Hawthorne v. Blythewood, Inc.

• Citation: 174 A. 81,118 Conn. 617
• Court: Supreme Court of Connecticut
• Decision Date: 16 July 1934
• Parties: HAWTHORNE v. BLYTHEWOOD, Inc.

174 A. 81

118 Conn. 617

HAWTHORNE v. BLYTHEWOOD, Inc.

Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut.

July 16, 1934

Appeal from Superior Court, Fairfield County; Patrick B O'Sullivan, Judge.

Action by Dana S. Hawthorne, administrator of the estate of Orin Willis Jaquish, deceased, against Blythewood, Incorporated for damages for the death of plaintiff's decedent alleged to have been the result of defendant's negligence, brought to the superior court and tried to a jury. Verdict for plaintiff. A motion to set aside the verdict was denied, and defendant appeals.

No error.

Cyril Coleman, of Hartford (Lawrence A. Howard, of Hartford, on the brief), for appellant.

John M. Comley, of Stamford, for appellee.

Argued before MALTBIE, C.J., and HAINES, HINMAN, BANKS, and AVERY, JJ.

HAINES, Judge.

The plaintiff is the administrator of the estate of Orin Willis Jaquish, deceased, and the defendant is a private sanatorium in the town of Greenwich. The complaint alleged that on August 20, 1931, the decedent was admitted as a patient in the sanatorium for the purpose of care and treatment for nervous and mental disorders from which he was then suffering, and that the defendant thereupon undertook to furnish such care and treatment, for compensation; that the defendant had knowledge that the decedent had suicidal tendencies and that his condition was such as to require constant nursing, and a 24-hour attendant which the defendant agreed to provide; that owing to the negligence of the defendant in failing to provide proper care, supervision, and attendance, and sufficient safeguards, the decedent escaped on August 27, 1931, and as a result met his death by drowning. The issues were submitted to the jury upon a general denial and the verdict was for the plaintiff.

Assigning as error the refusal of the trial court to set aside the plaintiff's verdict, the defendant presents all the evidence for our inspection. It appears to be undisputed that that evidence supports the following facts: The decedent, a commercial artist, at the time of changes in his line of work in 1929 exhibited marked nervousness which gradually increased during the two years which followed and became so serious that in 1931 his wife consulted the Medical Center in New York City and was there recommended to Dr. Howe, an eminent neurologist. She and the decedent visited Dr. Howe on the 4th, 11th, and 18th of June. Dr. Howe's diagnosis was that the decedent was suffering from a manic depressive psychosis which was always accompanied by suicidal tendencies. The decedent had frequently spoken to his wife about taking his own life and also when with her at one time in a boat he suggested that they turn it over and both go " out," and another time while driving across Bear Mountain Bridge he had stopped the car and gone to the edge of the bridge and looked down, but she followed him and he got back into the car. He had frequently threatened while in her presence to take his life if he had an opportunity. Dr. Howe recommended that he be sent to an institution because he otherwise might injure himself. In August the decedent's condition became so bad that Dr. Howe advised placing him in Blythewood Sanatorium, and the following morning, August 20, 1931, his wife went there, saw Dr. Adams of that institution, and made arrangements for the decedent's admission. He was brought there that evening and placed in a room on the second floor of a building which was detached from the main building. A special attendant was put in charge of him by the sanatorium and slept in the room with him that night. The following morning a permanent attendant was assigned to him and he slept each night in the decedent's room and was present with him constantly, day and night, except for two or three hours during the evening, when another attendant took his place. This continued uninterruptedly until two or three mornings before the decedent escaped, at which times the attendant left the decedent asleep and went down for a few minutes to the floor below to get his own breakfast. On the 26th the decedent's wife took the decedent for an automobile ride in the afternoon, but the attendant accompanied them at all times. The following morning the attendant left the decedent in bed, telling him it was not time for him to get up, and went down to his breakfast, remaining away for about a half hour. Upon his return the decedent had disappeared and, though persistent search was made, his whereabouts was not discovered until several days later when his body was found in a pond which is on the sanatorium property. It is conceded that the decedent committed suicide.

His wife testified that upon her visit to the sanatorium on the morning of August 20th to arrange for the decedent's admission, she explained the decedent's condition to Dr. Adams, who thereupon insisted that the decedent must be in the hands of an attendant constantly both day and night and refused to admit him unless she was willing to pay for a 24-hour attendant, the cost of which was 835 per week in addition to the regular charge of 875 per week. She agreed to and paid for this. Upon his admission, the decedent was given a " mental examination" by Dr. Adams, lasting about three-quarters of an hour. Dr. Adams testified that his diagnosis was psycho neurosis, or nervous breakdown, and that he did not discover any suicidal tendency. The jury thus had before them the conflicting views of Dr. Howe and Dr. Adams, and in addition to other testimony they had the story of the decedent's threats to commit suicide and Dr. Howe's statement that this condition was always an accompaniment of a manic depressive psychosis, as well as the additional fact that within about a week after his admission decedent had escaped and drowned himself. It was the jury's province to deal with this and all other evidence on this feature of the case, and we cannot say that it was unreasonable for them to decide that the decedent was suffering from a manic depressive psychosis with suicidal tendencies as claimed by Dr. Howe.

It was also their province to determine whether the sanatorium authorities knew or should have known this when he was admitted after mental examination. Mrs. Jaquish testified that she explained the decedent's " condition" to Dr. Adams. The evidence was all to the effect that it was because of his nervous and mental, rather than his physical condition which brought about his admission to the sanatorium. Though all the details of what she said to Dr. Adams do not appear in the evidence, the doctor himself testified that he asked her if her husband had impulses or...