Goolsby v. Qazi
| Citation | 847 So.2d 1001 |
| Decision Date | 11 April 2003 |
| Docket Number | No. 5D01-3055.,5D01-3055. |
| Parties | Richard Larry GOOLSBY, et al., Appellant, v. Ahktar QAZI, M.D., et al., Appellee. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Mayanne Downs of King, Blackwell & Downs, P.A., Orlando, for Appellant.
Michael A. Estes and Eric P. Gibbs of Hannah, Estes & Ingram, P.A., Orlando, for Appellee.
Richard and Dana Goolsby, as parents of Ashley Goolsby, appeal an order directing a verdict in favor of Ahktar Qazi, M.D. The Goolsbys contend that the evidence was sufficient to pose to the jury the question whether Qazi's alleged negligence in reading an x-ray as normal caused damages to Ashley. We agree and reverse.
When Ashley was born, nurses notified her pediatrician that they heard hip clicks. The pediatrician wrote in her notes: "rule out congenital hip dysplasia," and "positive hip click bilateral." Hip clicks usually resolve themselves, but they can also be a sign that the hips are dislocated, and Ashley's family had a strong history of hip dysplasia. If noted, the dislocation can be treated successfully with a Pavlik's harness followed by another device. The harness holds the joints in place until they become aligned properly. The pediatrician ordered x-rays from Qazi, and referred Ashley to an orthopedic surgeon, but neither diagnosed dysplasia. Ashley's expert testified that she was born with dysplasia.
Ashley's condition was not discovered until she was 36 months old. Because her bones had ossified by this time, she needed procedures involving surgical fractures and shortening of the socket. By the time of trial, Ashley had undergone reconstructive surgery which involved cutting the pelvis, shortening bone, and adding screws, plates, and bone grafts for each hip. She would most likely require more surgery. Experts testified that the x-rays showed dysplasia of the hip and that both Qazi and the orthopedic surgeon were negligent in reading the x-rays as normal.
The trial court apparently directed a verdict in favor of Qazi because there was no evidence that his misreading of the x-ray caused the failure to timely treat Ashley with a Pavlik harness. A motion for directed verdict should be granted when there is no reasonable evidence upon which a jury could legally predicate a verdict in favor of the nonmoving party. Cecile Resort, Ltd. v. Hokanson, 729 So.2d 446, 447 (Fla. 5th DCA 1999) (citing American Motors Corp. v. Ellis, 403 So.2d 459, 467 (Fla. 5th DCA 1981)). "In considering a motion for directed verdict for the defendant, the court is required to evaluate the testimony in the light most favorable to the plaintiff and every reasonable inference deduced from the evidence must be indulged in plaintiff's favor." Id. (quoting American Motors Corp.). This is the test used by the trial court as well as the standard of review on appeal. Id. (citing Ritz v. Florida Patient's Compensation Fund, 436 So.2d 987, 989 (Fla. 5th DCA 1983)).
In support of the court's ruling, Qazi points out that the court held in Gooding v. University Hospital Building, Inc., 445 So.2d 1015 (Fla.1984), that "a patient in a medical malpractice case must show that the injury more likely than not resulted from the defendant's negligence in order to establish a jury question on proximate cause." Id. at 1020. "In other words, the plaintiff must show that what was done or failed to be done probably would have affected the outcome." Id. Qazi further points out that the evidence did not show that the orthopedic surgeon saw Qazi's report, and that the only person shown by the evidence to have seen the report is the pediatrician. Qazi points out that there was no showing that the pediatrician would have changed her treatment if she had been informed that the x-rays showed dysplasia, or that she would have attempted to influence the treatment being provided by other doctors. Further, there is no evidence that any other doctor would have acceded to any attempt by the pediatrician to intervene. That being so, Qazi argues, there is no showing that his reading of the x-rays had any effect on the outcome.
Qazi cites Ewing v. Sellinger, 758 So.2d 1196, 1197-98 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000) in which the plaintiffs alleged that Dr. Sellinger, an obstetrician, was negligent in failing to make a risk assessment. Had the obstetrician done so, the plaintiff claimed, he would have been required to direct that a physician, rather than nurse/midwives, attend her labor and delivery. The plaintiff's labor was prolonged, and the nurse/midwives eventually sought the assistance of Dr. Anderson, the on-call physician, but both mother and child...
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