MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
Anesthesiologist not liable for patient’s lung damage
On Oct. 4, an anesthesiologist wasn’t to blame for a patient’s lung damage during surgery but his colleagues were, a jury found. In 2008, Marshall Stephens underwent a procedure to visualize his gastrointestinal tract, and Dr. Richard Carlson was the anesthesiologist. After the damage was done, the doctors learned that a CT scan showed a small bowel obstruction for which this procedure is contraindicated. Plaintiff’s counsel argued that the doctors should have ascertained this before proceeding with surgery. The two other doctors, an internist and a gastroenterologist, settled before trial but remained on the verdict form. They were each found 50 percent liable. The jury awarded $3.5 million, but Stephens took nothing because the others settled.
