White v. Select Specialty Hospital

110 So. 3d 1254, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 611, 2013 WL 950831, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 466
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 13, 2013
DocketNo. 12-CA-611
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 110 So. 3d 1254 (White v. Select Specialty Hospital) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
White v. Select Specialty Hospital, 110 So. 3d 1254, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 611, 2013 WL 950831, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 466 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

STEPHEN J. WINDHORST, Judge.

[^Defendant, East Jefferson General Hospital (“EJGH”), appeals from a ruling of the trial court finding it liable for inju[1256]*1256ries sustained as a result of a “slip and fall” type accident on its property. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the decision of the trial court.

Plaintiff Karen White1 was employed by Nurse First, LLC as an agency nurse and was assigned to work at Select Specialty Hospital (“SSH”)2 on March 17, 2007. SSH leased property from EJGH, specifically the 5th floor of its hospital building. On March 17th, Ms. White sustained injury when she slipped, on two separate occasions, on water on the floor in Room 9501. Ms. White filed suit against SSH and EJGH. Thereafter, worker’s compensation carrier, Commerce & Industry Insurance Company, filed a petition for intervention.

13After a bench trial on the merits, the court found in favor of Ms. White and against EJGH as follows: medical expenses of $246,921.70; lost wages of $198,000.00; and general damages of $150,000.00. The awards were subject to assessments of comparative fault. EJGH was found to be 50% at fault, SSH was found to be 30% at fault, and Ms. White was found to be 20% at fault. The awards were further subject to payment in favor of the worker’s compensation intervenor of $230,795.25. EJGH now appeals from this finding of the trial court.

Karen White testified at trial that during 2007 she was employed by Nurse First, LLC and also Advantage. On March 17, 2007, she was assigned to Select Specialty Hospital, located on the fifth floor of East Jefferson General Hospital. She was working a 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. shift. At approximately 7:40 p.m., when she was first making her rounds, she went into Room 9501. Room 9501 was a double occupancy room and housed two patients, one of whom was under Ms. White’s care. Ms. White spoke to the first occupant, and then, when she turned to proceed to her patient, she slipped in some clear water on the floor. Her body twisted, but she caught herself and did not fall. When she slipped, she heard a loud pop in her right hip, causing injury to her hip and lower back. She also injured her shoulder when she caught the door handle to prevent herself from falling. She looked up to the ceiling and noticed that one ceiling tile was missing. She then went to the charge nurse on duty to notify him about the water on the floor and the missing ceiling tile. Ms. White testified that she did not see the water before she slipped and that there were no “wet floor” signs posted outside of the room. She further testified that the water was clear, and had no material in it. Because of the low lighting in the room, she did not see the water before she slipped in it.

Ms. White testified that she “limped” down the hall to inform the charge nurse. The charge nurse, Terrance Donnels, told her he should have put the “wet |4floor” sign down. Ms. White put the “wet floor” sign up and she and Mr. Donnels placed a blanket over the entire puddle of water. Ms. White also reported her accident to Nurse First, and asked them to send a replacement; however no one was available at that time.

Approximately 15 minutes later, Ms. White went back into Room 9501 to assess her patient. She then realized that she had forgotten her gloves and she pivoted [1257]*1257to retrieve them. When she did, she slipped in a different puddle of clear water. She had to step over the blanket to get to where she was when she slipped. Again, she was able to catch herself before she fell, however she hurt her neck. She informed Mr. Donnels, who agreed to redistribute her patients so that she could leave after administering the 11:00 p.m. medications. Ms. White left the hospital at 12:00 a.m., after filling out an accident report.

Ms. White testified that she did not see anyone from EJGH maintenance or EJGH housekeeping at any time from her arrival at 6:45 p.m. to her departure at 12:00 a.m. She also testified that at the time of her second “slip”, she saw the missing ceiling tile pushed between the bathroom door and the wall in the room.

Mr. Kenneth Najolia, employed by EJGH, was the maintenance mechanic on duty at the time of the accident. He investigated the leak in the ceiling in Room 9501 on the date of the accident. He stated that he was called on two separate occasions that night and discovered at both times that the leaks into Room 9501 were caused by a stopped toilet, which had been stopped twice, in the room above. He stated that his shift that evening was from 2:30 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. One call occurred during the first half of his shift, and one occurred during the second half, although he was not sure of the exact times. During the first call, he observed a drip from the ceiling, and he pushed the ceiling tile up and over inside the ceiling. He observed water leaking from a toilet hub in the room on the 6th floor above, |sRoom 6639. When he went upstairs, he found water on the bathroom floor, and spilling over the toilet lid. The water was clear, with no material. He removed paper towels from the toilet, and then checked to make sure there was no further blockage. He informed the 6th floor charge nurse that there was water on the floor and to call housekeeping. He went down to the 5th floor, told the charge nurse on duty that there was water on the floor that had come from the 6th floor and to call housekeeping. He also told the 6th floor charge nurse to keep a watch because it might happen again. Mr. Najolia stated that he did not clean the water himself, nor did he post a “wet floor” sign, as these were not part of his duties as maintenance mechanic. He did not check to see if the water in Room 9501 had been cleaned up. He also did not replace the ceiling tile, but left it inside the ceiling to the side.

About an hour and a half later, Mr. Najolia received a second call about a leak from the 6th floor. He went back to Room 6639, and saw the same problem with the room, except that the water was deeper. He pulled out a second set of paper towels and then flushed to make sure the toilet was working properly. He next alerted, first, the 6th floor charge nurse and then the 5th floor charge nurse. Again, he did not clean the water or post a “wet floor” sign, nor did he return to see if the water had been cleaned.

At the trial, Mr. Najolia testified that the condition of the towels and conversation that he overheard on his first visit to Room 6639 led him to believe that the towels had been intentionally placed in the toilet, and that there was a possibility that it might happen again, which was why he told the 6th floor charge nurse to keep watch. Mr. Najolia stated that he filled out only one work form, designated an MP2. He did not write any comments on the form.

The deposition of Terrance Donnels was admitted at trial. He testified that he was [1258]*1258employed by SSH and was the charge nurse on duty on the date of 16Ms. White’s accident. He testified that on the night of the accident, he was notified that there was some wet debris on the floor in Room 9501. He did not immediately cover the water or place a “wet floor” sign, instead he went to call maintenance. Within minutes he was alerted that Ms. White had an accident. Mr. Donnels was the only person to testify that Room 9501 had a recurring problem with wet ceiling tiles and this assertion was not borne out by the maintenance repair orders introduced into evidence. Mr. Donnels testified that the water on the floor that caused Ms.

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

Related

Brandy Barker Versus City of Grand Isle
Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2020
Pitre v. Jefferson Parish Hospital Service District No. 2
210 So. 3d 502 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2016)
Schexnayder v. St. Charles Parish
202 So. 3d 576 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2016)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
110 So. 3d 1254, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 611, 2013 WL 950831, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 466, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/white-v-select-specialty-hospital-lactapp-2013.