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Romero v. Bellina9/25/2001
AFFIRMED
Diane Charlotte Romero and Huey Romero filed this medical malpractice action against Joseph H. Bellina, M.D., and Bonnabel Hospital. The Romeros (hereinafter Plaintiffs) reached a settlement with Bonnabel Hospital, and the case proceeded to trial against Dr. Bellina alone. The trial court rendered a judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
On March 31, 1987, Plaintiffs filed a Petition for Damages against Dr. Bellina and Bonnabel Hospital for injuries Mrs. Romero sustained from a laser surgery. Huey Romero filed a separate claim for loss of consortium. The Plaintiffs have divorced since the filing of this suit.
The Plaintiffs settled their claims with Bonnabel Hospital, and the case proceeded to trial against Dr. Bellina on June 12, 2000. After a bench trial, the trial court rendered judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs for $170,966.41. From this judgment, Dr. Bellina filed the present appeal.
FACTS
The Plaintiffs were originally referred to Dr. Bellina due to difficulty conceiving a child. Diane Romero was diagnosed with chronic salpingitis, a condition marked by a partial blockage and inflammation of the uterine tube. She was considered a candidate for laser surgery to correct this condition.
On November 27, 1984, Dr. Bellina performed laser surgery on Mrs. Romero at Bonnabel Hospital in Metairie, Louisiana. During the surgery, Dr. Bellina was assisted by Kristine Markey and Antoinette Toups, surgical nurses employed by Bonnabel Hospital. The nurses' primary function in this operation was retraction of the incision, permitting Dr. Bellina to perform the laser surgery. The surgery itself was completed successfully. However, before the final suturing of the laser incision, the nurses erroneously informed Dr. Bellina that all the lap pads, or sponges, had been accounted for.
The day after the procedure, Mrs. Romero complained of severe abdominal pain. She continued to suffer this pain intermittently for three weeks, and then it abated. A few months later, she discovered a mass in her abdomen near the area where the surgery was performed. Alarmed by this discovery, she visited her treating OB/GYN, Donald Blue, M.D. Dr. Blue determined through an x-ray that the mass in her abdomen was a lap sponge from the November 27, 1984 surgery with Dr. Bellina. Ms. Romero underwent corrective surgery with another doctor to remove the sponge. A Medical Review Panel was convened, and unanimously concluded that Dr. Bellina's performance met the applicable standard of care.
Several expert witnesses testified at trial. These expert surgeons explained alternative methods for keeping track of the sponges placed inside patients' bodies. One such method is the use of rings attached to the sponges. These rings hang outside the patient's body. However, the record reveals that such a method is considered incompatible with laser surgery due to the metallic content of the rings. Additionally, the expert witnesses spoke of a manual inspection inside the opening. Again though, this particular method was not compatible with the "no hands" surgery performed on Mrs. Romero.
A review of the record shows that there were disputed facts as to the number of people in the operating room, whether an initial sponge count was performed, and whether Dr. Bellina himself performed a final count. However, ultimately, Dr. Bellina testified that he does not normally perform an independent count, but relies instead on the nurses to keep track of the sponges he places in a patient.
In ruling against Dr. Bellina, the trial court held that a surgeon's
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