Moeller v. Hauser

54 N.W.2d 639, 237 Minn. 368, 57 A.L.R. 2d 364, 1952 Minn. LEXIS 732
CourtSupreme Court of Minnesota
DecidedAugust 1, 1952
Docket35,676, 35,677, 35,678, 35,679, 35,680
StatusPublished
Cited by46 cases

This text of 54 N.W.2d 639 (Moeller v. Hauser) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Moeller v. Hauser, 54 N.W.2d 639, 237 Minn. 368, 57 A.L.R. 2d 364, 1952 Minn. LEXIS 732 (Mich. 1952).

Opinion

Frank T. Gallagher, Justice.

Plaintiff Michael Lewis Moeller, when five years of age, suffered serious injury to his right foot while he was being treated in Ancker Hospital for a leg fracture. Michael, through his father, Burdette E. Moeller, as guardian, brought suits against a group of doctors and against the Ramsey County Welfare Board. The father brought suit against the doctors seeking recovery of the medical expenses incurred by reason of Michael’s injury. The suits were tried together. During the course of the trial the actions were dismissed as to all the defendants except Dr. Victor P. Hauser, Dr. William O. Finkelnberg, and the Ramsey County Welfare Board. The jury returned a verdict for Michael of $30,000 against Drs. Hauser and Finkelnberg; one of $1,311.05 for the father against said doctors; and one of $10,000 for Michael against the County *371 Welfare Board. All three defendants appeal from orders denying their alternative motions for judgment notwithstanding the verdicts or a new trial.

On June 6,1947, while visiting in St. Paul, Michael Lewis Moeller, a resident of Rochester, Minnesota, accidentally sustained a simple fracture of the middle third of the right femur (the bone between the hip and the knee). He was taken to Ancker Hospital in St. Paul in a police ambulance. Ancker Hospital is operated by the Ramsey County Welfare Board primarily for indigent persons in need of medical care who cannot pay for it. The hospital does not refuse any emergency accident cases, however, and those who are able to pay the hospital costs are required to do so. Michael was classified as a pay patient.

In order to understand the issues presented by this case, it is necessary to summarize generally the organization and functions of the hospital. The hospital employs and pays resident doctors, internes, and nurses. The work of the hospital is divided into a number of divisions of service, and the internes rotate among these divisions, serving approximately one month in each one. Internes provide medical services under the supervision of resident doctors.

The resident doctors, as a rule, are fully licensed physicians. They are assigned to supervise the internes in providing the details of medical service, physical examinations, and necessary treatment with which the internes are charged; to assist them when their experience or practice is not sufficiently advanced so that they can do it themselves; and to report to the attending staff the progress and the effects of treatment. In addition, the resident is at the hospital to perfect himself in the specialty of his choice, and part of his activities have to do with studies directed toward that end. The resident doctors rotate in the divisions of service about every six months.

The staff doctors have established practices and maintain offices in St. Paul. They are appointed by the County Welfare Board after approval by the executive committee of the hospital. The staff doctors, for purposes of administrative and professional effi *372 ciency, are divided into various divisions, such as surgery, orthopedics, and internal medicine. They rotate' between the various services and change regularly.

The medical staff has its constitution, bylaws, and rules and regulations (plaintiffs’ exhibit A), which have been approved by the County Welfare Board. These rules and regulations prescribe the duties and responsibilities, within the organization of the hospital, of members of the medical staff and include the following provisions:

Paragraph 3 provides that patients shall be assigned to divisions and services by the superintendent; paragraph 4 provides that final responsibility for the care of patients shall rest with the senior attending physician to whom the cases are assigned; paragraph 5 pertains to physicians’ written orders and provides that unwritten orders shall be disregarded, but that an order shall be considered in writing if dictated to a senior nurse or other authorized person and signed by the attending physician or his authorized representative; paragraph 13 provides that no physician shall receive any compensation for attendance in the case of any patient who is admitted free; paragraph 15 provides in part that in the case of an application for admission of a paying patient who has no attending physician he shall be assigned to a member of the attending staff; and paragraph 21 provides that the training of internes and residents shall be recognized as an obligation of the staff, and suitable provision shall be made for the furtherance of such training in all details in all the specialties involved.

During the period from May 31 to June 30, 1947, Dr. Hauser was the senior attending physician assigned to the fracture' service at the hospital. As such senior attending physician, he assigned incoming patients to the particular doctors on the service, and he assigned the care of Michael Moeller to himself as attending physician. The practice was for each attending physician to retain in his care patients assigned to him until the patient was discharged, even though the term of service of the doctor on the particular service expired at some earlier time.

*373 When Michael was taken to the hospital on June 6, 1947, he was given emergency treatment in the hospital receiving room, and it was determined that he had a simple fracture of the femur of the right limb. Dr. Myrle E. Windmiller, the resident doctor, contacted Dr. Hauser, the staff doctor, regarding Michael’s injury, and Dr. Hauser advised Dr. Windmiller to use the Bryant’s method of overhead traction. Dr. Hauser testified that he saw Michael on the following day and that he saw him probably six or seven times between June 7 and June 30. He said that he last examined the patient on June 30 and found his condition satisfactory. On July 1, the residents and internes were rotated in the customary manner, and Dr. Finkelnberg replaced Dr. Windmiller as the resident doctor assigned to the fracture service.

Dr. Finkelnberg testified that on coming into the service on July 1 he examined Michael and determined that the traction had slipped. He therefore took the boy out of traction and reapplied traction. He said that he saw the boy at least once and usually twice a day between July 1 and July 10 and that at those times he always inspected the foot to see if the color was all right, if the toes were warm, if the boy could wiggle his toes, if there was any swelling, and if the bandage was loose. Dr. Finkelnberg testified that Dr. Hauser was the staff physician on the Moeller case. He said that he did not see Dr. Hauser between July 1 and July 10, but that there had been no reason to call him. The record does show, however, that on July 7 the boy developed a punctate rash on the chest and abdomen similar to a rash which he previously had some time after entering the hospital in June. At eight o’clock that morning his temperature was 100.2, where it remained until about eight o’clock that evening, when it was 101.6. On the morning of July 8 his temperature (rectal) was 101. At 6 p. m. that day it was 103.8. He was given penicillin, and on the morning of July 9 his temperature had dropped to 100.2. On the 10th, his temperature varied from 99.6 to 100.6.

On July 10, Michael complained of pain, and Dr. Finkelnberg took him out of traction.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

McMackin v. Johnson County Healthcare Center
2003 WY 91 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 2003)
McDonald v. HAMPTON TRAINING SCHOOL
486 S.E.2d 299 (Supreme Court of Virginia, 1997)
Rivera v. Prince George's County Health Department
649 A.2d 1212 (Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, 1994)
Ellington v. Bilsel
626 N.E.2d 386 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1993)
Mozingo v. Pitt County Memorial Hospital, Inc.
415 S.E.2d 341 (Supreme Court of North Carolina, 1992)
McElwain v. Van Beek
447 N.W.2d 442 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1989)
Ross v. University of Minnesota
439 N.W.2d 28 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1989)
Petkus v. Girzadas
532 N.E.2d 333 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1988)
VanHercke v. Eastvold
405 N.W.2d 902 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1987)
Pridemark Custom Plating, Inc. v. Upjohn Co.
702 S.W.2d 566 (Court of Appeals of Tennessee, 1985)
Núnez v. Cintrón Ortiz
115 P.R. Dec. 598 (Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, 1984)
S. R. v. City of Fairmont
280 S.E.2d 712 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1981)
Johnson v. St. Bernard Hospital
399 N.E.2d 198 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1979)
Smothers v. Butler
398 N.E.2d 12 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1979)
Wilson v. State
574 S.W.2d 52 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee, 1978)
Adamski v. Tacoma General Hospital
579 P.2d 970 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 1978)
State v. Banks
564 S.W.2d 947 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 1978)
Cornfeldt v. Tongen
262 N.W.2d 684 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1977)
Register Ex Rel. Register v. Wilmington Medical Center, Inc.
377 A.2d 8 (Supreme Court of Delaware, 1977)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
54 N.W.2d 639, 237 Minn. 368, 57 A.L.R. 2d 364, 1952 Minn. LEXIS 732, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/moeller-v-hauser-minn-1952.