According to a Fayetteville Observer report, Marjorie Locklear, then 75 years old, was undergoing a cardiovascular surgery in 2012 at Southeastern Regional Medical Center of Lumberton (N.C.) when she fell off the OR table while her body was open and instrumentation was inside of her.
She suffered a concussion and other injuries as a result of the fall and subsequently sued the surgeon, the hospital and Duke University Health System, which managed the hospital’s heart center, and Duke University Affiliated Physicians and Duke Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery of Lumberton.
After a Superior Court judge dismissed all charges for reasons specific to how the lawsuit was served. For the case against the surgeon and the Duke entities, the Superior Court decision noted Ms. Locklear’s attorneys did not get an expert to say the patient received faulty medical care, which is required in a medical malpractice case.
However, Ms. Locklear’s attorneys say the case is an ordinary negligence case, not a case of medical malpractice, so such a finding was not needed.
In a 2-1 decision, the state Court of Appeals sided with the plaintiff and said it is an ordinary negligence case, not one of medical malpractice. This revived the case against the surgeon and Duke entities, according to the report.
According to the ruling, a medical malpractice case would mean a clinician did not use his or her “specialized skill or clinical judgment.”
In this case, the clinicians allowed someone to fall off a table, which is not a matter of specialized skills, the court of appeals ruled.
Because it was a split decision, the case qualifies for review from the state Supreme Court.
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