Atlanta Injury Attorneys Blog

Attorneys Jim Poe and Charles Scholle of Scholle Law obtained a verdict of $14 million dollars on behalf of client Rosalind Johnson on May 21, 2019, following a week-long trial.  The case was heard before Judge Joe Iannazzone in Gwinnett County State Court.  Jury deliberations lasted nearly 8 hours.

Rosalind Johnson, a Gwinnett County resident and career member of the US military, suffered severe and permanent bilateral eye damage during a neck surgery at Gwinnett Medical Center in November 2014.  Ms. Johnson was referred to a Gwinnett surgeon to perform a neck surgery in the prone position, meaning that the operation was performed with the patient lying face-down.  After Ms. Johnson was intubated and anesthetized, her body was flipped over and antiseptic skin prep solutions were applied to the back of her neck to pre-emptively sterilize the incision site.  These antiseptics included “Hibiclens” and “Chloraprep”, which both contain the active ingredient “chlorhexidine gluconate,” which causes severe damage to the eyes and mucosal tissues of the body if it is allowed to enter.  Chlorhexadine gluconate binds to proteins in mucosal tissues of the body, so it becomes impossible to remediate its effects after remaining for more than a few minutes.  Undetected by the anesthesia team or any other person in the operating room, the skin prep chemicals containing chlorhexidine seeped down the back of Rosalind’s neck to her face and into her eyes at the beginning of the surgery.

During an invasive neck surgery with a general anesthetic, the anesthesia team, consisting of an anesthesiologist and a nurse anesthetist, administers anesthesia and is responsible for eye protection.  The legal standard of care requires the anesthesia team tape the eyes tightly closed.  They also must watch the patient carefully to ensure that no skin prep chemicals get near the eyes.  The nurse anesthetist has primary control of the patient, while the anesthesiologist is the doctor that oversees and supervises the nurse anesthetist during the surgery.  Under Georgia law, an anesthesiologist can simultaneously supervise up to 4 different operating rooms, employing 4 different nurse anesthetists, but the anesthesiologist must be vigilant to ensure that his or her nurse subordinates know what they are doing and do the job correctly.

When people entrust their well-being to medical providers, they expect that the care they receive will be competent and will adequately identify and address any health issues they might have. It is a sad fact, however, that medical providers do not always provide sufficient care, and patients unexpectedly become the victims of medical malpractice. If you suffered harm due to inadequate or negligent medical care and wish to pursue a claim against your care provider, it is essential to choose an experienced Georgia medical malpractice attorney who will aggressively advocate on your behalf.

There are several factors you should consider in determining how to select the medical malpractice attorney that is best suited to represent you in your pursuit of damages. Generally, it is better to retain an attorney who has substantial experience litigating medical malpractice cases and understands the nuances and intricacies that come with such cases. Thus, a good question to ask a potential attorney is how many medical malpractice cases he or she has handled, and what percentage of his or her practice is devoted to medical malpractice. It is also important to ask questions about the specific circumstances surrounding your harm, and what damages you may realistically hope to recover. A capable medical malpractice attorney will be able to accurately assess your case and manage your expectations regarding its value. Additionally, it is important to ask questions that provide insight into the attorney’s demeanor and personality, to ensure that you feel comfortable with the attorney on a personal level. Continue reading