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Prairie v. Snow Valley Health Resources9/7/2001
PUBLISHED
Defendants, Snow Valley Health Resources, Inc. (Snow Valley), and Rakeesh Marwaha, M.D., appeal a decision of the circuit court of Du Page County granting plaintiff, Robin A. Prairie, a new trial. Following a jury trial, a verdict was returned in favor of both defendants. Plaintiff filed a posttrial motion seeking, among other things, a new trial. The trial court granted that request, relying on three errors it found to have occurred in the course of the trial. Primarily, the trial court relied upon its finding that defendant Marwaha's trial testimony diverged from what had been disclosed, a situation that violated Supreme Court Rule 213 (177 Ill. 2d R. 213). The trial court also determined that two additional errors contributed to the unfairness of the trial. First, it held that it had erred by allowing a medical textbook to be admitted as substantive evidence. Second, it concluded that it had erroneously allowed plaintiff to be impeached through the use of what it determined to be either a misdemeanor conviction or an ordinance violation. We granted defendants leave to appeal pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 306 (166 Ill. 2d R. 306) and now affirm.
Defendant Snow Valley operates a residential facility where it provides long-term care for its patients. Plaintiff's decedent was a 103-year-old woman and resident of Snow Valley. Plaintiff's decedent died on June 12, 1994, while a resident there. Defendant Marwaha is a physician who provided care to the decedent during the period in which she resided at Snow Valley. Plaintiff filed the current action, alleging several breaches by both defendants. Pertinent to this appeal is plaintiff's allegation that defendants failed to adequately monitor the decedent's vital signs and that this omission led to her death.
Because this appeal comes to us following the grant of a new trial, we will disturb the decision of the trial court only if "it is affirmatively shown that it clearly abused its discretion." Maple v. Gustafson, 151 Ill. 2d 445, 455 (1992). A trial court abuses its discretion when its decision is arbitrary or exceeds the bounds of reason. Schmidt v. Joseph, 315 Ill. App. 3d 77, 81 (2000). Only where no reasonable person would agree with the position taken by the trial court does an abuse of discretion occur. Schwartz v. Cortelloni, 177 Ill. 2d 166, 177 (1997). With this standard of review in mind, we now turn to the merits of this appeal.
The primary basis for the trial court's decision to grant a new trial was its determination that Marwaha's testimony deviated from that disclosed pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 213. See 177 Ill. 2d R. 213. Defendants raise four distinct arguments as to why this ruling was an abuse of discretion. First, defendants assert that plaintiff waived any claim of error by failing to interpose a timely objection. Second, defendants contend that Marwaha's testimony was properly disclosed. Third, defendant Snow Valley argues that the testimony in question was not opinion testimony and therefore not within the scope of the rule. Finally, defendants postulate that plaintiff could have and should have impeached Marwaha if she felt that his testimony diverged from his previously disclosed testimony.
The testimony at issue here concerns the steps that should have been taken to monitor plaintiff's decedent's vital signs in the days before her death. In his deposition, Marwaha was asked whether "[decedent's] vitals should be taken on each shift," and he replied, "In each shift, right." He also referred to a standing order regarding the decedent, part of which he stated was to " onitor her vital signs." When asked how many times a day they should be monitored, he replied three.
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