R.C. v. Jaffe

2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U)
CourtNew York Supreme Court, New York County
DecidedJune 4, 2024
StatusUnpublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U) (R.C. v. Jaffe) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court, New York County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
R.C. v. Jaffe, 2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U) (N.Y. Super. Ct. 2024).

Opinion

R.C. v Jaffe 2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U) June 4, 2024 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: Index No. 805288/2018 Judge: Judith N. McMahon Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip Op 30001(U), are republished from various New York State and local government sources, including the New York State Unified Court System's eCourts Service. This opinion is uncorrected and not selected for official publication. FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/04/2024 05:01 PM INDEX NO. 805288/2018 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 116 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/04/2024

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK NEW YORK COUNTY PRESENT: HON. JUDITH N. MCMAHON PART 30M Justice -----------------------------------------X INDEX NO. 805288/2018 R. C., RACHAEL WISEMAN, JOHN COLASANTE, MOTION DATE 05/23/2024 Plaintiff, MOTION SEQ. NO. _ _0..;;..;02;;;....:;_00;;_;;3'--- - V-

IRA JAFFE, DANIEL ROSHAN , ROSH MATERNAL-FETAL DECISION + ORDER ON MEDICINE, PLLC, NYU LANGONE HEALTH SYSTEM MOTION Defendant.

-------------------------------------------------------X The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 002) 50, 51 , 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60 , 61, 62, 63, 64,65 , 66, 67,68,69, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99,111, 112 were read on this motion to/for JUDGMENT-SUMMARY

The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 003) 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88,100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107,108,109, 110, 113,114 were read on this motion to/for JUDGMENT-SUMMARY

Upon the foregoing documents, it is ordered that the motions for summary judgment of

the defendant Ira M. Jaffe, 0.0. (Motion Seq. No. 002), and the defendants Daniel Roshan,

M.D., Rosh Maternal Fetal-Medicine, PLLC and NYU Langone Health System (Motion Seq.

No. 003), are granted to the extent that the complaint is severed and dismissed as against NYU

Langone Health System. Also dismissed are plaintiffs' "Second" (lack of informed consent),

and "Fourth" (parental emotional and mental suffering) causes of action, together with all claims

against Dr. Jaffe relative to the office visit he conducted, on August 24, 2015. The balance of the

motions is denied. Rosh Maternal Fetal-Medicine PLLC remains a defendant as vicariously

liable for the negligent conduct, if any is found, on the part of Dr. Jaffe and/or Dr. Roshan.

805288/2018 C., R. vs. JAFFE, D.O., IRA M. Page 1 of 12 Motion No. 002 003

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This medical malpractice action arises out of the prenatal care and treatment rendered to

the plaintiff-mother, 42-year-old Rachel Wiseman, who delivered twin daughters 1 on March 22,

2016, at 38 weeks 1 day gestation. The twins, weighing over six pounds each, were delivered by

Dr. Jaffe via previously scheduled cesarean section, and demonstrated Apgar scores of 8 and 9 at

one and five minutes after birth. Upon delivery, the babies were admitted to the newborn nursery

for routine infant care.

On the evening of March 23, 2016, R.C. had an apneic episode while feeding. At 10:00

p.m., the baby desaturated and was transferred to the NICU. An MRI performed on March 24th

revealed a large acute left middle territory infarct (i.e., middle cerebral artery or "MCA" stroke)

involving the left frontal , parietal and temporal lobes, as well as the insula, basal ganglia, and

thalamus. There was mass effect including sulcal effacement and effacement of the left lateral

ventricle, but no mid-line shift or herniation. There was no acute intracranial hemon-hage, and

the stroke was thought to be thromboembolic. R.C. was released from the hospital on April 1,

2016, and continues to suffer right sided hemiparesis, lower extremity weakness, and its

sequelae.

Dr. Jaffe moves for summary judgment on the grounds that he appropriately and

thoroughly evaluated plaintiff during his August 14, 2015, and March 16, 2016, office visits, that

he appropriately performed the cesarean section on March 22, 2016, and that there was no

evidence of excessive force or injury sustained by R. C. at the time of her delivery. Dr. Roshan,

Rosh Maternal Fetal-Medicine PLLC and NYU Langone Health System move for summary

judgment, maintaining that their care and treatment was consistent with the prevailing standard

The babies were monochorionic-diamniotic ("mono/di") twins, meaning that they shared a placenta but had separate amniotic sacs. 805288/2018 C., R. vs. JAFFE, 0.0., IRA M. Page 2 of 12 Motion No. 002 003

2 of 12 [* 2] FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/04/2024 05:01 PM INDEX NO. 805288/2018 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 116 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/04/2024

of care, and that R.C. 's left cerebral stroke was neither predictable nor foreseeable and was not

caused by the defendants ' action or inaction. Plaintiff opposes both motions.

In support of Motion Seq. No. 002, Dr. Jaffe submits, inter alia, the expert affirmation of

an ob-gyn, Henry Prince, M.D. (see NYSCEF Doc. No. 53), who opines "with a reasonable

degree of medical certainty, that there is nothing in the record to support the contention that any

of the treatment rendered by Ira M. Jaffe, D.O. either caused or even remotely contributed to the

injuries" claimed to have been sustained by R.C. (id., para. 23) and further, that "while it is

generally recognized that mono/di twins should be born no later than 38 weeks, the additional

one-day" gestation in this case did not affect R.C. 's outcome (id., para. 12). As for Dr. Jaffe ' s

August 14, 2015 (8 weeks gestation) and March 14, 2016 (37 weeks gestation) office visits, Dr.

Prince finds: (1) appropriate monitoring of Ms. Wiseman's glucose; (2) "no evidence of

placental insufficiency and the placenta was providing the nutrients the fetuses needed, with no

evidence of placental resistance or consequences of a prematurely aged placenta" (id., para. 12),

and (3) a normally functioning placenta, as evidenced by the babies' good birth weights,

reassuring Apgar scores, and consistent growth (id.). Dr. Prince further opines that neither

steroids nor magnesium sulfate were indicated in this case, and that "neither advanced maternal

age, twin pregnancy, or gestational diabetes are risk factors for neonatal stroke, even in

combination." He concludes that no causal relationship exists between the obstetrical

management rendered by Dr. Jaffe and the stroke suffered by R.C., which was "neither

preventable nor predictable" (id., paras. 18, 20).

In support of Motion Seq. No. 003, defendants Dr. Roshan, Rosh Maternal Fetal-

Medicine, PLLC, and NYU Langone Health System submit, inter alia, the expert affirmations of

805288/2018 C., R. vs. JAFFE, D.O., IRA M. Page 3 of 12 Motion No. 002 003

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ob-gyn Peter Bernstein, M.D. (see NYSCEF Doc. No. 74), and pediatric neurologist, Joseph

Maytal, M.D. (see NYSCEF Doc. No. 75).

For his part, Dr. Bernstein opines within a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the

moving defendants adhered to the acceptable standard of prenatal care by: (1) properly managing

plaintiffs advanced maternal age, gestational diabetes, and monochorionic-diamniotic twin

pregnancy 2, and (2) performing the cesarean delivery at 38 weeks, as there was no indication to

perform it any sooner. According to Dr.

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R. C. v. Jaffe
2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U) (New York Supreme Court, New York County, 2024)

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2024 NY Slip Op 31936(U), Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rc-v-jaffe-nysupctnewyork-2024.