Norris v. East Tennessee Children's Hospital10/31/2005
I.
Prior to the matters at issue in this case, the child suffered from spinal curvature, a congenital condition that first manifested itself when he was 11-years-old. On Wednesday, September 3, 1997, the child, who was then 14-years-old, underwent a complicated, but recommended, surgical procedure on his spine at East Tennessee Children's Hospital ("ETCH") in Knoxville. The surgery involved the installation of metal rods in the child's spine; it carried a known risk of paralysis. The attending orthopedic surgeons, Dr. Robert R. Madigan and Dr. Cameron J. Sears, performed the procedure with the assistance of Dr. Alan Anderson, a pediatric surgeon, and Dr. Matthew Mancini, the attending medical resident. During the course of the surgery, it became apparent that paralysis was setting in. Because of this, the child's neurosurgeon, Dr. Louis W. Harris, Jr., made a decision to abort the surgery. Dr. Harris performed alternative surgical treatment and bone grafting to stabilize the child's spine.
Following the aborted procedure, the child was transferred to the pediatric intensive care unit ("the PICU") of ETCH where he remained until he was transferred to a hospital room on Friday, September 5, 1997. During his stay in the PICU, the paralysis went away; however, the child continued to suffer from surgery-related soreness. He was given two medications, Prednisone, a steroid, and Toradol, an anti-inflammatory. Both medications are ulceragenic, i.e., medicines that have the potential to cause ulcers.
On that Friday morning, the child appeared to be progressing well. However, during the day, he complained of stomach pain and presented a urinary dysfunction. Dr. Madigan, Dr. Donald H. Nguyen, a pediatric urologist, Dr. Howard C. Filston, a pediatric surgeon covering for Dr. Anderson, and numerous nurses employed by ETCH attended to the child during this period.
On the morning of Saturday, September 6, 1997, the child's condition worsened. Around 8:00 a.m., Dr. Mancini ordered that the child be transferred back to the PICU. En route, the child suffered full cardiopulmonary arrest. The determined cause of the cardiac arrest was a perforated ulcer with extensive soilage that led to respiratory compromise. Dr. Filston performed an eight-hour surgery to repair the perforated ulcer; but, ultimately, the child suffered irreversible brain damage. He was taken off life support on September 10, 1997. He died the same day.
On September 9, 1998, the plaintiff filed suit against various defendants alleging negligence in the post-surgical treatment and care of the child. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants' negligence began on Friday, September 5, 1997, after the child complained of stomach pain and presented a low urine output. The plaintiff asserted that the defendants' failure to properly investigate the cause of the child's symptoms fell below the general postoperative standard of care and proximately caused his death. The plaintiff does not allege a deviation in the standard of care surrounding the aborted spinal surgery and the immediate aftermath of recovery following that surgery, including the prescription of the two ulceragenic medications. Each defendant claims that his care of the child was within the recognized standard of care. They deny that any act or omission on their part was the proximate cause of the child's death.
On November 25, 2003, the plaintiff filed her third amended complaint. In that pleading, the plaintiff named as defendants, ETCH, Dr. Madigan, Dr. Sears, Dr. Filston, and Dr. Nguyen. On March 5, 2004, the trial court granted Dr. Nguyen's motion to dismiss, holding that the third amended complaint against him was barred
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