Texas Verdicts

Amount:

$1,610,000

Type:

Verdict-Plaintiff

State:

Texas

Venue:

Harris County

Court:

Harris County District Court, 55th

Injury Type(s):

Case Type:

Medical Malpractice – Nurse, Hospital, Delayed Diagnosis, Delayed Treatment, Orthopedic Surgery

Case Name:

Jay Houston v. Marston S. Holt, M.D., All American Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute PLLC, and Christus Health Gulf Coast, d/b/a Christus St. John Hospital,
No. 2011-01306

Date:

October 2, 2013

Plaintiff(s):

Jay Houston (Male, 52 Years)

Plaintiff Attorney(s):

David W. Hodges;
Kennedy Hodges LLP;
Houston,
TX,
for
Jay Houston ■ Gabriel A. Assaad;
Kennedy Hodges LLP;
Houston,
TX,
for
Jay Houston

Plaintiff Expert(s):

Angel Roman;
M.D.;
Life Care Planning;
San Antonio,
TX called by
David W. Hodges, Gabriel A. Assaad ■ Thomas Mayor;
Ph.D.;
Economics;
Houston,
TX called by
David W. Hodges, Gabriel A. Assaad ■ Johanna Budge;
R.N.;
Nursing;
Saratoga Springs,
UT called by
David W. Hodges, Gabriel A. Assaad ■ Raymond Vance;
M.D.;
Orthopedic Surgery;
San Diego,
CA called by
David W. Hodges, Gabriel A. Assaad

Defendant(s):

Marston S. Holt, M.D., 

Christus Health Gulf Coast, 

All American Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute PLLC

Defense Attorney(s):

Erin E. Lunceford;
Sprott Rigby Newsom Robbins & Lunceford;
Houston,
TX,
for
Christus Health Gulf Coast ■ J. Shannon Cavers;
Sprott Rigby Newsom Robbins & Lunceford;
Houston,
TX,
for
Christus Health Gulf Coast

Defendent Expert(s):

Miguel Gomez;
Surgery;
Houston,
TX called by
Erin E. Lunceford, J. Shannon Cavers ■ Thomas Edwards;
Orthopedic Surgery;
Houston,
TX called by
Erin E. Lunceford, J. Shannon Cavers

Insurer(s):

self-insured for Christus
Advocate MD Insurance of the Southwest Inc. for Holt and All American

On Jan. 8, 2009, plaintiff Jay Houston, 52, a trucking terminal manager, underwent a partial left shoulder replacement at Christus St. John Hospital in Houston that was performed by Dr. Marston S. Holt, an employee of All American Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute. During rounds the next morning, Holt saw Houston and didn’t note any problems with his arm. He ordered Houston to be discharged on Jan. 9 after all antibiotics were administered and his pain was controlled. Two days later, Houston returned to Holt with signs of inadequate blood flow to the arm. Holt sent him to the hospital, where Houston was found to have an occluded radial artery. He underwent a bypass procedure to restore blood flow to the arm, as well as a fasciotomy to reduce the chance of developing compartment syndrome. During the initial shoulder replacement, Holt unknowingly caused a tear in Houston’s axillary artery when the artery, which supplies blood to the arm, was necessarily stretched during the surgery. Houston sued Holt, All American, and Christus Health Gulf Coast, operating as Christus St. John Hospital, for medical malpractice. Holt and All American settled in November 2011 for a confidential amount. According to Houston, his arm started to show signs of inadequate blood flow in the post-anesthesia care unit shortly after the shoulder replacement, and the unit’s nurse informed the anesthesiologist several times. Houston was in the unit for four hours before the anesthesiologist ordered him transferred to the medical/surgical unit, where the arm continued to show signs of inadequate blood flow. The plaintiff’s orthopedic surgery expert opined that Holt and the nurses were negligent and that, if the laceration had been repaired before Houston was first discharged, he would have experienced no lasting problems. Houston’s nursing expert opined that the nurses should have told their findings to Holt instead of just the anesthesiologist. At trial, Holt testified that, had the nurses told him of their findings, he would have investigated and found the problem soon enough to minimize permanent damage. Houston did not claim that the laceration itself was caused by anyone’s negligence. His attorneys asked the jury to find the hospital 90 percent responsible and Holt 10 percent responsible. The hospital argued that Holt was at fault for lacerating the artery. Also, even though Houston lost 1,500 cc to 2,000 cc of blood during the shoulder replacement, Holt finished the operation and sent him to the post-anesthesia care unit without identifying the source of the bleeding. He also should have noticed signs of inadequate blood flow just as the nurses did, the hospital argued. According to the hospital, Holt had more than enough opportunity to discover the laceration and, given the amount of blood loss, should have called in a vascular surgeon during the shoulder replacement. The defense orthopedic surgery expert opined that Holt should have seen the patient that night instead of waiting until the morning after surgery. The defense vascular surgery expert was going to testify that the nerve damage occurred at the time of the original laceration, not afterward. The court limited his testimony, however, and that opinion was not allowed. The hospital’s counsel asked the jury to find Holt 90 percent responsible and the hospital 10 percent responsible.

Houston sustained muscle and nerve damage to his left (non-dominant) arm, and he claimed that the fasciotomy would not have been necessary but for the hospital’s negligence. The fasciotomy also left a large scar on the inner part of his forearm. Houston claimed that he cannot close his left fist all the way and that he therefore has limited use of that hand. Houston’s past medical bills were about $39,000, but at trial, he did not seek past medical bills or past lost wages. He claimed future lost earning capacity of $666,070 and a life care plan of $305,000, according to plaintiff’s counsel. For past physical impairment, he sought $50,000. For future physical impairment, he sought $100,000. For disfigurement, he sought $25,000 in the past and $150,000 in the future. For future loss of household services, he sought $262,310. For physical pain and mental anguish, he sought $130,000 in the past and $225,000 in the future. The life care plan included revision of the bypass surgery. The defense argued that there was no evidence that Houston would lose his job or ability to work around the house. At trial, the defense also argued that he had not taken any of the measures recommended by his life care planner. According to defense counsel, Houston claimed that he cannot grip with the left hand and that he cannot use that arm at all. In addition, the defense argued that the need for future bypass revision was unrelated to any delay in diagnosis of the tear or laceration.

The jury found both Holt and Christus St. John Hospital negligent. The hospital’s responsibility was 60 percent, and Holt‘s was 40 percent. Houston’s damages were $1.61 million, the jury found. The hospital is jointly and severally liable for all the damages.

Jay Houston $305,000 Personal Injury: Future Medical Cost; $50,000 Personal Injury: Past Physical Impairment; $100,000 Personal Injury: Future Physical Impairment; $25,000 Personal Injury: Past Disfigurement; $150,000 Personal Injury: Future Disfigurement; $175,000 Personal Injury: future loss of household services; $130,000 Personal Injury: past physical pain and mental anguish; $225,000 Personal Injury: future physical pain and mental anguish; $450,000 Personal Injury: future lost earning capacity

Judge:

Jeff Shadwick

Demand:

$300,000

Offer:

$200,000

Trial Length:

5
 days

Trial Deliberations:

4.5
 hours

Jury Vote:

11-1

Jury Composition:

8 male/ 4 female

Post Trial:

The hospital plans to file a motion for a new trial.

This report is based on information that was provided by plaintiff’s counsel and the hospital’s counsel.