Many Houston doctors are outraged that St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital is preparing to rename its medical tower, a local landmark, after controversial plaintiff’s attorney John O’Quinn (Apr. 28, 2004, etc.) in exchange for a $25 million gift. O’Quinn was the chief driver of the silicone breast implant litigation, which though decisively refuted in its major scientific contentions inflicted billions of dollars in costs on medical device providers and, not incidentally, plastic surgeons. And just this year O’Quinn’s law firm was singled out for condemnation by federal judge Janis Graham Jack in her scathing ruling on the shoddy business of mass silicosis-screening — “diagnosing for dollars”. Doctors “last week began circulating a petition against [the renaming proposal] and Monday night convened an emergency meeting of the medical executive committee….By late Monday, about 80 had signed the petition. ‘It offends us to have money we earned — and which he took by suing us — going to name after him a medical building in which we work each day,’ says the petition.” The University of Houston law school has already renamed its law library after O’Quinn, a full-length oil painting of whom looms over the students. (Todd Ackerman, “Doctors push St. Luke’s to forgo $25 million gift”, Houston Chronicle, Aug. 9). More: Kirkendall and MedPundit comment; so do GruntDoc and Michigan Medical Malpractice.
Posts Tagged ‘medical’
$7.25 million verdict for lost “banking” career
A jury awarded Mark Schiffer $7.25 million on his claim that LASIK surgery in 2000 by Dr. Mark Speaker had ruined his eyesight, though apparently not so badly, since he was able to drive to court for the trial. Schiffer’s attorney, Todd Krouner, had asked for $35 million, complaining that Schiffer had been “embarking on the beginnings of an extraordinary career in investment banking” that had been ruined by the surgery. The banking career was so extraordinary that he had previously quit a job with Goldman Sachs to write and direct a movie with Selma Blair (photo). Press coverage notes that Schiffer was “forced” to “take a job with his dad’s security firm,” which makes it sound like he’s carrying a nightstick rather than a CFO for a software company. Wharton must be proud of the entrepreneurial spirit shown by Schiffer to find new revenue sources. (Anthony Lin, “Former Banker Awarded $7M in Damages From LASIK Eye Surgery”, New York Law Journal, Aug. 1; Maggie Haberman, “He wins $7.25M in botched eye surgery suit”, New York Daily News, Jul. 31).
“Doc: $2 mil. verdict proves my point”
As one might expect, spinal surgery does have a risk of spinal injury, including paralysis. Joliet neurosurgeon Thomas R. Hurley, president-elect of the shrinking Illinois State Neurosurgical Society, has an impressive safety record, performing well over 1000 spinal surgeries, with only one resulting in paralysis. Nevertheless, a Cook County jury decided that anything less than perfection was negligence, and awarded $2.3 million in damages to the family of the late factory worker Richard McCorry. McCorry was already wheelchair-bound from back pain when he had the surgery that paralyzed him. “As a result of the Tuesday verdict, Hurley’s annual medical malpractice insurance rates could jump from $245,000 a year to $300,000 or more, he said. … ‘Maybe I’ll go to another state where insurance will be $75,000.'” (Abdon M. Pallasch, Chicago Sun-Times, Jul. 28) (via ICJL). The press accounts mention the plaintiff’s attorney’s complaint that the case took ten years to try, but don’t mention that that was because the plaintiff changed his theory in 1999 and then chose to spend two and a half years trying to retroactively amend his complaint to add a new theory of liability against the deep-pocket non-profit hospital. McCorry v. Gooneratne (Ill. App. 2002); McCorry v. Evangelical Hospitals Corp. (Ill. App. 2002).
“Malpractice Fears Color Mammogram Readings”
Radiologists order more repeat mammographies and more biopsies because of fears of malpractice claims, according to a study in the July issue of Radiology. “The recall rate in the U.S. is much higher than in other countries,” said study co-author Dr. Joann G. Elmore, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Washington. (Kathleen Doheny, HealthDay/Forbes, Jun. 28). See Jun. 14, 2004.
Hospital sued for fainting dad
While his wife, Jeanette Passalaqua, was giving birth, Steven fainted in the delivery room, fracturing his skull and dying two days later. This is, says the family, the fault of Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Southern California Permanente Medical Group Inc. “‘This avoidable tragedy was a direct result of Kaiser’s ordinary negligence in failing to exercise reasonable care to prevent foreseeable injuries to Steven,’ according to the suit, which was filed last week in San Bernardino County Superior Court.” So if your maternity ward is rubber-padded next time you go there, you know why. (AP, Jul. 8).
$12.8M for bed-ridden schizophrenic’s amputation
62-year-old Kenneth F. Morris is both paraplegic and a schizophrenic. He refused to cooperate with the doctors and nurses at other hospitals, and when he arrived at Western Convalescent Hospital, he had infected bedsores, which eventually resulted in the amputation of his leg below the knee. A Los Angeles County jury held the nursing care facility 90% responsible for the injury, and awarded over $12 million in compensatory and punitive damages. “A spokeswoman for the California Department of Health Services, which inspects and licenses nursing homes, said state officials had never received a complaint about Morris’ injuries and had no plans to investigate.” (Jack Leonard, “Abuse Victim Wins Award”, Los Angeles Times, Jul. 2; plaintiffs’ law firm summary). The award will likely be lowered somewhat later in the litigation process, but the trial court is still likely to award between $3 and $6 million.
Not about the money: a continuing series
It wasn’t about the money, which doesn’t keep the lawyer from complaining that the award was too low:
A jury found a cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital liable yesterday for the death of the sports journalist Dick Schaap after hip replacement surgery and awarded his family $1.95 million in compensatory damages….
His family had sought $21 million.
“This case was never about the money,” his widow, Trish, said after the verdict….
[Attorney Thomas Moore, who represents the family of the 67-year-old Schaap], also expressed some disappointment with the jury’s monetary award, saying it failed to consider Mr. Schaap’s future earnings. “He was at the zenith of his career when he died,” he said.
A lawyer for the defendant cardiologist, meanwhile, takes strenuous exception to the verdict against his client, contending it was based on erroneous science. (Andrew Jacobs, “Jury Awards Family $1.95 Million in Dick Schaap’s Death”, New York Times, Jul. 2). More: don’t miss Ted’s comments above, and welcome KevinMD readers.
Brain wave monitor
Opinions vary among physicians as to the likely usefulness of a new device which indicates whether a patient is awake or asleep during surgery. One thing is certain, however: hospitals’ decisions on whether or not to adopt the new technology will be strongly influenced by the aim of avoiding litigation, as distinct from the device’s perceived medical merits. (Daniel Fisher, “Defensive Medicine”, Forbes, Apr. 25).
“I practiced defensive medicine today”
Kevin, MD has a continuing series of real-life tales of defensive medicine.
“Malpractice: How to survive a deposition”
The June 3 Medical Economics article (and associated ten sneaky lawyer questions by Berkeley Rice is old news to any litigator who’s defended a witness, but laypeople may be surprised how little the process has to do with truth-seeking. (via Newmark and KevinMD)