Savage v. Correlated Health Service

7 Ohio App. Unrep. 352
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 17, 1990
DocketCase No. 14491, 14498
StatusPublished

This text of 7 Ohio App. Unrep. 352 (Savage v. Correlated Health Service) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Savage v. Correlated Health Service, 7 Ohio App. Unrep. 352 (Ohio Ct. App. 1990).

Opinions

CACIOPPO, J.

Stephen J. Sveda, M.D. and Stephen J. Sveda, M.D., Inc ("appellants Sveda") along with David W. Snyder, D.C., David W. Snyder, D.C., Inc ("appellants Snyder") and Michael Shimmel, D.C. appeal the jury's verdict granting appellee and cross-appellant Edward R. Savage monetary relief for his medical malpractice complaint. We affirm.

In 1967 Savage was injured at his place of employment. Between 1967 and 1987 Savage was subject to episodes of back pain and would receive chiropractic treatment to alleviate his pain. Savage had an occurrence of back pain in March of 1987 and sought chiropractic treatment from or. Archer. Archer, unhappy with Savage's lack of improvement, referred Savage to Dr. David Snyder, another chiropractor.

Savage vent to Snyder's office at the Correlated Health Services' facility and he was seen by Snyder and Dr. Sveda, an orthopedic doctor and medical director of Correlated. After he performed several tests, Sveda made several recommendations, including continued chiropractic manipulation.

In May of 1987 Savage was treated by Dr. Shimmel, a chiropractor covering appointments for Dr. Snyder that day. Savage noted that Shimmel's chiropractic manipulations were more forceful than the manipulations he received from Dr. Snyder.

Following this treatment Savage began to experience physical problems. He had lost control of his bladder and bowels. Two days, later he, was taken by paramedics, to Robinson Memorial Hospital. Savage underwent decompression back surgery during his hospitalization for treatment of his condition, diagnosed as cauda equina syndrome. Subsequently, Savage filed a complaint alleging permanent injuries as a result of the defendants' malpractice

Savage's allegation of malpractice against the defendants was tried to a jury. At the close of Savage's case, the trial court issued a directed verdict in favor of Correlated Health Services and other medical defendants who are not parties to this appeal. The jury found in favor of Savage against appellants Sveda, Snyder and Shimmel. The jury also found in favor of Savage's wife for her loss of consortium claim.

Following trial, the court amended its judgment entry pursuant to the provisions of R.C. [353]*3532307.43 and R.C. 2305.27, reducing the medical claim recovery from $1,035,000 to $735,000. Subsequent motions by appellants for a new trial or judgment notwithstanding the verdict were overruled.

Appellants Sveda are before this court asserting three assignments of error. Appellants Snyder and Shimmel have raised six assignments of error.On cross-appeal Savage sets forth three assignments of error.

Sueda's Assignment of Error 1.

"The trial court committed prejudicial error when it denied defendants-appellants Stephen J. Sveda, M.D. and Stephen J. Sveda, M.D., Inc's motions for directed verdict because plaintiffs-appellees failed to establish a Primal facie case medical negligence."

Appellants Sveda argue that there was insufficient evidence presented at trial to prove medical negligence, and therefore, the trial court should have entered a directed verdict in favor of Sveda. Specifically, appellants argue that there was insufficient evidence to establish that Dr. Sveda's advice deviated from accepted standards of care, and that this advice was not the proximate cause of Savage's injury. We disagree.

Ordinarily, the existence of both negligence and proximate cause are, in a jury trial, questions of fact for the determination of the jury under proper instructions from the court. Strother v. Hutchinson (1981), 67 Ohio St. 2d 282, 288. when considering a motion for a directed verdict, a trial court must construe the evidence most strongly in favor of the party against whom the motion is directed. Id. at 284. Civ. R. 50(AX4) provides:

"When a motion for a directed verdict has been properly made, and the trial court, after construing the evidence most strongly in favor of the party against whom the motion is directed, finds that upon any determinative issue reasonable minds could come to but one conclusion upon the evidence submitted and that conclusion is adverse to such party, the court shall sustain the motion and direct a verdict for the moving party as to that issue."

To entitle the plaintiff in medical malpractice suit to have a case submitted to a jury it is necessary for the plaintiff to establish by a preponderance of evidence that the injury complained of was caused by the doing of some particular thing or things that a physician or surgeon of ordinary skill, care and diligence would not have done under like or similar conditions or circumstance^ or by the failure or omission to do some particular thing or things that such a physician or surgeon would have done under like or similar conditions and circumstance^ and that the injury complained of was the direct and proximate result of such doing or failing to do some one or more of such particular things. Bruni v. Tatsumi (1976), 46 Ohio St. 2d 127, paragraph one of the syllabus. An orthopedic surgeon is held to the standard of care of a reasonable specialist practicing medicine or surgery in that same specialty in the light of present day scientific knowledge in that specialty field. Id., at paragraph two of the syllabus.

In the instant case, in our review of the record evidence, we must determine as a matter of law whether there was legally sufficient evidence to support the trial court's determination that a motion for a directed verdict should have been overruled. Ruta v. Breckenridge-Remy Co. (1982), 69 Ohio St. 2d 66, 68. The reasonable minds test of Civ. R. 50(A) (4) calls upon the court only to determine whether there exists any evidence of substantial probative value in support of that party's claim. Id., at 69.

At trial Savage presented probative evidence from medical experts that Dr. Sveda's advice regarding further chiropractic manipulation fell below the accepted standard of care and that such advice was the proximate cause of Savage's injury. Since reasonable minds could disagree as to the issues of medical malpractice and proximate cause, the trial court properly allowed the jury to resolve the factual dispute. Nickey v. Brown (1982), 7 Ohio App. 3d 32, 37. Therefore, appellants Sveda's first assignment of error is overruled.

Sueda's Assignment of Error II.

"The trial court committed prejudicial error when it denied defendants-appellants' Stephen J. Sveda, M.D. and Stephen J. Sveda, M.D., Inc's motions for directed verdict because acts of codefendants were intervening causes relieving defendants Sveda from any liability."

Sveda argues that the chiropractic manipulation by Dr. Shimmel was an intervening act that broke the causal connection between Dr. Sveda's alleged negligence and Savage's injury, and therefore, a motion for a directed verdict in favor of Dr. Sveda should have been granted.

An intervening cause is one which comes into active operation in producing the result [354]*354after the negligence of the defendant. Prosser and Keeton, The Law of Torts (5th Ed. 1984) 301, Sec. 44.

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7 Ohio App. Unrep. 352, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/savage-v-correlated-health-service-ohioctapp-1990.