Paul Phillips of Puddle of Mudd Sues Hospital for Medical Malpractice
As a musician, life can be stressful enough as it is, just walking on the stage. As a guitarist, you need to be very careful when striking every cord, as each note has its specific purpose. That being said, when health problems prevent you from playing music in the way that you should, this can put your financial security at risk.
This is what happened to Paul Philips, guitarist at Puddle of Mudd. After hospital complications lead to a potential brain injury, Phillips filed a lawsuit against two doctors and the hospital for permanent brain injuries.
What Led to the Lawsuit
In November 2019, Phillips was rushed to the Baptist Medical Center Beaches, Jacksonville, where he was treated for a possible seizure and altered mental status. According to medical reports, Philips had low sodium levels, which the doctor began to increase through medication.
However, according to Phillips and the lawsuit, his sodium levels increased much faster than usual. According to his medical records and history of chronic alcohol abuse, his sodium levels should have been increased carefully and gradually. This did not happen and based on his files, the sodium levels increased too quickly over the course of two days.
Return to the Hospital
After being discharged, Phillips returned three days later to the hospital as a result of a seizure. Once admitted, he had another seizure, which the doctors began to diagnose. After several MRIs, it was shown that he suffers from central pontine myelinolysis brain damage, a condition that occurs after low sodium levels (hyponatremia) were corrected way too quickly.
According to the lawsuit claims, the condition was caused by poor medical treatment, causing permanent damage to the brain. He received further treatment for his condition at the Mayo Clinic, but the damage was irreversible, compromising his career as a musician.
Central pontine myelinolysis brain damage affects an average of 250-500 people out of 100,000, the majority caused by medical malpractice and improper duty of care from the doctors. The condition is very common in states such as New Jersey, the majority being permanent. For example, a person suffering from this condition in cities such as Newark would need to hire a Newark medical malpractice lawyer, as they have the most knowledge of state and local law.
The Baptist Medical Center failed to provide an immediate response, which prompted the musician to start a lawsuit for loss of quality of life. As he is now prone to suffering from a seizure on stage, he is no longer able to perform and continue his career as a musician.
Ongoing Lawsuit
The lawsuit against the Baptist Medical Center is still ongoing, as Paul’s problems are nowhere near over. The band itself went through numerous setbacks, after having to let go of its lead singer.
Phillips has been a member of Puddle of Mudd between 2001-2005 and 2009-20011. While no longer a permanent member of the band, Phillips still had numerous musical projects before his brain injury. His future is now uncertain, as there is no known cure for this brain injury, making the seizures a permanent part of his life.
Paul Phillips claims that his life has no longer been the same since he has been treated at the Baptist Medical Center of the Beaches. Not only has his career been put in danger, but it has also caused significant emotional distress. Not knowing when you would experience the next seizure could be extremely nerve-racking on the psyche.
While we do not have any information concerning the result of the lawsuit, we do know that claims take an average of 2-3 years to settle. As Phillip’s injury is fairly complex, it is expected that the results will take longer to make themselves known.
According to Phillips, his history of chronic alcohol consumption was not kept a secret from the doctors. His low sodium levels were presumably a result of his alcohol use, which the doctors should have been aware of. His attorneys believe that there is solid evidence claiming that Phillips was a victim of negligence.
The Bottom Line
It may take years until we find out whether Paul Philips won the lawsuit or not. However, it seems that his career as a musician has already begun to go down. Phillips is rarely active in any of his projects, keeping his musical career at a local level. Going on tours again would be far too dangerous.
Since you’re here …
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading Side-Line Magazine than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can - and we refuse to add annoying advertising. So you can see why we need to ask for your help.
Side-Line’s independent journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we want to push the artists we like and who are equally fighting to survive.
If everyone who reads our reporting, who likes it, helps fund it, our future would be much more secure. For as little as 5 US$, you can support Side-Line Magazine – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.
The donations are safely powered by Paypal.
