Firm Partner Michael Baxter obtained a $4,086,000 jury verdict on behalf of the spouse and daughter of a 72-year-old patient who died due to the medical negligence of a local interventional cardiologist and his cardiology group.
The verdict, which was rendered in less than an hour after a two-week trial, was more than 163 times greater than the Defendants’ best offer of $25,000. The verdict included $1 million for pain and suffering to the decedent’s wife; $2.5 million for pain and suffering to the decedent’s daughter; and $586,000 for medical expenses related to medical negligence.
The decedent suffered from longstanding mitral valve regurgitation and needed a mitral valve repair. He also had a blocked artery but was not experiencing any symptoms.
The Defendant physician convinced decedent that he needed to undergo surgery to place a stent to open the artery despite the lack of any symptoms and even though the blockage was not located in an area where stenting would provide any benefit.
Additionally, the Defendant physician failed to conduct a full workup and failed to appreciate that placing a stent would be extremely difficult due to the decedent’s anatomy. Finally, the Defendant physician did not tell the decedent or his family that he was paid by the stent manufacturer and was attempting to place a new stent that the stent manufacturer had brought to market.
During the ill-fated surgery, the Defendant physician attempted to place the stent 14 times without success. The decedent suffered a heart attack during the procedure from lack of blood flow due to the numerous attempts to place the stent. He died a few weeks later, having never regained consciousness.
Firm Partner Michael Baxter convinced the jury that the procedure should never have gone forward and should have been stopped after the first few unsuccessful attempts to place the stent. Instead of performing the procedure, the Defendant physician should have started the decedent on medication and referred him to a cardiac surgeon for mitral valve repair.
The quick verdict after a lengthy trial sends a message to healthcare providers and their insurance companies that they will be held accountable when their negligence results in catastrophic harm to their patients.
