A jury awarded the plaintiff in a medical malpractice lawsuit more than $650,000 Tuesday, much less than the $6.8 million he was seeking in the negligence case.
Riadh “Robert” Katy sued Dr. Robert Michael Boerner, Dr. John Francis Ende, Asheville Radiology Associates, Dr. Michael John Capriola, Physician’s Assistant John David Riser, Dr. Salvatore John D’Angio, Dr. David Franklin Craig, Dr. Shashank Mishra, Dr. Keven Robert Chung, McDowell Emergency Physicians and The McDowell Hospital, claiming they didn’t do all they could to save the life of his wife, Aziza, who was 42 when she died on March 23, 2008.
Most of the defendants settled out of court, granting Robert $53,000 and each of his four kids $11,000, he told The McDowell News.
Capriola, Riser, Chung and McDowell Emergency Physicians took the case to trial, which started on Monday, Aug. 29 and ended this Tuesday. The jury found that neither Capriola’s nor Chung’s negligence led to Aziza’s death. However, the panel determined that Aziza’s death was caused by Riser’s negligence. They awarded Robert $667,000.
“I am happy we won the case, but I am not happy with what the jury did,” Robert stated Wednesday. “We were expecting much more money.”
On Feb. 9, 2008, Aziza gave birth to twin boys at The McDowell Hospital and was diagnosed with pneumonia and prescribed medication before she was discharged.
She made trips to the emergency room on Feb. 15 and 22 and March 1, complaining of varying degrees of shortness of breath and nausea. On Feb. 15 and 22, she was again treated for pneumonia. On March 1, she requested to be admitted to McDowell.
It was later determined that she had worsening congestive heart failure.
She was sent to Memorial Mission Hospital on March 2. Five days later, she suffered a stroke. On March 20, physicians operated on her to remove a ruptured blood vessel in her brain. Aziza died three days later on March 23.
For Capriola and Riser, the suit claimed they failed to appreciate the signs and symptoms of Aziza’s condition, failed to perform diagnostic tests to rule in or out causes other than pneumonia, failed to appreciate her worsening vital signs, failed to order her to remain in the hospital rather than be discharged, as well as other issues.
Where Chung was concerned, the documents state that he failed to ensure that Aziza was immediately seen and/or evaluated by a physician, failed to follow up on her status, failed to appreciate or recognize the severity of her condition and other issues.
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