New York Dental Malpractice Lawyers Sue Syracuse Small Smiles Dental Clinic–From Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog

 

New York Dental Malpractice Lawyers Sue Syracuse Dental Clinic - Central New York Injury Lawyer Blog

Michael Bersani wrote a passionate post on his blog.   He referred to this as “Dental Battery” not “Dental Malpractice”.    I agree.  Yes, “Battery” is included.

Here is a snippet:

By Michael Bersani on April 8, 2011 9:45 PM | Permalink

New York dental malpractice lawyers agree on one thing: You have to turn down most calls about dental malpractice. Most alleged dental malpractice cases are going nowhere. We get calls from people all the time. They got a bad result from their dentistry work, and they want to sue. But usually the bad result was a "known risk" of the procedure. When it's a known risk, usually there's no case. Sometimes there really was dental negligence, but then the injury is too small to really warrant a dental malpractice lawsuit. Getting a case with provable negligence, plus a significant injury, well, that doesn't happen every day.

Read the full blog post here.

Michael Lindley still referred to being employed with Keys Group in 2007 and 2008 & US v Keystone Education and Youth Services

US v Keystone et al accused the M. Lindley and Al Smith group of characters of restraining children, and more Medicaid Fraud.  Appears to be a lifestyle for these folks.
US v Keystone Education and Youth Services; Keystone Marion, LLC; Universal Health Services,
Currently a Subsidiary of Universal Health Services (UHS), UHS was not named as a defendant in all the allegations of the suit, because; “UHS indirectly acquired the other two defendants in or around October 2005; accordingly, UHS is not included in “Defendant” for allegations to the extent that they are related to the events occurring prior to that time.” (page 3, paragraph 10)
UHS acquired the group of Keys companies in October 2005, from Michael Lindley (“Lindley”), Marty Weber, Ameris Healthcare Investments, LLC, Rainer Twiford, Al Smith (“Smith”), Mike White, Rodney Cawood (“Cawood”), Buddy Turner, Jeff Cross, Gail Debiec, Brad Gardner, Brad Williams, Don Wert, Rob Minor, Mike McCulla, Jim Shaheen, Rod Gaeta.  See purchase agreement here.
If the jokers actually “sold” the company,  I can’t imagine why Michael Lindley would contribute to Alexander for Sentate in 2008, twice saying his occupation was Keys Group Holdings.  One contribution was April 19, 2007 for $2300 and again February 27, 2008 for another $2300.  My guess it was really “recapitalization of income” instead of a sale.
Just as in the Small Smiles Dental Centers scam, Keystone’s facilities.. “With only a few exceptions, Defendant restricted admission to the Youth Center to patients who would qualify for reimbursement of the medical costs under the Medicaid program”  (page 3, paragraph 13)
Related:
Federal, state prosecutors join suit against Keystone Marion Youth Center- March 5, 2010

Justice Department asked to investigate Chad Youth Enhancement Center – January 29, 2008

Nashville Scene “Handle With Care” expose’ by Elizabeth Ulrich- November 8, 2007 (the same week the story of the Small Smiles Dental Centers operated by Michael Lindley, Al Smith and others was announced.  That must have been a bad week for them.

Bad Medicine –December 13, 2007- A Nashville youth facility is a nightmare for kids, staffers say, but the state’s licensing body sees no cause for concern, by Elizabeth Ulrich.

Excerpt: ”Checo Perryman, a former counselor at the facility who now runs his own business that teaches an alternative method to Handle With Care, says it was so common for Hermitage boys to smack their chins on the floor during restraints that the facility’s staff named the bloody scabs on the boys’ busted chins. They called it the “Hermitage Hall tattoo.
“What happened behind those walls was very scary and very sad,” he says. But not all restraints end in injury. For some residents, restraint leads to a drug-induced haze that eventually lulls them to sleep—or, as some in the mental health world refer to it, chemical restraint, quite simply because the drugs can be used to restrict residents deemed out of control.
Among incident reports in the DMHDD files, there is tale after tale of restraints that end in some sort of injection. Some of the medications are listed by name—Abilify or Zyprexa, drugs that are used to treat schizophrenia and severe mood disorders. In most of the records, staffers refer to injections with a simple, generic term: PRN, short for a Latin phrase meaning to give drugs as needed.
Davis says that, for Hermitage Hall residents, those unidentified PRN shots usually mean a syringe full of Thorazine—one of the most powerful antipsychotic drugs, which critics liken to a chemical straitjacket.
Even though Hermitage Hall doesn’t always include the name of the drugs administered under the PRN umbrella, Robinson-Coffee says the injections aren’t cause for concern. She says her department could check any of the estimated 100 patient records at Hermitage where “all that stuff is documented.”

Guess who operates Hermitage Hall.

From WSRY Channel 9 : State scrutinizing Small Smiles dental clinic as families sue

 

WSRY Channel 9 in Syracuse is doing a fantastic job exposing the horrors of Small Smiles.  They are digging deep, interviewing patients, talking to New York state officials and trying to get some answers on why,  in 2010, children are still being abused, strapped in straight jackets for unnecessary dental procedures.  Some as young as 1 year old!

They are asking some hard questions and so are those making comments. 

You must head on over to their site and read the story.  Most interesting are the comments, as usual.  People come out, tell their stories and express their utter disgust with Small Smiles Dental Centers. 

The video is amazing!  See and hear the stories of these poor children and what the state has to say about it!  WSYR, you rock!

State scrutinizing Small Smiles dental clinic as families sue

While at WSRY Channel 9, be sure to click r”ecommend” to your facebook friends.  Spreading the word about these thugs is what is needed to finally “shut ‘em down”. 

I challenge everyone to share it on facebook, twitter, digg, where ever…  Let’s take it viral!

Now go on over to WSYR News Channel 9!

Pleading filed in lawsuits against Small Smiles Dentistry in New York reveal corporate greed of unimaginable proportions.

 

Out of the 234 paragraphs in the 51 page Syracuse in Complaint against the FORBA/CSHM/Syracuse Small Smiles Dental Center I think paragraph 234 is one of my top favorites  It just might be my all time favorite paragraph ever!  It reads like this:

As to all causes of action, defendants’ conduct described
above was gross, wanton, reckless, outrageous and malicious, was
actuated by evil and reprehensible motives sufficient to transcend the
bounds of societal norms and involved a high degree of moral culpability such that punitive damages should be awarded by the jury.

There are Seven Actions (Counts) against FORBA and all the named defendants  I started to insert the word “alleged” but I know these slithering slim balls too well to give any illusion they might not be liable and guilty as charged.  The Seven Deadly sins for these folks are:

1. Fraud
2. Battery
3. Breach of Fiduciary Duty
4. Breach of General Business Law sections 349-350
5. Malpractice
6. Negligence
7. Informed Consent

Syracuse Complaint

Schnectady Albany Complaint

No doubt the folks at King and Spalding are busy little bees this week, but it’s not like they have known it was coming.  Heck they’ve known for months, just wasn’t sure what kind of story would be told.

What about the new “staff attorney” snookered into joining Church Street Health Management this week, Erika Ruiz.  Geez, what a week to join a new company.  Wonder how far she is willing to take it to the mat for these thugs.

Alfred Green, Michael Lindley,  Rodney Cawood, Brad Gardner, Todd Cruse, you know they have to be loving another round of legal battles, OK, well not them exactly but I bet their attorney are loving it!  Woo Hooo…  Bonuses for everyone this year at the many many many firms they have on the payroll. 

Wonder how the Bahrainian banker is doing?  Not that I give a crap.  I know one thing, I hope the rebels (whoever the heck they are), in Bahrain see what this asshole allows and encourages to be done to children.  At the “beheading” I want a front row seat.

Let’s send all these barbarian dentists and corporate “fat cats” over to Bahrain and let them try this kind of torture on the children in Bahrain!  Hell, we are paying for it anyway.

You know, I’m really beginning to dislike the letter combo “ba” Bahrain, Barbarian, Barack.

20 families file lawsuits in NY on behalf of children abused at Small Smiles Dental Centers–More to come?

“Are you ready to ruuumble?” “Let the games begin”  “Shit hits the fan” - are just a few phrases that come to mind today.
Twenty lawsuits were filed this week in NY State Supreme Court on behalf of children abused at  the direction of Small Smiles Dental Center owners and carried out by the hands of Small Smiles dentists and other support employees.




April 5 2011
CBS Albany New York- Former Small Smiles patients file lawsuit

Times Union – Dental chain hurt kids for profit
Syracuse – area families sue Small Smiles for mistreatment of children
Syracuse families sue dental clinic

Defendants in the Syracuse Case are:

FORBA Holdings, LLC n/k/a Church Street Health
Management, LLC;
FORBA N.Y., LLC;
FORBA, LLC n/k/a LIC SAC, LLC;
FORBA NY, LLC n/k/a LIC SAC NY, LLC;
DD Marketing, Inc.;
DeRose Management, LLC;
Small Smiles Dentistry of Syracuse, LLC;
Daniel E. DeRose;
Michael A. DeRose, D.D.S.;
Edward J. DeRose, D.D.S.;
Adolph R. Padula, D.D.S.;
William A. Mueller, D.D.S.;
Michael W. Roumph;
Naveed Aman, D.D.S.;
Koury Bonds, D.D.S.;
Tarek Elsafty, D.D.S.;
Dimitri Filostrat, D.D.S.;
Yaqoob Khan, D.D.S.;
Delia Morales, D.D.S.;
Janine Randazzo, D.D.S.;
Loc Vin Vuu, D.D.S.; and
Grace Yaghmai, D.D.S,

Defendants in the Schnectady Case are:
FORBA Holdings, LLC n/k/a Church Street Health
Management, LLC;
FORBA N.Y., LLC;
FORBA, LLC
n/k/a LIC SAC, LLC;
FORBA NY, LLC n/k/a
LIC SAC NY, LLC;
DD Marketing, Inc.;
DeRose Management, LLC;
Small Smiles Dentistry of Albany, LLC;
Albany Access Dentistry, PLLC;
Daniel E. DeRose;
Michael A. DeRose, D.D.S.;
Edward J. DeRose, D.D.S.;
Adolph R. Padula, D.D.S.;
William A.Mueller, D.D.S.;
Michael W. Roumph;
Maziar Izadi, D.D.S.;
Laura Kroner, D.D.S.;
Judith Mori, D.D.S.;
Lissette Bernal, D.D.S.;
Edmise Forestal, D.D.S.;
Evan Goldstein, D.D.S.;
Keerthi Golla, D.D.S.;
Nassef Lancen, D.D.S.;
Wadia Hanna, D.D.S.; and
Bernice Little-Mundle, D.D.S.,

______________________

Welcome to your new job, Dr. Marlene Navado, welcome.  Dr. Kevin Reilly handed the pot of crap square in your lap didn’t he?  Baaad, Dr. K.  You should have been smarter than a fifth grader.
Good Morning Todd Cruse and everyone else at Church Street Health Management, hope you each slept well last night. 
I can’t help but hearing Karen Carpenter in my head…  “We’ve Only Just Begun…woo ooo…”  (May she rest in peace)

_____________________

Small Smiles Spin Doctors put this propaganda trying to recruit more dentists to join in the abuse and fraud and whitewash the atrocities that have been taking place for years:
http://www.rubinmeyer.com/smallsmiles.html
 

SMALL SMILES
Tooth decay has been called a "silent epidemic" among children from low-income families. So where can these families turn for dental care?
In many communities, they turn to Small Smiles, a nationwide network of caregivers serving low-income kids.
Through highly targeted PR and marketing campaigns, we helped Small Smiles turn local dentists into powerful advocates for children's health and educated families about where they can receive care in their own neighborhoods.
The result: Thanks to Small Smiles, a million children every year get a chance to have a healthy smile, and more parents every day know where to turn for their kids' care.

Ohio taxpayers being asked to pay the bill to abuse children, defraud their Medicaid system and pay for the abusers education - Man what a deal for Ohio

Church Street Health Management, seeking to offer dentists who would come to work for the Small Smiles clinics in Ohio, a hop on the state funded "Ohio Dentist Loan Repayment Program".   

According to Mona Taylor, at the Ohio Department of Health, Small Smiles dental centers would have to have a letter from their corporate owners, Church Street Health Management attached to the application stating they will treat patients regardless of ability to pay for emergency treatment.

Get that letter from the Corporate office and voila' dentists working for Small Smiles will get a special discount of their loan repayment. 

Here's a link to more information.

It's a "safety net" program.  Wonder what "safety net" program they have for the tiny victims.

Let's see the Ohio taxpayer picks up the tab for the unnecessary and abusive treatment resulting in trauma and fraud on these tiny patient.  Then the Ohio taxpayer also gets to pick up the tab in repaying the education loans to the abusers.  

[Ohio, aren’t you guys broke?  Just saying….   Might be something to look into here]

What dentist could pass this great opportunity up?  

Well, one that want's to continue his or her chosen profession without the likelihood of litigation would be one, I suppose.

One that has a lick of common sense would be another.

And thirdly one that ever plans on getting their own malpractice insurance in the future.  One dentist I spoke with who left employment last fall, said they were finding it extremely hard to get their own malpractice insurance and what they did find the premiums were outrageous and deductible was $100K.

In other news, I'm told that Small Smiles is rolling out a "teeth-whitening" program  in hopes of improving their increasingly shrinking bottom line. [probably to pay their increasingly higher malpractice insurance]
 
It's just a guess here, but I'm assuming that will be offered to their adult patients in the "Big Smiles" program, seeing that I don't think "teeth-whiting" products will help stainless steal crowns.

Also recruiting has begun for another clinic in Hartford Connecticut.

General Anesthesia and Young Children; Report says little is knows and evidence suggest major developemental problems

Anesthetic agents are commonly used for a variety of medical procedures in infants and children, but little is known about their effects on the developing brain. A growing body of data from studies in animals suggests that under certain circumstances, such as prolonged anesthesia, these drugs could adversely affect neurologic, cognitive, and social development of neonates and young children. We believe that these findings should be of concern to the scientific and medical communities.

Over the past decade, studies in rodents have found that exposure to anesthetic agents during sensitive periods of brain development (i.e., the brain growth spurt) results in widespread neuronal apoptosis and functional deficits later in development. So far, agents that either antagonize N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors or potentiate the neurotransmission of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABAergic agents) have been implicated, and no safe doses of these agents or safe durations of administration have been defined.

Read the entire report at the New England Journal of Medicine Website here.

What scared the living you know what out of me, is knowing the increase in GA for dental procedures, that may or may NOT be necessary, and there is little to no information on the effect on a child's developing brain. 

Children are dropping dead left and right from sedation dentistry and now to find out no one knows what the actual effect of GA is on the child's grain, but evidence is growing that GA is NOT a good idea! 




Related:
Article at Dr. Bicuspid  Is General Anesthesia Safe for Young Brains

Marissa Kingery Death at Dr. Mazorow’s Dental Office Rule Accidental–I say, Reckless Homicide

Here is Marissa’s deadly poisonous cocktail -

Propofol — the anesthetic that was listed as a “contributing factor” in pop star Michael Jackson’s death
Ketamine
Remifentanil 
Versed

The dosage of each of these drugs have not been released.  Why?

Teen’s death while sedated for dental work ruled accidental

Filed by Cindy Leise April 8th, 2011


ELYRIA — A coroner’s verdict states that 13-year-old dental surgery patient Marissa Kingery died of lack of oxygen to the brain after she was sedated with four drugs.

Marissa “apparently became ill and collapsed” at 8:39 a.m. Dec. 21 following intravenous sedation in the offices of oral surgeon Dr. Henry Mazorow on West 21st Street in Lorain, according to the report from the Cuyahoga County Coroner’s office.

Paramedics took her to Mercy Medical Center, where doctors diagnosed respiratory arrest. She was flown to Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, where she was placed on a ventilator, according to the report.

She was given drug treatment and an operation was performed, according to the coroner’s verdict, which stated supportive care was maintained but Marissa failed to respond and was pronounced dead at 9:40 p.m. Jan. 3.

The death was ruled accidental due to diffuse hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy — damage to the brain that also occurs in carbon monoxide poisoning and many cases of shaken baby syndrome.

In Mazorow’s office, the drugs propofol — the anesthetic that was listed as a “contributing factor” in pop star Michael Jackson’s death — ketamine, remifentanil and Versed were administered to Marissa in what is commonly known as “twilight sleep” or light sedation.

Attorney Michael Czack, who represents Marissa’s family, did not return phone calls and Marissa’s parents, Amber McEwen and Jason Kingery, also were unavailable for comment.

Marissa’s case is the latest pediatric death being monitored by a foundation founded by the family of 8-year-old Raven Maria Blanco of Chesapeake, Va., who died after being administered sedatives during a dental procedure.

Raven Blanco Foundation’s director of medical emergency preparedness, Dr. Larry Sangrik, said the foundation has tracked 19 pediatric deaths related to dental complications since 1996, including six children who have died since January 2010.

Sangrik, a dentist in Chardon, refused to second guess Mazorow’s decision to administer the four-drug sedation to Marissa, saying, “all the drugs in Marissa’s case are very tightly regulated in the state.” [aren’t all drugs?]

Sangrik has been speaking to the dental community about readiness in dealing with medical emergencies.

“The issue is if you do run into anesthesia complications, then you need to be prepared to address those immediately,” Sangrik said. “Children in particular run out of oxygen very quickly — the volume of air left in their lungs is disproportionately small and is used up very quickly.”

Exactly what was done at Mazorow’s office to revive Marissa is unclear. The coroner’s report does not state whether Mazorow’s staff attempted treatment before paramedics arrived.

Mazorow, who turned 81 in January, did not return phone calls for comment on the coroner’s report. His attorney, Ronald Mingus, declined to talk about the case, except to say his client is no longer administering intravenous anesthesia during dental procedures.

Under Ohio law, Sangrik said, Mazorow was required to have additional training every two years as an oral surgeon with a permit for general anesthesia.

Marissa’s death is under investigation by the Ohio Dental Board, which did not take any action against Mazorow in the 1997 death of 57-year-old Rosemary Johnson of Grafton, who died while having six teeth extracted.

Johnson’s family settled a wrongful death case against Mazorow for $550,000 in 1999, according to court records.

The dental board’s executive director, Lili Reitz, was unavailable for comment, a staff member said.

Meanwhile, Marissa’s death is one of the cases being examined by “Good Morning America” in a report expected to air in the next several weeks, said Raven Blanco’s cousin, Nicole Cunha, executive director of the foundation, which is located in Virginia Beach, Va.

“What we’re finding is most dental offices in America aren’t qualified to handle these medical emergencies,” Cunha said.

Contact Cindy Leise at 329-7245 or cleise@chroniclet.com.

It has been reported that the Ohio Dental Board is investigating but that may be where the problem lies. 

Attorney, Lili Reitz has been director of the Ohio Dental Board for far too many years in my opinion, and has fell asleep on the job.  I have spent hours searching various Laws, Regulations and Act for the state of Ohio and so far, I’ve not found just how the “Executive Director”  becomes Executive Director. 

Reitz has been ED since 1996 after serving as Assistant Attorney General in Ohio.  She graduated from Cleveland Marshall College of Law in November 1990.

It appears you just get appointed as Executive Director by who you know since I’m sure the Dental Board did not post for applicants.  No doubt, having an Attorney as the Executive Director

Look Out Houston - Kool Smiles at 3900 Aldine

RETAIL: NCDR has leased 6,750 square feet for a Kool Smiles dental clinic at 3900 Aldine Mail Route at High Meadow Retail Center. Perry Zieben of Perry Zieben Realty Co. and Nancy Erickson with Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant. Ed Rammrath with Rammrath Realty represented the landlord, Race Venture.

Does My Son Have To Be Tied Up At The Dentist

This was a question asked by a parent at momapedia.com

May 22, 2010
Question:

Hi.
I'm very worry to take my son (4) to a dentist now. When I took him to the dentist they told me they need to do root canal for his baby tooth. I asked them "My son is only 4 how you are going to do that?". They said "Don,t worry. We are going to tie up him with special chair. Yes, He is going to cry but we did a lot this." Is it usual ? I refused to do that. I can't tie up my son. Few days later, my son's pediatrician called me and said I have to do that to him. I have to? I 'm looking for a dentist who can do that without tie up.
I 'm doing wrong for my son?

Replies:

1.  That's crazy!!! My son had nitrous for filling some cavities because he was afraid to sit still. If the nitrous isn't enough, they can do IV sedation. I would never let someone tie my kid to a chair.

2.  Have them put him to sleep with you in the room the whole time
Tying him up HELL NO!! sorry -mom of 4


3. I would change Pediatricians and Dentists sounds like they are in it together. I also agree with the mama who suggested having the tooth removed rather then giving a 4 year old a root canal. (I've never heard of that). There are plenty of dentists that specialize in "children ONLY".
Keep us posted.
Blessings......

4. i don't think you're necessarily doing the wrong thing IF your son can/will sit still during the procedure. I think sometimes it's the tying down that's more tramatic for them than the dental procedure, but the child HAS to sit still. So, if he will, then look around for a dentist who won't automatically tie him down. If you're not sure that he will, then you should explain to him what is going to happen and why so he can be prepared, maybe even demonstrate by tying him into a chair with a sheet, and then take him. If he needs the work, you have to do whatever you have to do to have the work done. By the way, is it really necessary to do a root canal - can they pull the tooth? Baby root canals are expensive and if he's going to lose his teeth soon anyway, it might be just as good to pull the tooth rather than try to save it. As the dentist if they see the adult tooth in the x-ray and an opinion on how long it will take to come down.

 5.  That's crazy!!! My son had nitrous for filling some cavities because he was afraid to sit still. If the nitrous isn't enough, they can do IV sedation. I would never let someone tie my kid to a chair.

6.  I would go to a different dentist. Why does a 4 year old need a root canal? I would rather have the tooth pulled. Root canals are not a good idea in any case, but especially not for baby teeth. There is a court case pending about a chain of dentists who restrain children like that. They did it to be able to give less anethesia and they did tons of root canals. They did this for money. It was shocking to see the hidden camera details. Seriously, go to a different dentist.

7.  Absolutely AVOID the papoose board. Here's what they DON'T tell you...a child can actually MOVE the papoose board while restrained. I know this, because at SIX months, my daughter did. I was on that like stink on s***. The dr used one without my knowledge. (ex-husband gave permisssion) When I walked in the room she was screaming and two nurses AND my ex were holding down the board saying, "Gee. Isn't she a strong one?" WEll, you can guess what happened next!! The procedure was stopped before it started and I took my precious one to a children's specialty clinic. And I don't care what they say, to this day she is terrified of anything that looks like a hospital. Don't mean to scare you, really, I don't. I just wish she didn't have to go through that and wouldn't wish it on anyone's child!! You never know how the child will react until it's actually happening, and then the damage is already done. Please see a CHILDREN's specialist, and listen to these other great moms.
Just Me!

8.   I was restrained on a papoose board when I was a young child to get stitches in my leg. I am now 43 and this was 37 years ago. I can remember every single detail and it was one of the most horrible things I have ever felt. I have 2 boys and I would explore every other option before I agreed to this. I believe this is a torture device and I hope you can come up with a better resolution for your daughter. Good luck to you!

9.   Follow your instincts. No papoose board.
Start by understanding there is no emergency here.
Cavities in a four year old who brushes his teeth with a good fluoride toothpaste progress very very slowly.
Why not wait six months to a year and then start over.
Also you might look for another pediatric dentist with a management technique that is a little better.
all the best,