Emergency Room Malpractice


Over $500 Million
Recovered Since 1993
We've Helped Thousands of People Just Like You
We are known for getting life-changing results and fighting to make our communities safer.
$193 Million
Whistleblower Exposed
Massive Healthcare Fraud
By Endo Pharmaceuticals
$6 Million
Confidential Settlement
Complex Plaintiff Litigation
$120 Million
Class Action Lawsuit
Against Unlicensed
Funeral Home Operator
$6 Million
Permanent Injuries From
Defective Scissor Lift
$10.7 Million
Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Against River Park
Hospital
$3.5 Million
Confidential Settlement
Legal Malpractice
$2.6 million
Permanent Heart-Valve
Damage From
Defective Drug
$2.4 million
Title IX Settlement
Civil Rights Case
$2.4 million
Prison Death
Case in
Tennessee
$2 million
Paducah Radiation
Landowners’
Litigation
$2 million
Permanent Injuries
From Contaminated
Dietary Supplement
$2 million
Unnecessary Amputation
Medical Malpractice

Why Choose Us As Your Emergency Room Malpractice Attorney
With us on your side, you can focus on what’s most important – your recovery.

Decades Of Experience
Our Nashville attorneys have over 75 years of combined practice handling cases involving personal injury, medical malpractice, civil rights, medical device lawsuits, wrongful death, and much more.
Doctors, nurses, and even patient’s may take pride in the standard of care in our hospitals, but the failure to exercise a degree of reasonable care in emergency rooms happens more often than you might think.
Tennessee Emergency Room Malpractice
In Nashville, Tennessee, the attorneys of David Randolph Smith & Associates understand that rapid and specific treatment is essential for a patient in a hospital emergency room. However, inaction or inappropriate action ruins thousands of lives every year, and in some cases, results in death. If you or your loved one has concerns about emergency room treatment, our staff of experienced professionals wants to hear from you.
In 2010, for example, Vanderbilt University Medical Center had 102,631 visits.
The high volume of patients, often in critical condition, and chronic staff shortages often plague hospital emergency rooms, creating an environment that is ripe for errors. A Harvard University study (published in the New England Journal of Medicine) of more than 30,000 randomly selected hospital records found that hospital emergency departments have the highest proportion of adverse events due to negligence than any other area of the hospital. Most common were diagnostic errors or mishaps in treatment, largely due to part-time, inexperienced physicians and staff.
Rapid and specific treatment is essential for a patient in a hospital emergency room. Depending on the condition, an emergency room physician may be required to refer the patient immediately to a specialist. In the emergency room, time is of the essence. Some conditions that result in long term pain, disability or death could have been prevented by prompt and competent action by the ER staff and doctors.
According to a recent study conducted by researchers at the Harvard Medical Institute, the amount of time spent in the emergency room has grown by an astonishing rate. On average, half of all emergency room patient’s waited 30 minutes or more to be examined by a doctor, a significant increase from a wait time of 22 minutes. Even more shocking, the wait time for serious emergencies has also increased. In 1997, the average wait time for a patient suffering from a heart attack was eight minutes; in 2006 the average time was at 22 minutes, and patient’s with other serious maladies were forced to wait around 15 minutes.
In addition to negligent wait times, ER patient’s can experience other mistakes and healthcare errors when visiting an emergency room. The most common type of emergency room errors are the following:
- Failure to fully evaluate or treat a patient’s condition
- Late or wrong diagnosis
- Faulty laboratory tests
- Contaminated blood transfusions
- Prescribing wrong medication
- Failure to monitor a patient, especially confused patients
If you received the wrong diagnosis or were injured due to the negligence of emergency room doctors, nurses or staff in Nashville, Tennessee or elsewhere, please contact David Randolph Smith & Associates. Our goal is to provide exceptional legal services to our clients. We strive to achieve the highest standard of excellence for the protection of individual rights through team work and the use of our considerable resources and experience.
Examples of Emergency Room Errors
Emergency room errors and emergency room misdiagnosis are abundant. Anything done at the frantic pace of the emergency room is bound to have a higher error level then normal. This however does not mean that all emergency room mistakes are acceptable. Just the contrary; many emergency room mistakes are completely preventable and can be described as medical malpractice due to an emergency room nurse or doctors negligence.
A misdiagnosis can occur at any stage in the emergency room visit. It could result from an incorrect initial assessment, leading to a delay in diagnosis or treatment; a failure to recognize the condition bringing the patient to the emergency room; a failure to obtain appropriate diagnostic tests; a failure to obtain a consultation from an appropriate specialist or a failure to refer the patient to an appropriate specialist; or prescribing an incorrect medication.
Common diseases that are frequently misdiagnosed in the emergency room are:
- Acute Myocardial Infarction (Heart Attack)
- Testicular Torsion
- Tuberculosis
- Venous thromboembolism
- Spinal cord compression or injury
- Strokes
- Pulmonary Embolism
- Bacterial Meningitis
- Appendicitis
- Aortic aneurysm or dissection
- Medication Errors
- Prescription Errors
- Failing to diagnose impending heart attacks and strokes
- Diagnosis Errors
- Errors in interpreting x-rays, CT scans, and MRI studies
- Discharging patients who are critically ill
Many of these conditions are life threatening if the physician or other health care provider fails to consider them in making a diagnosis.
Errors in hospital Emergency Rooms are a common occurrence infrequently talked about and rarely reported to the media. That is why you don’t hear about these types of cases on the news. Understaffed hospitals or ill-equipped emergency rooms may lead to fatal errors while dealing with patients requiring emergency treatment. When the necessary steps of treating an emergency room patient are sidestepped, then an emergency error may result.
According to repots from the Institute of Medicine , from 1993 to 2003, the U.S. population grew by 12 percent but emergency room visits grew by 27 percent, from 90 million to 114 million. In that same period, however, 425 emergency departments closed, along with about 700 hospitals and nearly 200,000 beds.
Over 225,000 people die from medical malpractice related injuries in a single year. Nearly half of these are from emergency room errors.

Excellent Reputation
DRS Law is a well-respected law firm in Nashville and throughout the U.S. Founder, David Randolph Smith, has been selected as a Mid-South Super Lawyer, named one of the Top 100 attorneys in Tennessee in all fields of practice, and is included in the Best Lawyers in America guidebook.

Small Case Volume
Unlike many Nashville firms or lawyers that handle a large volume of cases, we concentrate our expertise on a select few cases. With this, our attorneys ensure that every step is taken to obtain the most favorable outcomes for our clients.

We Prepare For Trial
Every case is meticulously prepared for trial by our trial team and support staff in order to maximize the recovery for our client, whether by settlement or trial verdict. Our proven track record of success has resulted in multi-million-dollar settlements and judgments in a wide variety of individual and group cases.
What to Expect
Our Legal Services Are Completely Personalized To You And Your Unique Needs

01 Free Consultation
Our top-rated Tennessee personal injury lawyers provide free, no-pressure case evaluations. We will help you determine if you have a case and will answer all your questions in plain English. We never charge any fees until we win your case.
02 Personalized Service
If we take your case, it’s because we believe we can help you. We will get to work outlining a strategic plan of action. We want you to feel taken care of during this difficult time — whatever questions you have, we’re here with answers. Frequent check-ins ensure you are comfortable with the progress of your case.
03 You Get Paid
We are passionate about the success of your case and will give it the close attention and focus it deserves. We find solutions that other lawyers miss, discovering key facts that help you win. We call upon our gifts in storytelling to argue your case with passion and conviction so you get the compensation and justice you deserve.
















What Our Clients Say
“The intellect combined with compassion of these people is incredible.”
I am very thankful to David, Lyon, Chris and all professionals who represent this firm. This team made an incredibly difficult situation end successfully. The intellect combined with compassion of these people is incredible. Our concerns were quickly and appropriately responded to, with knowledge and compassion. Law suits are very scary situations, but they never stopped communicating until I felt comfortable with the process. - K. Boland
“They were extremely thorough and caring through the entire experience.”
The DRS team was simply tremendous. They were extremely thorough and caring through the entire experience. I felt cared for the entire time. I will recommend them enthusiastically to anyone who ever needs legal help. - Dick K.
“Very professional and very hard working guys that I would suggest to anyone!”
Chris and the rest of the guys at the firm did an amazing job handling my case and making me feel like I was heard and important. Very professional and very hard working guys that I would suggest to anyone! - T. Sapp.
“They kept me in the loop every step of the way and made me feel like family.”
This is a wonderful law firm. They kept me in the loop every step of the way and made me feel like family. I would highly recommend! - David S.
“There are really no words to adequately describe how thankful we are.”
There are really no words to adequately describe how thankful we are for Lyon and the others at this law firm. The events that led us to reach out to your firm were one the worst times in our lives. My husband’s illness and long recovery were something that we were not sure we would ever come back from. Thanks to the hard work, knowledge and dedication that you guys have put forth on our behalf we have been awarded a settlement that will ensure we have a secure financial future. You guys are the best! - Lorrie H.
“The only attorney that would take our case.”
David Randolph Smith was the only attorney that would take our case. We were up against the US Government and Virginia’s state laws. Mr. Smith’s experience and expertise was the only reason we were able to get a settlement. He always answered our calls and kept us informed. Mr. and Mrs. Smith were very professional and nice. God sent this law firm to help us at a very sorrowful time. We were blessed for such a great law firm. If I ever need a lawyer, this firm would be first on my list. Thank you. — Vicky F.
“The end results gave me the justice and satisfaction I so desperately needed.”
Thru what was an absolute nightmare of an ordeal, I was finally blessed with the very best legal team a man could ever want or desire. I can’t even begin to express my overwhelming gratitude and sincere appreciation to my entire legal team. You are all of the very best at what you do, and the end results gave me the justice and satisfaction I so desperately needed. And it also gave me back my health and independence! On a scale to 1 and 10, I would give you give you a 12! God bless all of you from the bottom of my heart! - Darrell H.
“It made all the difference knowing that we were in competent hands.”
My wife and I couldn’t have had a better experience. The whole team was incredibly responsive, attentive, respectful, & friendly. Lyon took our case and you couldn’t ask for a better guy to have on your side. Not only was he super sharp and resourceful, but also the type of person that makes you feel like an old friend. Since we were seeking legal help for a very awful situation it made all the difference knowing that we were in competent hands the whole time. - Mark D.
“They always set realistic expectations and even surpassed them.”
It was a wonderful experience. Everyone we dealt with was attentive and responsive. They always set realistic expectations and even surpassed them. We are very happy we decided to use Smith and Associates. We highly recommend them. - Whitney G.
The Nashville personal injury and medical malpractice law firm of David Randolph Smith & Associates serves clients throughout Tennessee in communities such as Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Clarksville, Murfreesboro, Jackson, Johnson City, Franklin, Hendersonville, Bartlett, Cleveland, Columbia, Cookeville, Gallatin, Lebanon, Brentwood, Springfield, Dickson, Davidson County, Shelby County, Knox County, Hamilton County, Rutherford County, Williamson County, Robertson County, Cheatham County, Maury County and Montgomery County. We also serve clients in Alabama, Kentucky, Indiana, Mississippi and Illinois. AL, KY, IN, MS, IL.
If you are seeking a:
Davidson County Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Tennessee Personal Injury Attorney
Tennessee Medical Malpractice Attorney
Tennessee Wrongful Death Attorney
Tennessee Product Liability Attorney
Tennessee Trucking Accident Attorney
Tennessee Auto Accident Attorney
Tennessee Civil Rights Attorney
Tennessee Birth Injury Attorney or
Tennessee Fire Attorney
We would welcome the opportunity to discuss your case confidentially and free of charge.