St. Agnes Hospital and Medical Malpractice – A Rough Month
Medical Negligence Verdicts Stack Up in November
A number of medical malpractice cases in and around Baltimore have made news in recent weeks, more than one involving St. Agnes Hosptial. It might be time to start sweating Briggs Bedigian. If you don’t know who he is, you don’t really know medical malpractice lawyers in Baltimore.
The Dallatezza Medical Malpractice Case
According to the Daily Record, Richard Dallatezza Sr., 64, and his wife, Gail Dallatezza, were compensated $4.2 million in their case entitled Richard Dallatezza Sr., et al v. Saint Agnes Health Care Inc., et al. The jury awarded $4,243,388.00 to $3,243,388.00 in economic damages, and $1 million in noneconomic damages to be capped at $710,000. The counts were medical negligence and loss of consortium.
Case Number: 24C13003478
After undergoing a successful spinal surgery on November 9, 2009, Mr. Dallatezza was moved to a rehab facility where he went under the care of Dr. Charles Schnee, a neurosurgeon. Dr. Schnee incorrectly administered medication for high blood pressure when Dallatezza’s blood pressure was normal.
As a result of his lowered his blood pressure, Dallatezza fainted, leading to a stroke in his spinal cord. Dallatezza was revived, but has permanent spinal cord damage. He is now paralyzed from the mid-chest down.
Dr. Schnee of Hennessy, Shuey & Schnee Chtd. wrote in Dallatezza’s medical records that the stroke was caused by low blood pressure. In the weeklong trial, however, Dr. Schnee contested the medical records he wrote, arguing that the stroke was caused by a blood clot, not the blood pressure meds he prescribed.
Pine Heights Medical Center was named as a second defendant in the case, in addition to St. Agnes Health Care Inc.
Gilman and Bedigian
Lawyers H. Briggs Bedigian and Alicia J. Gipe
Bedigian and Gipe are attorneys at Gilman & Bedigian LLC, a medical malpractice and personal injury firm in Baltimore. Winning over one-hundred-million in jury verdicts in his career, Briggs has tried and won more medical malpractice trials than any other plaintiff lawyer in the Baltimore Washington metro area. According to Maryland Case Search, since 2010, Briggs Bedigian has represented clients in 41 tort cases, 12 medical malpractice cases, 12 civil cases, and 5 motor tort cases, among others. Recently,
Briggs was in the news for another seven-figure verdict within just the last few months. In the last few years, Bedigian has also tried multiple birth injury cases, including two that result in combined verdicts of more than $75 million.
Bedigian has been in practice less than 15 years. On the other hand, veteran malpractice attorney Kathleen Howard Meredith has been in practice more than 35 years. She too has had a large med mal verdict within the last few months.
Feeding Tube St. Agnes Malpractice Case
According to the Daily Record, The verdict for medical malpractice case Catherine McConville, et al. v. Muhammad Afzal M.D. was given on October 10, 2014 in favor of the plaintiff. The total award for plaintiffs Catherine McConville and John Wheeler was $958,000. They received $500,000 for pain and suffering, $250,000 for loss of consortium, and $208,000 for stipulated medical expenses.
Case Number: 24C13002774
Catherine McConville, 60, has had multiple sclerosis since 1978 and has used a feeding tube since 2008 (she is paralyzed and non-verbal.) After the tube got dislodged in May of 2012, McConville and her husband, John Wheeler, went to Saint Agnes Hospital in order to get the tube replaced. Over the following 4 months, McConville’s feeding tube got dislodged and clogged multiple times. Each time, she and her husband returned to Saint Agnes to get it fixed. On the final visit to the hospital, McConville waited nearly 6 hours to see gastroenterologist, Dr. Muhammad Afzal. Afzal’s notes say he used “moderate force” 3 times to reattach the feeding tube. During the procedure, McConville showed signs of significant pain through face grimacing. Afzal allegedly made no attempt to confirm the tube was properly placed before McConville was sent home.
The following day, Wheeler noticed that McConville was short of breath and sweating after 2 feedings. By the time Wheeler called 911 to have his wife taken to Howard County General Hospital, she was non-responsive. The tube had perforated McConville’s stomach, causing McConville to spend 6 weeks in intensive care and undergo multiple surgeries.
Dr. Afzal was found negligent. Every situation in which a feeding tube becomes dislodged, it is critical that the tube be inserted properly. If the doctor is not careful, the tube can tear an organ, like a lung or abdomen. As such, the standard of care requires healthcare providers to verify the placement of the feeding tube. Medical professionals verify proper placement through endoscopy or interventional radiology techniques.
Lawyers in Feeding Tube Medical Negligence Case
Plaintiff: Kathleen Howard Meredith
Meredith is a partner at Iliff, Meredith, Wildberger, & Brennan. P.C. located in Pasadena, MD. The 5-person firm is a general civil practice, but specializes in medical malpractice and personal injury law. According to MD Case Search, Meredith has represented clients in 25 tort cases, 10 medical malpractice cases, and 10 civil cases, among others, since 2007.
Defendant: Mary Elizabeth Kaslick
Kaslisk is a partner at Kaslick & Pete, LLC located in Frederick, MD. The firm practices medical malpractice and family law. Since 2007, Kaslick has represented clients in 57 medical malpractice cases, 12 tort cases, and 6 civil cases, among others, according to MD Case Search.