Suing Northwell Health for Surgical Errors: Hospital Liability

About Northwell Health

Northwell Health is the largest healthcare system in New York State, operating numerous hospitals throughout NYC, Long Island, and Westchester:

• Long Island Jewish Medical Center (LIJ) (New Hyde Park) — one of the busiest hospitals in the NYC area, with comprehensive surgical services and Cohen Children's Medical Center.
• North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) (Manhasset) — a major academic medical center with Level I trauma center.
• Lenox Hill Hospital (Upper East Side, Manhattan) — a major Manhattan hospital with comprehensive surgical specialties.
• Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) (Ocean Breeze and Prince's Bay) — Staten Island's major hospital system.
• Huntington Hospital (Huntington, Suffolk County).
• Phelps Hospital (Sleepy Hollow, Westchester).
• Mather Hospital (Port Jefferson, Suffolk County).
• Peconic Bay Medical Center (Riverhead, Suffolk County).
• Southside Hospital (Bay Shore, Suffolk County).
• Northern Westchester Hospital (Mount Kisco).
• Glen Cove Hospital (Glen Cove, Nassau County).
• South Oaks Hospital and other psychiatric/behavioral facilities.

Common Surgical Errors at Northwell Hospitals

Surgical errors that may support a malpractice claim against Northwell Health include:

• Wrong-site surgery: Operating on the wrong body part or side. [Link to: /medical-malpractice/wrong-site-surgery]
• Retained surgical objects: Leaving sponges, instruments, or other items inside the patient. [Link to: /medical-malpractice/retained-surgical-object]
• Organ or bowel perforation: Accidental injury to adjacent organs — particularly in laparoscopic procedures. [Link to: /surgical-errors/laparoscopic-bowel-perforation]
• Nerve damage: Injury to nerves causing paralysis, numbness, or chronic pain. [Link to: /surgical-errors/nerve-damage]
• Spinal fusion errors: Wrong-level surgery, improper hardware, nerve damage. [Link to: /medical-malpractice/spinal-fusion-error]
• Cardiac surgery errors: Errors during heart surgery at NSUH or Lenox Hill. [Link to: /surgical-errors/cardiac-surgery-malpractice]
• Robotic surgery errors: Errors during da Vinci robotic surgery. [Link to: /surgical-errors/robotic-surgery-malpractice]
• Anesthesia errors. [Link to: /medical-malpractice/anesthesia-error]
• Post-operative bleeding and hemorrhage. [Link to: /surgical-errors/post-operative-hemorrhage]
• Surgical site infections.
• Failure to obtain informed consent. [Link to: /surgical-errors/informed-consent]

Hospital Liability and Corporate Negligence

In surgical error cases against Northwell Health, multiple theories of liability may apply:

1. Respondeat superior (vicarious liability): Northwell Health is liable for the negligence of its employees — including surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and other staff who are hospital employees. However, many surgeons at Northwell hospitals are independent contractors, not employees — which may affect vicarious liability.

2. Negligent supervision: Northwell may be liable for failing to properly supervise surgeons, residents, and other staff. This is particularly relevant in teaching hospital settings where residents perform portions of surgeries. [Link to: /surgical-errors/resident-supervision]

3. Negligent credentialing: Northwell may be liable for granting surgical privileges to a physician who was not properly qualified — particularly if the physician had a history of malpractice claims, disciplinary actions, or inadequate training. [Link to: /hospital-negligence/credentialing-negligence]

4. Corporate negligence: Northwell may be directly liable for its own corporate decisions — including inadequate staffing, inadequate safety protocols, failure to maintain equipment, or failure to address known safety issues.

5. Negligent retention: If Northwell knew or should have known that a surgeon was incompetent but continued to allow them to operate, the hospital may be liable for negligent retention.

An experienced attorney will evaluate all potential theories of liability to maximize recovery.

Building a Surgical Error Case Against Northwell

To build a successful surgical error case against Northwell Health, MDLaw Firm will:

1. Obtain complete medical records: Pre-operative records, operative reports, anesthesia records, nursing notes, post-operative records, imaging studies, and pathology reports. Northwell uses the Epic electronic medical record system.

2. Review the operative report: Expert review for discrepancies, omissions, or signs of substandard care.

3. Engage surgical experts: Board-certified surgeons in the relevant specialty review the records and provide opinions on the standard of care and causation.

4. Investigate credentialing and supervision: We may investigate whether the surgeon was properly credentialed, whether there were prior complaints, and whether appropriate supervision was provided.

5. Identify all liable parties: The surgeon, anesthesiologist, nurses, residents, attending physicians, and Northwell Health as the hospital corporation.

6. Establish causation and damages: Expert testimony linking the surgical error to the injury, and documentation of all medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and future care needs.

7. File the lawsuit with a certificate of merit: Under CPLR § 3012-a.

New York Statute of Limitations

Under CPLR § 214-a, the statute of limitations is 2.5 years from the date of the surgery. The continuous treatment doctrine may extend the deadline if you continued receiving treatment from the same surgeon for the same condition. The foreign object exception gives you 1 year from discovery of a retained surgical object. Northwell hospitals are private — the municipal Notice of Claim requirement does not apply. [Link to: /surgical-errors/statute-of-limitations]

Frequently Asked Questions

The value of a medical malpractice case in New York depends on several factors, including the severity of the injury, the strength of liability evidence, and the economic and non-economic damages involved. New York is one of the few states with no caps on medical malpractice damages, meaning there is no artificial limit on what you can recover. Below are typical settlement ranges based on injury severity.