When patients seeks treatment at a hospital, they are putting their trust not only in the doctors and the nurses but in the hands of the entire staff. A patient trusts that each person will act in their best interests and with safe standards to ensure that the patient receives the care that he or she deserves. Hospital negligence can occur at any level of the operation when even one person fails to pay attention or makes a careless error.

At least four patients placed their trust in the staff of the Miami Valley Hospital in Ohio, but that trust was broken when they contracted Legionnaire's Disease from contaminated water.

The hospital negligence claims arose from the development of the new patient tower at the hospital which opened in December 2010. According to court documents, the problem arose in the water system.

The fourth patient to contract the disease filed the suit alleging that the hospital and building contractors failed "to comply with federal, state, and local rules, regulations, and ordinances applicable to the operation of the hospital and its systems." Specifically, the suit claims that the chlorine levels were not adequate for the flushing of the water system. The patient became sick after the water was heated and the patient inhaled the steam containing the contaminants.

The suit seeks not only compensatory damages but punitive damages as well. Compensatory damages are awarded for injuries such as lost wages, current and future hospital bills, emotional damage and other such damages incurred by a victim. Punitive damages are seen as more of a punishment for a negligent party's actions.

Source: Courthouse News, "Hospital blamed for Legionnaire's Disease," Kevin Koeninger, Feb. 13, 2012