RENAISSANCE HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS, INC. v. Swan
343 S.W.3d 571
| Tex. App. | 2011Background
- Appellees allege healthcare liability claims against Renaissance Healthcare Systems, Renaissance Hospital, and Houston Community Hospital for malicious credentialing, negligent care by nurses, and a joint enterprise theory, arising from Baker’s surgery on Abshire
- Webb referred Abshire to Baker; appellees claim Webb acted as an agent of Renaissance entities and Baker transected Abshire’s right iliac artery, causing massive hemorrhage and death
- Experts Lobato, Simpson, Miller, and Shorr offered opinions; appellants moved to dismiss under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §74.351; trial court denied; accelerated appeal follows
- Appellees contend the expert reports establish standard of care, breach, and causation for each defendant and show a causal link to Abshire’s death
- This court affirms the trial court’s denial of the motions to dismiss and holds the expert reports constitute a good-faith effort under §74.351(r)(6)
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Are the expert reports a good-faith compliance with §74.351(r)(6)? | Reports provide standard, breach, and causation with sufficient specificity | Reports are speculative, fail to address direct claims for each defendant, or read bylaws | Yes; reports meet Palacios and related standards |
| Does joint enterprise doctrine adequately implicate all Renaissance entities? | Entities share ownership/involvement; liable for Webb’s conduct | Only direct employer-employee ties support liability; entity liability via joint enterprise insufficient | Yes; reports adequately implicate entities through common ownership/joint enterprise |
| Are Simpson (physician) and Shorr (nonphysician) properly qualified to opine on causation and admin standards? | Qualifications satisfy §74.402; causation allowed by physician; admin standards supported | Shorr not a physician; Simpson’s relevance limited by time on committees | Yes; Simpson qualified under §74.403(a) for causation; Shorr permitted on admin standards; reports valid under Palacios |
Key Cases Cited
- American Transitional Care Centers of Tex., Inc. v. Palacios, 46 S.W.3d 873 (Tex. 2001) (good-faith standard for expert reports; four-corner review)
- Bowie Mem'l Hosp. v. Wright, 79 S.W.3d 48 (Tex. 2002) (abuse of discretion standard; guiding rules for expert reporting)
- Doades v. Syed, 94 S.W.3d 664 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2002) (four-cactor analysis; expert must link standard of care to injury)
- Rittmer v. Garza, 65 S.W.3d 718 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2001) (requirement to address standard, breach, causation; multi-defendant linkage)
- Gardner v. U.S. Imaging, Inc., 274 S.W.3d 669 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2008) (joint enterprise/liability concepts for non-physician defendants)