Medical Malpractice: Verdicts, Settlements, and Experts

On June 21, 2013, Plaintiff was a 46-yar-old woman with a history of increasingly frequent and severe menstrual periods. Defendant was unable to prescribe contraceptives due to Plaintiff’s blood pressure history; as a result, Defendant performed a hysteroscopy with resection of a submucosal fibroid, a D&C, along with a NovaSure endometrial ablution. During surgery, Defendant encountered a 2 cm fibroid, and attempted to morcellate the fibroid from the anterior wall all the way down to a normal-appearing cavity. Defendant noted that blood loss was less than 100 mL.

Immediately post-op, Plaintiff began hemorrhaging. Nurses informed Defendant multiple times over the course of seven hours that Plaintiff was experiencing severe hemorrhaging. After seven hours of continuous hemorrhaging, Defendant examined the Plaintiff, found that she was in hemorrhagic shock, and advised her that a hysterectomy was necessary to control her continuous hemorrhage.

During Plaintiff’s second surgery, Defendant lacerated Plaintiff’s bladder twice. Defendant was unable to repair the damage after hours of trying, and called an urologist. Post-operatively, Plaintiff suffered a stroke, respiratory failure, kidney failure, permanent sterility, and significant bladder injuries as a result of Defendant’s actions. This case settled at mediation.