm always telling others to the same, I was unfortunate because too mucht ime passed by but Im always telling people do it before the statue of limitations is up.. In NY the statue of limitations is a lot more harsh than other states.. Here, its not when you discover you have it that the s.o.l. goes in effect it goes right into effect after the procedure, so those who are in NY please take a note of that.. Do not go to a second doctor for a second opinion, if you have a strong feeling something is wrong go to a lawyer and let them find you a doctor who has no agendas. Others in diff states check your Statue of limitations, its only one call away.

Yes, I think action needs to be taken... My attorney and I have been looking into this ENT. We discovered that it appears that in 2000, he did an IT surgery on a man who died later that night. The ENT appears to have been admonished by the medical board for failing to provide proper follow-up care. Very sad. I'm really disgusted that this guy performed surgery on me.

I think it is a very legitimate way to fight this and bring publicity on all sides - pblic, medical, legal, etc. I know it is a burden on you to go through all the steps, but you are doing it not only for yourself but for others to have as a precedent. Good for you for getting it going in time.

Lawsuit
How are you approaching this lawsuit though - do you have an expert witness to speak on your behalf. So far I've been told this is the major hold-up for me, that it is very difficult to find expert withnesses to testify. Many doctors are told not to testify anymore.

Yep, good luck at finding a Dr who will testify. They are more interested in not ratting on their colleauges. Too much trouble for them, and besides - they dont like it when they are ratted on. What a great business, no responsibility, checks or quality control - just making lots of money. And if business isnt so good - no problem, just recommend a few more surgeries on people that would otherwise not require it. Noone will check or care.

Successful?
Has anyone successfully sued their doctor then? I know jshors sounds confident, but has anyone actually pulled it off? I don't see how. Empty nose isn't fully recognized, and even if it was it's not in the best interest of a doctor to testify. Malpractice can/does ruin careers and I don't think most of them want any part of that. So far I've only had two responses, and both said it would be too difficult and weren't interested. I have one more that will call next week, so we'll see. But if someone was able to sue, I think everyone would like more details on that. It may have been discussed on this board in the past, but it's time to bring it up again.

the answer is in short "yes". search this board for details. Plus the two law firms that are specified on this board are here because they have sued successfully for ENS. Also - there is no need to use the phrase ENS in a law suit . It's enough to prove that the turbinectomy caused you physical and mental damages. It doesn't has to have a label. Imagine you ate something too hard in a restaurant and broke your tooth. Would you need to call it - broken tooth syndrome to sue? of course not. The law of damages which medical malpractice cases rest upon - talk of any kind of damage and the idea is to restitute the condition as much as possible - with the means of money. If a turbinectomy made you worse physically and/or mentally you are entitled to compensation for the past the present and future losses + pan and suffering. ENS is recognised but there is no definite way of proving that one has ENS as there are no objective tests and so doctors differ often on diagnosing it. But it's easy to prove having had surgery. It's easy to prove dryness and if the surgery was over aggressive and/or not indicated to the extent it was done - these are all easy and valid claims to establish. But, such nose surgeries usually do not generate millions, and as mal practice law suits require much investment of time and effort - lawyers often prefer to turn them down. Still, you can always find lawyers who are consciences enough to help and also doctors. But to do so one must shake off the attitude of they're all greedy bustards. That attitude will guarantee your failure. I sued, I was doing very well, people on this board depressed me, so I preferred to take an early settlement and got much less than I probably would have had I gone all the way. Still my case is a success and it was in a country where radical turbinectomies are still standard of care, unlike the US, and in a country smaller in size than Massachusetts. So if I could pull it off there I do not accept not being to do it in the US. And as I indicated earlier it was done successfully in the US and I know personally of several successful cases and so do those lawyers I mentioned. Please be aware that there are a few "good souls" on this board, bless their hearts, that because they tried and failed, they go around scaring people that suing for ENS does not stand a chance... - it's easier for them to blame the so called "skewed" legal system and doctors who "stick together" instead of accepting that either they had a very week case to begin with, or that simply they did not exert themselves enough and didn't apply the right tactics. Suing for aggressive and non-indicated turbinectomies is more than possible, but one will only succeed if one manages to understand that justice is never something self evident and always needs to be fought for. To many people here allow themselves to get carried away with their self pity feelings as victims, sinking into a mind-set of "can't you see how miserable I am - give me my money, I don't need to fight for it, it's my God given right" - while morally they may be right, but with this approach they will never see a dollar. To get you compensation you have to prove your damages and this involves a humiliating process of convincing a court of justice. The burden is on you - because you are are suing. How ever it's not as difficult as it seems on those far from reality TV serieses - where mostly criminal cases are shown. In civil procedures you do not have to prove your claim beyond any doubt. PS: please don't PM me for personal guidance about suing, as I can only repeat what I have said here and in many other posts I posted about this. The bottom line is that hard work pays out more often that it doesn't, but so little here are actually willing to really work for their justice. Besides - all cases are very different and especially in mal-practice law suits - the specific details of each case determine the strength of the case.

I agree with TE here. These ENTs should be sued. I am going to go after this full throttle. Sure, perhaps an expert witness is hard to find. But it can be done. Expert witnesses get paid about $500 an hour, so they have some incentive to participate. And there are some good doctors out there who know that your nose has been assaulted, and they will stand up and say enough is enough. I want to send my ENT a message. I want to beat him in court and I want him know that he'd better think twice about performing such aggressive surgeries. I do have some facts in this case that are in my favor. I can't talk about those here, but I suspect that all of us have similar facts. Ask for all of your files from the doctor's office and go over them very, very carefully. I will try to let everyone know how I am doing in this lawsuit. I expect to win. I'm sure that the doc and his insurance company will go to great lengths to silence me, but they won't. I'll beat him. And that will give me some solace.

Good luck. You might want to look abroad for an expert witness. I am sure you would find a doctor from a "less wealthy" country who would be most willing to earn $500 / an hour to be your expert witness. Keep us posted.

Rather than scouring through this site, how about a thread specifically for helping this cause. Where all the info can be in one location - info, documents, articles, cases, Lawyers, Doctors. Legal action (sueing) shouldnt be seen as a dirty word or hush hush. It is the one thing our society has developed to protect people, ensure accountability and develop quality control. It is a positive really for everyone (patients, doctors and the general public). Noone likes to do it, but sometimes it has to be done. If we get one thread specifically designed for it, then it alo helps to seperate it out from being talked about in other posts which could complicate issues or repete itself timeover as new members join and seek to raise questions or issues about it (lets face it most of us would prefer our noses back, but accountability goes some of the way to rehabilitating).

Thread
If someone was successful, why couldn't there be a thread where that person posts high level details of what happened? Maybe names and settlement amounts cannot be listed, but general information would be helpful to the rest of us. Cash is king - unless you hit them in the wallet they won't listen.

Regarding that last point, I'll be happy to create a posting that details my trial--at least as much of it as I'm permitted to talk about. My legal moves are just beginning, but in a few months I'll give an update. Just don't let that statute of limitations expire before you move. That's what these jerks count on...