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On July 10, 2002, plaintiff
underwent a spinal fusion surgery at Mount Auburn Hospital. During the
surgery, defendant physician left the hospital to cash a check at a bank
in Harvard Square. He was absent from the operating room for
thirty-five minutes, during which time no qualified orthopedic surgeon
was present in the room. Upon his return from the bank, the defendant
physician finished the procedure.
The following day, plaintiff noted
significant neurological symptoms in his right lower leg. That day,
defendant was suspended from the staff at Mount Auburn Hospital. No
physician was appointed to take over plaintiff’s care. As a result, no
attention was directed to his apparent nerve injury.
Defendant was ultimately suspended
from the practice of medicine for his gross indiscretion in leaving a
patient under general anesthesia to visit the bank. The announcement of
his suspension garnered national news coverage.
Approximately one year later,
plaintiff underwent a second spinal operation to remove the hardware,
including displaced hardware. Six months later, he underwent a third
procedure to redo the fusion.
Plaintiff is left with a permanent
right leg nerve injury which interferes with his ability to walk. It
should be noted that at the time of the original surgery, plaintiff was
already on disability and workman’s compensation due to a longstanding
back injury. The case settled during the second day of mediation.
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Personal Injury Caused by a
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