Even as friends, family, and the entertainment industry laid comedian Joan Rivers to rest, police are continuing to look into her death. The 81-year-old suffered cardiac arrest while undergoing routine surgery at the Yorkville Endoscopy medical center. She was then rushed to the hospital where she was placed on life support. Rivers died on Thursday.
Also probing her death is the New York State Department of Health. Investigators are trying to determine whether the facility violated any state rules. The medical examiners that conducted an autopsy on the late comedian could not determine her cause of death.
Ambulatory surgery centers have grown in popularity as insurers and patients seek out less expensive, more convenient treatments than what they can get at traditional hospitals. The cost is less due to less overhead and shorter wait times.
Doctors involved in such facilities can also benefit with more favorable reimbursement rates and more time with patients. However, some critics believe that ambulatory centers may create a conflict of interest. 90% of them are owned by at least one of the physicians practicing there. This, they say, creates a financial incentive for doctors to recommend that patients undergo procedures.
It is very possible that no medical negligence occurred during Rivers’ endoscopy. However, if a mistake or some form of carelessness did occur, the comedian’s daughter, Melissa Rivers, may be entitled to medical malpractice damages should she decide to file a lawsuit.
Endoscopy
In this procedure, a patient is usually sedated as a scope is moved through the esophagus and into the stomach. An endoscopy can also be done to examine a patient’s vocal cords.
Surgical procedures, even routine ones, come with risks, and complications post-surgery complications or during the surgery can arise. If someone you love was injured, suffered health issues, or died following a medical procedure and you believe that Boston medical negligence was involved, you should speak with a Massachusetts medical malpractice law firm right away.
NYPD now investigating Joan Rivers’ death, The Washington Times, September 7, 2014
Surgical Center Used by Joan Rivers Part of Outpatient Push, Bloomberg, September 5, 2014
Kathy Griffin, Howard Stern At Joan Rivers’ Funeral, CBS, September 7, 2014
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$13M Boston Medical Malpractice Verdict Awarded to Widow of Man Who Died Following Throat Surgery, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, September 5, 2014
C.R. Bard, Boston Scientific Pelvic Mesh Cases Get Court Rulings, Drug Injury Lawyers Blog, August 26, 2014
I’ve Just Been Injured At Work, What Should I Do?, Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Blog, September 4, 2014