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Boehm v. Pernoud6/20/2000
Appeal From: Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis, Hon. Anna C. Forder
Opinion Vote: REVERSED AND REMANDED.
Rhodes Russell, C.J., Crahan, J., and Blackmar, Sr.J., concur.
Opinion:
Dr. Joan Pernoud ("doctor") appeals the judgment entered on a jury verdict finding her liable for medical malpractice. On appeal, doctor argues the trial court erred in entering the judgment because the plaintiff Catherine Boehm ("patient") failed to make a submissible case of negligence. We reverse and remand, as patient did not prove that doctor failed to follow the applicable standard of care.
On May 31, 1995 patient tripped and fell on her right side as she was leaving her home, snapping her neck in the process. Shortly thereafter, she began to see showers of black spots in her right eye. She contacted her ophthalmologist, doctor, who examined her that very day. Patient complained of soreness in her right eye that had been occurring for one year prior to her fall. She also informed doctor about the black spots in her field of vision.
During the examination, doctor checked patient's visual acuity and eye pressure. She then performed a slit lamp examination to check the front section of patient's eye. Doctor found many inflammatory cells in the eye. Finally, doctor dilated patient's pupil and used an indirect opthalmoscope to examine the retina. Doctor noted she found no holes. However, she did find some lattice degeneration, which consisted of weak spots in the retina tissue. Doctor prescribed eye drops for patient's inflammation and instructed her to return in one week.
On the morning of patient's follow-up visit, she noticed her vision had become darker, "like a veil" over her eye. During the examination, doctor found that patient's retina had detached and referred her to a retinal specialist. Patient underwent several operative procedures to reattach the retina, but all proved unsuccessful.
Patient sued doctor, claiming she was negligent either in failing to diagnose a retinal hole on May 31, 1995 or in failing to refer patient to a retinal specialist that same day. The jury returned a verdict in favor of patient and awarded her $360,000 in past and future damages. This appeal followed.
In her first point, doctor argues the trial court erred in denying her motion for a directed verdict because patient failed to make a submissible case in that patient failed to establish that she had a retinal hole on May 31, 1995 or that the failure to refer her to a retinal specialist was a breach of the standard of care.
In determining whether a plaintiff presented a submissible case, we must view the evidence and inferences therefrom in a light most favorable to the plaintiff and disregard all contrary evidence. Smith v. Kovac, 927 S.W.2d 493, 496 (Mo. App. 1996). To make a submissible claim of medical malpractice, the plaintiff must establish that the defendant's acts or omissions: (1) failed to meet the requisite standard of care; (2) were performed negligently; and (3) caused her alleged injuries. Cline v. William H. Friedman & Assoc., 882 S.W.2d 754, 754 (Mo. App. 1994). Generally, in a medical malpractice case, a plaintiff must introduce expert testimony to prove that the defendant failed to exercise the degree of skill and care ordinarily used under same or similar circumstances by members of his or her profession. Id.
We first address whether patient made a submissible case on her theory that doctor was negligent in failing to diagnose a retinal hole.
An honest error of judgment in making a diagnosis is insufficient to support liability unless that mistake constitutes
Page 1 2 3 Missouri Personal Injury Attorneys
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