New York Personal Injury Lawyer Offers Tip to Keep Kids Safe This Holiday Season

 

         NEW YORK, NY (Dec. 11) -- With only 14 shopping days left before Christmas and 10 days to the start of Chanukah, the rush to buy and wrap toys for the tots in your life isn’t an excuse to put dangerous products into your child’s hands at holiday time.

         Nor is saving money, while a good idea, especially in this economy, a reason for parents to get careless and overlook the importance of safe toys for kids.

         “Take a moment and look online for customer reviews, product recalls, and any news about the manufacturer,” recommends Richard Gurfein, a New York personal injury lawyer and managing partner of Gurfein Douglas, a prominent New York personal injury law firm. 

         As a father and grandfather himself, Gurfein says some of the most common accidents to children can be prevented if parents follow these 4 simple steps:

Step 1

BUY AMERICAN. It’s a good way to make sure toys meet safety standards set forth by the federal government.

Step 2

VISIT HEALTHYTOYS.ORG. HealthyToys performs independent safety tests and chemical analysis of common toys to determine their true levels of toxic materials, like lead. Healthy Toys also provides a list of the best and worst tested toys, reviews of independently tested products, and will even test specific toys upon request.

Step 3

CHECK FOR RECALLS.  Look online for recalls and customer reviews before buying a child a toy.  Look for reviews of the manufacturer and for possible recalls of other toys they have produced.

4Step 4

SHOP ONLINE. Shopping online gives parents an opportunity to research as they shop.  There are often a wider variety of healthy toys online than can be found in a department store.

         Gurfein suggests that parents might also want to check out two additional websites that provide child product safety information: The U.S. Public Interest Research Group www.uspirg.org; and World Against Toys Causing Harm, or W.A.T.C.H www.toysafety.org.

         Recently the CPSC announced a voluntary recall of “Hello Kitty” a zip up hoodie sweatshirt distributed by NTD Apparel in Los Angeles but made in China, because the drawstring through the hood poses a strangulation hazard to children.  “Molly” and “Betsy” style wooden cribs manufactured by LaJobi, Inc. of Cranbury, NJ made headlines lately and were recalled after reports of the death of a one-year-old girl whose head and neck became entrapped in the headboard cut-out.

                  Further, Gurfein said, everything from toys to children’s furniture to cribs and even clothing can contain toxic levels of lead.        

         “If lead is ingested by a young child,” Gurfein explained, “it can cause a brain injury that can lead to significant learning disabilities and impede the progress of normal intellectual development.”

         Gurfein advises that if a child is injured by a toy, parents should seek medical attention immediately.  He also advises parents to notify the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and report the toy they found to be dangerous.

         “After the child has received proper medical attention,” Gurfein said, “parents should consult with a personal injury lawyer who has experience handling products liability cases.

         “If the child’s injury is caused by a dangerous product,” he added, “it could result in an action against the manufacturer and anyone else who participated in putting the product into the ‘stream of commerce.  What’s more, when a middleman gets involved with the product, like for example a retailer who explains a product’s use, they become liable to the injured parties as well.”

         Gurfein cautions parents never to buy toys for very young children with parts small enough to fit through the cardboard tube on toilet paper role.  He warns that these toys are not safe for children under 3, or for any child who still puts things in their mouths.  “Even latex balloons can present a choking hazard for small children.  Mylar balloons are safer,” he said.

         “Children under 6 years of age do not always play with toys in a safe manner,” he explained.  “Toys with sharp edges or pointed tips should be avoided.  And, toys that run on batteries should be inspected to make sure that battery terminals don’t come loose and rub against each other.  If the two terminals do come in contact, they can cause the battery, and the toy, to overheat and burn an unsuspecting child.”

New York Personal Injury Lawyer Issues Warning to School Nurses

NEW YORK MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAWYER WARNS SCHOOL NURSES TO BEWARE OF LEGAL CONSEQUENCES FOR VACCINATING STUDENTS  WITHOUT PARENTAL CONSENT

NEW YORK, NY, PR WEB (Nov. 23) – The legal terms “assault” and “battery” pop up in city tabloids and cops and robbers TV programs all the time.  But lately these familiar phrases could just as easily apply to the actions of some New York City elementary schools, and their school nurses, in the wake of the current swine flu pandemic sweeping the country, according to Richard Gurfein, a New York medical malpractice attorney and senior partner in the New York personal injury law firm of Gurfein Douglas, LLP.

            “Despite claims,” Gurfein said, “by city health officials stressing the safety of the H1N1 vaccine, and the rapidly growing spread of the disease in city schools (hospitalizations for H1N1 have tripled in New York State in the past three weeks) the law requires parental consent before a school is permitted to give the swine flu vaccine to a student.”

            According to recent media reports, school nurses mistakenly gave the swine flu vaccine to two students whose parents didn’t sign up for it, including a Brooklyn girl with epilepsy who wound up in the hospital after getting the shot.

            “Any unlawful touching,” Gurfein explained, “or unauthorized administration of medical care not in an emergency situation is a battery, a legal term for an assault.  A school district cannot unilaterally administer vaccinations without parental consent, in writing.”

  Gurfein explained that on the issue of liability, it wouldn’t matter if the child got sick or not from the vaccination.

            “If there is a battery,” Gurfein said (medicine given to a child without an emergency situation, or parental consent), “by law the child is entitled to compensatory damages.

            “The measure of damages is another issue,” he added.  “If there was no ill effect from the vaccination, the damages would be relatively small.  If the child became ill, the amount of the damages would go up considerably.  Sadly, if the child dies, that wrongful death case would have almost no value because of existing arcane laws in New York State that place little monetary value on the life of a child.”

            Gurfein said there are exceptions as to when schools are allowed to intervene.  For example, in the event of an emergency, schools would be able to render medical care to the student since they are acting “in loco parentis” while a child is in their care.

            “But no court,” he said, “would ever accept the argument that vaccination without consent is an emergency, since the simple alternative is to refuse the child access to the school if parents don’t comply with the school’s wishes regarding vaccination.”

Vaccinating a child without parental consent, Gurfein explained, is a tort that has a one-year statute of limitations.  But because the school is part of the City, a parent only has 90 days from the time of the battery to file a Notice of Claim.  He said, ninety days does not mean three months.  It means ninety days.

            “Since a battery falls under the category of an ‘intentional tort’, “Gurfein explained, “it also cannot be insured against by the school, or the school nurse.  In these situations, the nurse who gave the child the shot, and the school district as her employer – assuming the nurse was acting within the course and scope of his or her employment – would have to pay any judgment.”

            Gurfein advises parents to remember that municipalities and their school districts are heavily protected against lawsuits.  He instructs parents of children who have been victims of a battery to contact a New York personal injury lawyer who is familiar with both negligence and medical malpractice claims.

            “Since a school,” Gurfein said, “is a department, or arm, of a municipality, a lawsuit must be commenced within a year and ninety days from the time of the battery, after having filed a timely Notice of Claim.

“Such a lawsuit,” he added, “typically takes longer to pursue than an average auto case because the City of New York has so many lawsuits it just doesn’t have the manpower to process all of them.  As with any other personal injury claim, the damages would be determined by a jury.  All costs to litigate the case are advanced by the lawyer, not the client.  The lawyer only gets those costs reimbursed, and compensated for his, or her, services, if he or she wins the case.”