Glover v. Prudencio

54 Pa. D. & C.4th 391, 2001 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 380
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Dauphin County
DecidedSeptember 27, 2001
Docketno. 5080 S 1998
StatusPublished

This text of 54 Pa. D. & C.4th 391 (Glover v. Prudencio) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Dauphin County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Glover v. Prudencio, 54 Pa. D. & C.4th 391, 2001 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 380 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2001).

Opinion

LEWIS, J.,

Before this court is a motion for post-trial relief arising from a medical malpractice action for damages instituted against defendant Jose N. Prudencio M.D. in connection with the medical treatment provided to plaintiff Cindy S. Glover-Peters. The parties filed briefs in connection with the motion and oral argument was heard on July 23, 2001. For the foregoing reasons, the defendant’s motion is denied.

[393]*393The plaintiff, together with her husband, Leonard Peters, commenced this action in September of 1999. Prior to trial, on January 16,2001, defendant filed a motion to preclude testimony of plaintiff’s expert, Dr. Joseph Harryhill, which this court denied. On January 18,2001, plaintiffs filed a motion to preclude the expert testimony of defense witness, Dr. Paul Douglass, which this court granted. A jury trial began on January 22,2001 and concluded on January 25, 2001. At the conclusion of the trial, the jury found that Dr. Prudencio was negligent and entered a verdict in favor of Mrs. Glover-Peters for $250,000.

FACTUAL HISTORY

On November 15, 1996, plaintiff Cindy Glover-Peters, was admitted to the Polyclinic Medical Center and underwent a laproscopic hysterectomy performed by Dr. Ayodeji Bakare, a gynecologic surgeon. Following the operation, Mrs. Glover-Peters complained of abdominal pain and an unusual amount of blood was found in her urine. Twenty-four hours later, these conditions continued, which prompted Dr. Bakare to order a consultation with urologist, Dr. Prudencio.

On November 16,1996, Dr. Prudencio ordered an intravenous pyelogram (IVP) which revealed an obstructed left ureter preventing urine flow from Mrs. Glover-Peter’s left kidney to her bladder. Dr. Prudencio performed a cystoscopy to help determine the location of the blockage but then found it necessary to perform an exploratory laparotomy and made an incision into plaintiff’s abdomen to free the obstruction. During the procedure, Dr. Prudencio discovered a stitch very close to the left [394]*394ureter and a pre-existing surgical tear in the wall of the bladder. Dr. Prudencio placed a double J stent through plaintiff’s ureters to assist with freeing the obstruction and salvaging the kidney. Following placement of the stents, Dr. Prudencio carried out closure of the bladder using a single layer of suture.

On November 20, 1996, Mrs. Glover-Peters was discharged from the hospital and utilized a catheter during her recuperation. She reported having urinary incontinence directly after the procedure and initially thought it was normal. On November 25, 1996, at a follow-up appointment with Dr. Prudencio, Mrs. Glover-Peters reported that she was experiencing severe pain from the catheter and urinary leakage around the catheter tubing. Dr. Prudencio advised that she was experiencing a bladder spasm, which is a common condition following the surgeries she had just undergone. Mrs. Glover-Peters continued to experience the pain and the incontinence in subsequent weeks. She contacted Dr. Prudencio with her complaints and he prescribed Levsinex to control the bladder spasm and ordered a cystogram to determine if it was safe to remove the catheter. During the procedure, it was determined that the plaintiff’s surgical wounds and bladder were well healed allowing for her catheter to be removed.

Dr. Prudencio continued to follow the patient for her urinary incontinence until the spring of 1998. In September 1998, Mrs. Glover-Peters went to the Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia where she sought a second opinion from Dr. Joseph Harryhill about the source of her incontinence. Dr. Harryhill examined Mrs. Glover-Peters performing a physical examination, cys[395]*395toscopy and cystometric evaluation. In the course of his examination, Dr. Harryhill observed a pinpoint opening in the region of the bladder trigone consistent with a vesico-vaginal fistula as well as pooling of urine in the vagina after the bladder had been filled with irrigant. Dr. Harryhill observed that Mrs. Glover-Peters did not leak urine through her urethra with measures commonly related to stress incontinence, such as coughing.

Mrs. Glover-Peters next visited Dr. R. Scott Owens on March 30,1999. Dr. Owens was aware of Dr. Harry-hill’s previous impression of a fistula and he performed a cystoscopy upon Mrs. Glover-Peters and noted a small vesico-vaginal fistula in the mid-trigone region of her bladder. Dr. Owens suggested surgery designed to cure the vesico-vaginal fistula, however, Mrs. Glover-Peters was diagnosed with the hepatitis C virus in the fall of 1998 and continues to undergo a regimen of immune-suppressing chemotherapy rendering her unable to have the surgery until completion of this treatment.

On September 1, 1999, plaintiffs filed a complaint against Dr. Prudencio seeking damages in connection with his treatment of Mrs. Glover-Peters. Plaintiffs alleged at trial that Dr. Prudencio was negligent in failing to inspect the bladder adequately during the November 1996 operation and failing to perform an appropriate closure of the bladder. Further, the suit alleged that these departures from the standard of care increased the risk that Mrs. Glover-Peters would develop the condition of vesico-vaginal fistula.

At trial, plaintiffs claimed that Mrs. Glover-Peters suffered from a vesico-vaginal fistula and besides pain and suffering was required to undergo additional medical [396]*396procedures to treat her urinary incontinence. In addition, plaintiffs claimed past and future loss of earnings, and earning capacity, as well as humiliation and embarrassment. Plaintiffs further claimed special damages associated with urologist, Dr. Owens’ care, as well as care rendered by Dr. Joseph Harryhill. Additionally, Dr. Harryhill testified concerning the nature of the surgical procedure Mrs. Glover-Peters would require in an effort to attempt a surgical correction of her vesico- vaginal fistula with approximate costs for the future surgery in the realm of $20,000 to $30,000.

Defendant has raised numerous issues in his motion for post-trial relief. First, defendant requests that this court grant a judgment n.o.v. because the verdict was against the weight of the evidence that the plaintiffs presented to prove medical negligence. In the alternative, the defendant contends that a new trial is warranted because of plaintiffs’ counsel’s remarks during summation, an improper verdict slip, denial of his pretrial motion, and the granting of plaintiffs’ pretrial motion. Furthermore, the defendant contends that a new trial should be granted because of certain evidentiary errors made by this court when it precluded plaintiffs’ admissions from a prior action, admitted evidence as rebuttal testimony, admitted certain hearsay statements, and permitted plaintiffs’ expert to testify about unrelated medical treatment. Lastly, defendant requests a new trial because this court failed to instruct the jury of a charge proposed by the defendant, the jury’s verdict was excessive, and in the alternative, the defendant requests that a remittitur be granted.

[397]*397JUDGMENT N.O.V.

In reviewing a motion for judgment n.o.v. the evidence and all reasonable inferences must be considered in the light most favorable to the verdict winner, and any conflict in the evidence must be resolved in her favor. Gunn v. Grossman, 748 A.2d 1235, 1238 (Pa. Super. 2000).

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Bluebook (online)
54 Pa. D. & C.4th 391, 2001 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 380, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/glover-v-prudencio-pactcompldauphi-2001.