Newsletter Navigation
- Hill Boren Adds Attorneys, Creates a Team and Launches a News Service
- Gina Allen, Lawyer and Nurse, Joins Hill Boren
- Attorney Greg Petrinjak Joins Hill Boren
- Nurses Often Face Job Related Injuries
- Hill Boren Sponsored Habitat Home Complete
- DRUG ALERT – Study Finds Glucophage Often Mis-Prescribed
- Avoid Personal Watercraft Injuries
- In the News
Hill Boren Adds Attorneys, Creates a Team and Launches a News Service
In this 80th issue of our newsletter, we have lots of growth to announce.
Attorney Greg Petrinjak joins our firm with a civil engineering degree and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from UT. He brings us years of experience in workers' compensation and personal injury law.
Gina Allen is an attorney, nurse and US Air Force veteran. Ms. Allen comes to us with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from UT and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Houston. You can find out more about these lawyers in this newsletter.
Medical-Malpractice Team
Ms. Allen will be a part of our medical-malpractice team that also includes Hill Boren attorney Randall Phillips, Dr. Sherif K. Sakla and me.
Dr. Sakla is a physician with a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Loyola School of Law in New Orleans. He has been assisting Hill Boren in medical malpractice cases for over 3 years.
Medical malpractice cases require a depth of medical knowledge, extensive legal experience and a commitment from the law firm to fight huge insurance companies and hospitals. Hill Boren's medical malpractice team provides these resources to our clients who have suffered from misdiagnosis, mistreatment and other forms of malpractice.
NewsBuddy® Comes On-Line
Hill Boren has become one of the premiere partners of WMC-TV's NewsBuddy. This free internet feature brings the latest weather conditions and news headlines direct to your home or work computer.
NewsBuddy has the unique ability to send out a breaking news crawl or weather warning map across the bottom of your computer screen, direct from Action News 5.
Because it's on duty 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week, NewsBuddy is an excellent way to let people know that the lawyers of Hill Boren are ready to serve them. NewsBuddy also allows users to go directly to the Hill Boren website for advice and information.
Download it free from the WMC-TV website at www.wmctv.com. It is easy to download and after you do, you'll receive messages about breaking news and weather whenever you are connected to the internet. Join us on the web.
Gina Allen, Lawyer and Nurse, Joins Hill Boren
Attorney, nurse and United States Air Force veteran Gina R. Allen joined the law firm of Hill Boren in May. She comes to Hill Boren from Memphis Legal Personnel Services, Inc. and BMH-Memphis.
"As a nurse and a lawyer, Gina's experience with medical cases will be a vital part of Hill Boren law firm's new medical-malpractice team in their fight to protect the rights of our clients who suffer from medical care injuries," Robert Hill said.
Ms. Allen, who grew up in Jackson, received her Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Houston Law Center in Houston, Texas and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing, graduating with honors, from the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center in Memphis. She is admitted to practice law in Tennessee. She holds licenses to practice nursing in both Texas and Tennessee.
She was formerly an associate with Mills and Associates in Memphis specializing in plaintiff personal injury and medical negligence.
At BMH, Ms. Allen worked in the operating room at the Heart Institute where heart surgeries are performed. She has extensive experience in emergency surgery, laser/laparoscopic, gynecological, ophthalmic, podiatric, plastic, thoracic, obstetric and dental/oral surgeries.
As a captain in the United States Air Force Nurse Corps, she served as a staff officer and worked in the operating room at Patterson Air Force Base Medical Center. During Operation Dessert Storm/Calm, she manned the operating room of an air transportable hospital at King Fahd Air Base in Saudi Arabia. Following active duty, she served five years in the reserves.
Ms. Allen is a graduate of Southside High School. Her parents are Gloris and Floyd W. Allen of south Jackson. In her free time, she enjoys reading and working in her garden.
Attorney Greg Petrinjak Joins Hill Boren
Hill Boren welcomes attorney Greg Petrinjak to the firm. He joined Hill Boren in April coming to us from the Jackson firm of Waldrop & Hall. He earned a Doctor of Jurisprudence and graduated with honors from University of Tennessee College of Law, then joined Waldrop & Hall in 1996.
"Greg comes to us with a background in workers' compensation and personal injury law," Robert Hill said. "His experience will be as asset to our firm."
"Workers' compensation law is very satisfying. I truly enjoy stepping in and helping real people with very real problems," Greg said.
As a member of the Tennessee Law review, Greg was published and served as a research editor. He is admitted to practice in all Tennessee state courts, as well as the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. He is a member of the Madison County Bar Association.
He earned his undergraduate degree in civil engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. After a brief career in civil engineering, he entered law school. He is a graduate of North Side High School.
Greg is married to Lana Homesley Petrinjak also of Jackson. They both enjoy the familiarity and family atmosphere of their hometown. The couple stays busy parenting their active two-year-old daughter, Kate. Greg and his family are members of Grace United Methodist Church in Jackson. When not working, Greg enjoys family activities with both his and Lana's families that live in this area. He enjoys fly-fishing and golf.
Nurses Often Face Job Related Injuries
Nurses and other health care professionals report on-the-job injuries at high rates. This trend will continue as the aging population outpaces the available nurses.
High stress and dangerous environments were reported as top causes for injury in a survey of registered nurses conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Injuries Prevalent
Nurses and aides have the highest rates of crippling musculoskeletal disorders according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
These injuries most often affect the wrists, shoulders, elbows, neck, hands and back. Some of the causes include heavy lifting, working at a fast pace or in an uncomfortable position.
A Safer Nursing Environment is Possible
The work environment can be made safer for the staff, according to the survey. Patient lifting and transferring devices can decrease the risk of back injuries. A federal law requires the use of safe needle devices. Alternatives to powdered latex gloves are available.
If you or a healthcare professional you know has suffered a workplace injury, please call the office of Hill Boren.
Top concerns for nurses were:
- Overworked - acute, chronic stress
- Disabling back injuries
- Needle stick injuries resulting in HIV or hepatitis
- Infection of tuberculosis or other contagious disease
- On-the-job assault
- Developing latex allergy
- Fatigue-related car wrecks following long shifts.
Hill Boren Sponsored Habitat Home Complete
A dedication ceremony was recently held for Kim Snipes who became a first time homeowner through Habitat for Humanity. Kim's home, the Thomas "Tip" Taylor Memorial Habitat for Humanity House, was made possible through the donation from Hill Boren law firm. The staff also rolled up their sleeves and helped build the home.
"It was a wonderful experience," Hill Boren attorney and the firm's project coordinator Sherry Percival said. We got to do everything from putting up the walls, the roofing, the siding and painting."
"We have become really good friends," attorney Percival said of her relationship with Ms. Snipes.
Going above and beyond their commitment to Habitat, Hill Boren helped the Snipes family acquire furniture, appliances and other necessities.
"My new home is an example that dreams do come true," Ms. Snipes said. Once jobless and living in a homeless shelter, she has worked very hard and is now a manager at Sonic on Parkway.
DRUG ALERT – Study Finds Glucophage Often Mis-Prescribed
Diabetics taking Glucophage to control blood sugar levels are encouraged to discuss a serious, often fatal side effect with their physician. When this medicine is inappropriately prescribed, it can cause a potentially fatal build-up of lactic acid in the blood. The Journal of the American Medical Association recently reported findings that suggest some doctors may be unaware of the drug's warnings against use by patients with kidney disease, those who are taking medicine for heart failure, or when the patient is having a CT scan performed with IV contrast. For more information on this important study, see our safety alert on this issue.
Avoid Personal Watercraft Injuries
As ownership of the personal watercrafts (PWC) have risen, so have the number of accidents. Many serious injuries could be avoided through safer design and better regulation.
One of the most dangerous aspects of a PWC is the lack of directional control. When the throttle is released, the craft essentially becomes a missile heading in the last direction of the thrust until it strikes an object or the driver starts the throttle to turn the craft in another direction.
Combine that tricky maneuvering with inexperience and you have a lethal combination. The majority of drivers involved in accidents are younger than 21. These young people bring inattention, inexperience and inappropriate speed into the mix.
Even though statistics have shown the lack of adequate regulation and the lack of design standards to be contributing factors to both injury and death, legislatures have been slow to act to protect the public.
The most important thing you can do is follow safety suggestions.
- Wear the proper safety equipment: A U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket, eye protection, tennis or deck shoes, gloves and a whistle.
- Take a boating safety course.
- Respect the rights of others. Keep a safe distance from other boats, swimmers and especially other PWCs.
- Read the owner's manual to understand the controls and features.
- Never operate a PWC without the safety lanyard securely attached to you.
- Never operate at night. PWCs have no lights.
- Don't operate a PWC if you have been drinking.
In the News
T. Robert Hill recently donated his classic 1957 Chevy to the Jackson-Madison County Humane Society. The society sold the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air at the 4th Annual Whine and Dine Auction.
Congratulations to Jackson Central-Merry High School Academic Decathlon Team! The team finished in 13th place in the nation. The team's trip to Phoenix, Arizona was made possible in part by support from Hill Boren law firm.
