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Beacon House: A Sanctuary for Traumatic Brain Injury Victims

Emily Mapp Brannon — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:59:31 GMT

Where do you go after suffering a serious brain injury and the life you used to lead has changed forever? You need help, but don’t know what to do or who to ask. Well, there’s a place in Hampton Roads that is providing assistance to nearly a dozen local people who have suffered from a serious brain injury and found comfort at Beacon House, a community-based clubhouse program for people living with the effects of brain injury, according to The Virginian Pilot.

At Beacon House, individuals can learn, or regain, skills necessary to live a productive and empowering life. Through contributing to every aspect of the clubhouse, members gain confidence and self-respect.

Many of these folks suffered a traumatic brain injury. A traumatic brain injury or “TBI,” is defined by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control as an injury caused by a blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Of the 1.4 million who sustain a TBI each year in the United States, 50,000 die; 235,000 are hospitalized; and 1.1 million are treated and released from an emergency department.

TBI’s not only effect the victim, but also their friends and family. Someone who suffered a TBI could endure behavioral and psychological changes that require constant attention and care. Some victims may even need assistance feeding and clothing themselves. It takes an emotional toll on everyone around them.

An example of this is the founder of the Beacon House, local resident Matt Buckley. He created the Beacon House to honor his wife, Mary Buckley. Mary was operated on at Sentara Bayside in 2004 for a routine bunion removal surgery. During the procedure, Mary’s heart stopped briefly and she was placed in a drug induced coma to prevent additional brain damage. Mary remained in a vegetative state for two years before she passed. Matt wanted to do something for other people who suffered like him. That is when he started the Mary Foundation and worked to get funding from local and state government.

The Beacon House is almost like a sanctuary for victims of TBI and Matt’s work should be celebrated. He endured a terrible tragedy, but persevered and is doing something to help numerous Virginians cope with the challenges of a brain injury.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Emily Mapp Brannon

Improper Stacking Cases - Falling Items at a Big Box Retailer

John Cooper — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:48:58 GMT

The "big box mart" era is in full-swing in the United States and many of us find ourselves in one of these stores at least once a week. These are not standard grocery stores or local drug stores, but the Home Depots, the Targets, the Super K-Marts, and the quintessential Walmart. These stores offer us the chance for one-stop-shopping with low prices. We enter these stores ourselves and with our families and friends thinking only of shopping and finding the best deals of the day. We do not think that our innocent foray into the aisles of Walmart may land us in the hospital with a serious injury. While this sounds silly and seems unlikely, the truth is that thousands of people have been injured by falling merchandise in this country and the number keeps rising. The warehouse style storage of items for sale and the lack of help for accessing all that stuff on high shelves makes these stores, especially likely to have tumbling merchandise hitting folks on the head or shoulders while shopping.

Every week hundreds of claims are made by customers against large retailers for injuries they have sustained in a falling merchandise incident. For many of the people who are involved in an accident like this, the injuries may not be more severe than cuts and bruises; however, sadly, when children or the elderly are involved, falling merchandise can prove to be fatal. The problem with cases like this is that we as customers at these stores are not in control of our surroundings. Obviously, it is important that we take notice of signs or instructions in stores and that we are aware of what is going on around us. However, our safety is really placed in the hands of the store and its employees.

Often times, falling merchandise incidents occur because of improperly trained employees. These workers are not properly trained in the methods for safely stacking and storing merchandise or how to properly operate machinery. One incident in which a child was killed at Home Depot store involved a worker who was driving a forklift with countertops precariously balanced on it which then fell and caused the child to suffer severe head trauma from which she died the next day.

When a store invites customers into its facility, it has a duty to use ordinary care to keep the store reasonably safe and that means that all employees should be properly trained and all merchandise should be properly stored, stacked, and secure. This also means that the store has a duty to take reasonable steps in monitoring high stacked merchandise and if a customer moves or shifts something, an employee needs to inspect that it has not become dangerous. This is about accountability for store owners, managers, and their employees. This is a long-standing doctrine in the law that invitees (customers) are owed a duty of care and that if that duty is violated, it generally means that the business is liable for harms caused by its carelessness.

If you or a loved one are ever involved in a falling merchandise case, it is extremely important that you find witnesses immediately and that you yourself make a record of the incident. It is key to do this as close to the incident as possible when the details are still fresh in your mind. You want to be able to show that it was the negligence of the store that caused your injuries. While not all injuries are severe, it is important to seek treatment or at least to consult your physician after an accident like this, since some injuries may not be immediately apparent and only your doctor can advise you on what to watch out for.

While it is true that accidents do happen in stores and that they happen rather more frequently than we would like, at this time of the year, try not to let such worries dampen your shopping spirit. But watch out, as it is not just prices that are falling!

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Plane piloted by Virginia Beach (VA) man was low on fuel, investigators say

Jim Lewis — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:10:25 GMT

Mado McDonald, a Virginia Beach (VA) small-plane pilot whose plane crashed in South Carolina earlier this month, told controllers he was low on fuel, The Associated Press reported.

McDonald had flown the Raytheon Beechcraft King Air 200 twin-engine aircraft from Norfolk International Airport to Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in Greer, S.C. for maintenance at Stevens Aviation.

The crash came the morning on Nov. 9 during what was described by the Spartanburg Herald-Journal as a “service ride,” not unlike taking a car for a drive with a mechanic after a repair.

Investigators found just half a gallon of fuel in the plane’s tanks after the crash, the Herald-Journal said, and eyewitnesses saw the engines “feathering” – going so slow the propeller blades were visible – just before the crash.

The plane crashed onto a highway just short of the airport grounds. Stevens Aviation technicians Ed Wilk and Derrick Holliday have both been released from the hospital, The AP reported, while McDonald remains in good condition at Greenville Memorial Hospital.

The plane is registered to MDTR Holdings LLC of Virginia Beach, The Virginian-Pilot reported, a corporation that shared the same address with the ECPI College of Technology.

The latest revelations come as part of a preliminary investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board. The technicians told the NTSB that the plane took off with just 400 pounds of fuel in it, according to the AP report. The plane crashed just 19 minutes later.

No one on the ground was injured.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jim Lewis

Beach Attorney Recognized for DUI Prosecution Efforts

Rick Shapiro — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:20:00 GMT

Local prosecutor Charisse Black last week received a national award for keeping alcohol- and drug-addled divers off the streets of Virginia Beach.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving tapped Black as one of 15 recipients of its 2009 President's Criminal Justice Award for "her thorough gathering of facts, complete knowledge of current Virginia DUI laws and her ability to convict the majority of the cases she presents." Black's supervisor, Commonwealth's Attorney for Virginia Beach Harvey Bryant also praised Black for "seeing that those who drive drunk are convicted and punished without delay.' Bryant also said that "Charisse embodies the ‘get tough’ attitude that this office has toward drunk drivers."

I am happy to add my congratulations to Black and to express my appreciation for her work. Drunk and drugged drivers cause untold tragedy in our area and across the United States. While statistics on fatalities, injuries and monetary damages caused by drivers impaired by drugs and alcohol are kept, those numbers do not come close to telling the story of how DUIs can ruin and end lives.

Prosecuting drunk and drugged drivers is only part of the solution, of cpursse. Drivers need to take responsibility and stay out their cars if they have been drinking or doing drugs. Also, as we kickoff the holiday party season, hosts and guests need to watch their friends and head off potential drunk drivers by ensuring safe rides homes for those who need them.

Until people do assume their full responsibilities, however, it is good to know that prosecutors like Black are protecting us.

About the Editors: The Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm, whose attorneys work out of offices in Virginia (VA) and North Carolina (NC), edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as pro bono services.

EJL

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Rick Shapiro

Fatal Virginia Beach (VA) accident raises questions about minivans

John Cooper — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:36:31 GMT

The unfortunate accidental death of Virginia Beach grandmother Scarlet A. Harvell has raised important questions about the safety mechanisms automakers build into vehicles.

Harvell, 54, was unloading groceries from the minivan Monday afternoon when one of her young grandchildren apparently climbed behind the wheel and put the van into gear, WVEC-TV reported.

The van rolled backwards, The Virginian-Pilot reported, with an open door striking Harvell and knocking her down. She suffered a serious head injury and died at an area hospital Tuesday evening.

Virginia Beach police are still investigating the crash, and authorities have not released the make, model or year of the minivan.

But 221 people died in 2007 when they were struck by autos in reverse, The New York Times reported in April. About 14,000 people were hurt in the same period, The Times said, citing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Not all automobiles come with a brake transmission safety interlock (BTSI). This safety mechanism requires the driver to apply pressure to the brakes before the auto can be shifted into gear.

Since most children cannot reach the brake pedal, this means they cannot put a vehicle into gear simply by moving the transmission lever.

ABC News reported in 2006 that Chrysler minivans – Chrysler also manufactures the Plymouth brand – do not have the brake transmission safety interlock.

"They advertise it for families," Joan Claybrook, a consumer advocate, told ABC. "And yet it's a killer vehicle. This vehicle can kill people inadvertently."

The NHTSA has this advice to avoid accidental vehicle rollaway:

– Teach children not to play in or around autos

– Supervise children carefully in and around autos

– Lock the auto when left unattended

– Never leave keys in the car

– Always activate your emergency brake when you park

– Check whether your vehicle has a brake transmission safety interlock.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

$4 million study planned for Virginia Beach auto crashes

Jim Lewis — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:54:43 GMT

A team of researchers studying the role of drugs in automobile crashes will hit the streets of Virginia Beach in 2010 to quiz – and potentially draw blood from – drivers involved in traffic accidents, The Virginian-Pilot reported Friday.

The researchers are from the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, which bills itself on its Web site as “one of the nation’s preeminent independent nonprofit public health organization.”

Their goal is to learn how using drugs – over-the-counter, prescription, and illegal – plays a role in whether or not the driver gets into a crash.

The study is expected to involve 2,500 drivers who are in crashes and another 5,000 drivers not in crashes. It’s not clear how those 5,000 non-crash drivers will be selected.

To reach drivers involved in crashes, researchers will ride with off-duty police officers – paid by the institute – to crash scenes. Officers will introduce researchers to people involved in crashes. Participation is voluntary, the newspaper said.

“Not only is it conducting the valuable research that will be used nationwide and for many years to come, but also it’s supplementing our workforce,” Virginia Beach Police Department Sgt. Scott Wichtendahl told the Pilot. “The ramifications of it are astronomical.”

According to the Virginia Beach Police Department, drugs or alcohol were involved in 7 percent of the city’s 9,021 auto crashes in 2008.

Of 49 fatal crashes in 2008 and so far in 2009, 27 – more than half – involved drugs or alcohol.

The study will cost about $4 million.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jim Lewis

Charges filed in bicycling death of Virginia Beach (VA) physician

Emily Mapp Brannon — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 23:11:26 GMT

Almost three months after Virginia Beach physician Joseph Mirenda was struck and killed while bicycling near Harrisonburg, the driver who killed him has been charged with a crime.

Jessica Chandler, 22, was charged with reckless driving, according to The Breeze, the student newspaper at James Madison University in Harrisonburg.

Mirenda was biking 50 miles from Wintergreen to Harrisonburg to visit his son at JMU, The Virginian-Pilot reported at the time.

Mirenda was south of Harrisonburg when he was struck from behind at around 10:45 a.m. on Aug. 24.

Chandler, of nearby Port Republic, was driving the Ford Taurus that hit Mirenda on Port Republic Road.

Mirenda’s son told The Breeze that he didn’t want Chandler charged with a more serious crime.

“I’m glad she didn’t get a felony or anything like that,” Mirenda said to the newspaper. “She’s already going through a lot, and she obviously didn’t do it on purpose.”

His viewpoint is influenced by his father’s outlook, he said.

“Just trying to imagine being in the driver’s standpoint,” Mirenda said, “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

The fatal crash is a reminder for drivers to take care when operating their vehicle around bicyclists. The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles directs drivers in rural areas to keep an extra watch for out-of-the-ordinary vehicles like trucks, oversize and slow-moving farm vehicles and bicycles.

Police looked at Chandler’s cell phone records to determine if she had been texting or talking on the phone at the time of the incident,” The Breeze reported, “which could have resulted in a more serious charge.”

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Emily Mapp Brannon

Virginia Beach, Portsmouth Ban Solicitations in Medians at Busy Intersections

Rick Shapiro — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:24:00 GMT

Portsmouth City Council last night followed the lead of their Virginia Beach counterparts in imposing a ban on fundraising and other solicitations by individuals standing in the medians of busy intersections. The move, reports the Virginian-Pilot, was prompted by safety concerns and what "Portsmouth police estimated (to be) a tenfold increase in the number of solicitors" at intersections since the start of 2009.

Encouragingly, Hampton Roads cities are enacting bans on in-median solicitations even though the region already does a relatively good job of protecting pedestrians. The independent Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership just reported in Dangerous by Design: Solving the Epidemic of Preventable Pedestrian Deaths that, taken together, Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Newport News ranked in the top fifteen of the safest U.S. regions for pedestrians.

The report, whose findings were highlighted in the Nov. 10 Virginian-Pilot, also noted that 39 people were killed while walking or standing along Tidewater roadways during 2007 and 2008. Statewide, Virginia saw 286 pedestrian fatalities during the reporting period.

So, obviously, much work remains to be done to keep pedestrians safe. City Council members in Virginia Beach and Portsmouth have taken important steps in keeping people out of harm's way by banning solicitations in traffic medians and at red lights. Despite these new restrictions, though, pedestrians and drivers will still need to take responsibility for avoiding accidents.

My colleague John Cooper posted an excellent list of rules for pedestrians on this blog a few days ago. I will take this opportunity to offer the following advice to drivers:

Check for pedestrians or bicyclists on all corners when approaching an intersection or parking lot.
Stop behind and in front of any bus taking on or letting off passengers, especially school children.
Do not block crosswalks when stopping at red lights or stop signs; blocking a crosswalk can force pedestrians and bicyclists to veer into the path of on-coming traffic.
Understand that people in a crosswalk always have the right of way.
Do not speed.

EJL

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Rick Shapiro

Hospital sanctioned for serious surgical errors

John Cooper — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:40:26 GMT

A Rhode Island hospital is expected to pay $150,000 in fines after a surgeon operated on the wrong part of the body – not for the first time.

Rhode Island Hospital in Providence is the only hospital in the state to receive such fines, The Associated Press reported recently.

Surgeons were to have operated on two fingers belonging to the same patient, The AP reported. Instead, “both operations were performed on the same finger.”

The hospital was directed to install surveillance cameras in all of its operating rooms by David Gifford, Rhode Island’s health director.

The move after a pattern of conduct emerged at Rhode Island Hospital, the teaching hospital for Brown University’s Alpert Medical Center. In 2007, three patients had brain operations – but surgeons operated on the wrong part of the brain.

The hospital’s chief executive officer, Timothy Babineau, said in a statement that “the hospital was committed to reducing medical errors and had been taking steps to improve patient safety.”

According to the AP, standard surgical procedures were not followed – the finger to be operated on was not marked ahead of time, and surgeons did not stop to double-check that they were operating in the right place.

“Under protocols adopted in the medical field, the surgery site should have been marked and the surgical team should have taken a timeout before cutting to ensure they were operating on the right patient, the right part of the patient's body and doing the correct procedure, the AP said.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm (VA-NC law offices ) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono service to consumers.

(MM)

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by John Cooper

Three People Injured After Virginia Beach Plane Crashes in South Carolina

Jim Lewis — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:59:48 GMT

A multi-engine Beechcraft B200 King Air airplane crashed before arriving at the runway of Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport in South Carolina (SC). Three people were injured including the pilot and two individuals employed by Stevens Aviation, according to The Virginian-Pilot.

The pilot was employed by MTDR Holdings LLC, a Virginia Beach company which the airplane is registered with.

We dont know how badly the three men were injured, but I hope they pull through. As a licensed pilot, Ive always worried about the risk of a bad landing turning into a bad accident. Its terrible to hear when this scenario comes to fruition.

We know the plane hit a guardrail while trying to land, but further details regarding the accident havent been released. Well have to wait and see what the Federal Aviation Administration has to say in their accident report.

This isnt the first time this model airplane was involved in an aviation accident. Back in September a B200 crashed at Hayward Airport in California.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jim Lewis