91 Neb. 810 | Neb. | 1912
During the period of time covered by the petition, plaintiff'’ was a married woman living with her husband and defendant was a practicing physician and surgeon of the eclectic school. Defendant was first called to see plaintiff professionally in April or May, 1907, and continued to treat her from that time until September, 1908, at which time his ministrations ceased, and shortly thereafter this action was begun in the district court for Lancaster county, to recover damages for alleged malpractice on the part of defendant in his treatment of plaintiff during the time above indicated. The jury returned a verdict in favor of plaintiff for |7,200, upon which judgment v-as entered, and defendant appeals.
The substantial averments of the petition, are:
1. That in the month of July, 1907, defendant carelessly and negligently, and without the knowledge and consent of plaintiff, produced an abortion of a living foetus, and thereafter removed plaintiff from her home to a hospital owned, and operated by defendant, “and there put the plaintiff under the influence of an anesthetic and curetted the plaintiff, subjecting her to great indignities and great pain, and further lacerated and injured the plaintiff.”
2. That about February 14, 1908, defendant advised plaintiff that a surgical operation was necessary, to shorten certain ligaments, and also suggested that he desired to remove plaintiff’s ovaries; the latter of which plaintiff forbade; that the ovaries Avere not diseased, and it was not necessary to remoAu?. the same; that, notwithstanding such fact, defendant performed said operation, and did so in such an unskilful manner that plaintiff was unnecessarily lacerated and. mutilated; that an anesthetic was administered to plaintiff by defendant; that no physician AA’as called' in to aid or assist in administering the anesthetic or in performing the operation; that Avliile plaintiff was unconscious defendant, without her knowledge or consent, removed her appendix, cut and lacerated the
3. That during treatment of plaintiff defendant prescribed and used powerful and poisonous and deadly substances, known as H. M. C. tablets No. 1, and H. M. C. tablets No. 11, containing morphine, hyoscine, and other deadly poisons, and provided a hypodermic syringe, with which said poisons were injected into the system of plaintiff, thereby tainting her blood with said poisons, causing irritations and eruption upon the skin which was super-induced solely by said treatment and the use of said poisons, causing constant, permanent and “most powerful” irritation.
4. That on or about May 11, 1908, defendant advised plaintiff that it would be necessary to perform a further operation to adjust the ligaments already referred to, and that it would be necessary to put her under the influence of an anesthetic for that purpose; that plaintiff again gave imperative instructions not to remove the remaining ovary; that the same was not diseased and it was not necessary to remove it; but, notwithstanding this fact, after plaintiff was placed under the influence of an anesthetic, her body was again mutilated by making an incision therein without her knowledge or consent, and the remaining ovary removed; that the Fallopian tube of plaintiff was also removed; that the operation was done in a careless, unsurgeonlike manner, and was entirely unnecessary; that it left plaintiff a complete physical and nervous wreck; that the use of the poisonous drugs above referred to was continued; that plaintiff was compelled by defendant to use the same and was told that she would die if she did not do so; “all of which was entirely unnecessary and highly injurious to the constitution and health of the plaintiff, and this plaintiff by the malpractice of defendant in the manner aforesaid was brought to ■such a state of acute suffering that defendant attempted to keep plaintiff in a state of unconsciousness continu
5. That prior to said assault “made upon plaintiff in the manner aforesaid by defendant” the general health of plaintiff was good; her constitution strong and unimpaired; plaintiff was then 32 years of age, a married woman with prospect of a long life, and the blessings and comforts and happiness of home and of rearing a family; that the assault and injury of the defendant “in the manner aforesaid” has rendered it impossible for plaintiff to conceive and to rear children, rendered her a constant and permanent sufferer, and that said injuries inflicted are permanent; that plaintiff has expended large sums of money in treatment and effort to cure the injuries inflicted upon her by defendant, in the manner aforesaid, in the sum of $1,000, all of which has been necessary; that she has been compelled to live away from the presence and companionship of her only child and to be constantly separated from her husband on account of the condition of health thus inflicted upon her by defendant, and for the reason of the premises has sustained damages in the sum of $50,000, for which amount she prayed judgment. Later, as an amendment to the petition, it was alleged that at the operation of May 11, above set out, defendant also made an incision in the plaintiff’s body, extending from the lower part of-the shoulder of the right side near the breast and continuing from there down around the breast, a distance of about seven inches; “cut and lacerated the plaintiff without her knowledge or consent, under the pretext that the glands of the breast were affected with tuberculosis and it was necessary to remove the same, and greatly irritated that said part of plaintiff’s body by the cutting aforesaid, and did then put 22 stitches in said opening, and did said act in a careless and negligent man
Defendant filed a motion to make the petition more definite and certain in certain particulars, one paragraph of which was directed against the allegation in the second paragraph of plaintiffs petition — “subjecting her to great indignities.” This motion was overruled. Defendant also filed a motion to strike from the petition the words, “great indignities,” which was also overruled. Thereupon defendant answered, first, denying generally all allegations not specifically admitted; and then alleging that when called upon to treat plaintiff he found her suffering very severe ovarian and uterine pains at her monthly periods; that he gave her the necessary and proper treatment required in such cases; gave her the best care and skill in such treatment, and in nowise omitted or neglected his duties or care towards her in any respect; that both plaintiff and her husband advised with the defendant and with other physicians and surgeons as to the condition of plaintiffs health, constitution and physical condition, and as to the operations to be performed upon her by defendant to relieve her and to restore her health, and both plaintiff and her husband, in all the treatments given plaintiff and in all the operations performed upon her by defendant and at the operations in February and May, 1908, consulted, advised with and directed defendant to use, and he did use, the best and greatest care, endeavor, judgment, skill and discretion, “save and except that said plaintiff stated several times to defendant that she did
Prior to the alleged abortion in July, 1907, the history of plaintiff’s physical condition is substantially as foliows: In 1895, the year prior to her marriage, her health Avas in a precarious condition, causing her to fear that she Avas going into consumption. She was carried from the house to a carriage and from the carriage to a train and taken to Wyoming, in hopes that change of climate might be beneficial. At that time she Avas having hemorrhages, the cause of which is unknown, but they evidently led to the fear above suggested. Her health having improved, in 1896 she Avas married. When her first child was born «lie had convulsions of so seArere a character that her attending physicians advised against her having any more children. When her second child was bom she again
The allegations of the petition and the substance of plaintiff’s testimony are that at the time defendant performed the first operation, in February, 1908, no other physician was called in to assist in administering the anesthetic and in performing the operation, and that defendant then removed one of plaintiff’s ovaries. Upon both of these points plaintiff fails to malee out her case. The facts are that Doctor Skinner was present and administered the anesthetic, and that Doctor Werkman was present and assisted in the operation. That either of the ovaries was removed at this time is denied by defendant, and he is sustained by the fact that at the time of the second operation in May following both ovaries were in place. What the defendant did at the time of the February operation was to remove the appendix and treat the ovaries, both of which operations were with the approval of Doctor Werkman who assisted in the operation. The treatment of the ovaries was what has been termed “plastic work,” which we understand to be removal of diseased portions of the ovaries, and which in this case consisted of cystic tumors adhering thereto. So far as the record before us shows, everything that was done by defendant at that time met with the approval of Doctor Werkman who was assisting in the operation. There was
This brings us to the question as to whether there was any negligence on the part of defendant in the treatment of plaintiff after these several operations. That the last incision in the abdomen and the one in the right breast did not perfectly heal after the operations was established. The cause for their failure to heal has not been established, by any testimony outside of plaintiff herself, and her testimony with reference thereto is very unsatisfactory. Whether the failure of the wound to heal was
While plaintiff was upon the witness stand, her counsel had her leave the witness stand and recline upon the counsel table, and, with the assistance of a nurse, arrange herself on the table so as to exhibit her right breast and her right leg from the hip to the ankle. The jury were then permitted to leave the jury box and pass around the table to view the portions of plaintiff’s body exposed. When this had been done, counsel for defendant requested that Doctor Wilmeth, whom he had with him in the courtroom to assist him in medical examination, be permitted to examine the right leg and right breast of plaintiff. To this counsel for plaintiff objected, but finally permitted the doctor to make some examination of these parts. Counsel for defendant also requested that Doctors Ramey and Wilmeth be permitted to examine the other breast, “and in order to have a full understanding of this they would have to examine the abdomen of this plaintiff also.” This was objected to upon the ground that, if they desired to make an application, they should have made it before entering upon the trial. It was insisted by counsel for defendant that, as a part of the matter had been gone into by plaintiff by the exhibition of a portion of her person, defendant was entitled to go into the whole of the question and examine plaintiff both as to the operation in the breast and that in the abdomen; that plaintiff could not consent to let them examine her limb and say that they could not examine anything further, and cited section 339 of the code. While this discussion was going on, plaintiff got off the table and resumed her place on the witness stand. Upon being denied the right of examination'requested, defendant requested that he himself be
Counsel for plaintiff seek to justify the ruling of the court, under our holdings in Sioux City & P. R. Co. v. Finlayson, 16 Neb. 578; Stuart v. Havens, 17 Neb. 211, and City of Chadron v. Glover, 43 Neb. 732. In the Finlayson' case the holding in the syllabus is: “It is not error for the court during the progress of a trial to refuse to order the plaintiff, who sues for injuries to his person, to submit to an examination of his person by physicians AArho are Avitnesses for the defendant, in the absence of any showing whatever that justice would be promoted thereby, and especially so when the.plaintiff submits to an examination by such witnesses in the presence of the jury.” From the opinion (p. 589) we learn that the request for an examination was made in the midst of the trial; that “the record shows that, when the witnesses on the part of the defense were placed upon the stand to testify upon
We think the same is true of this case. The question here is not whether it is error for the court, during the progress of a trial, to refuse to appoint a commission to examine the plaintiff. . The question is, did the court err in refusing to permit the defendant, either in person or by other physicians whom he had in court, to make further examination of the portions of plaintiff’s body which she had voluntarily exhibited, and to examine the wound in the abdomen caused by the incision made at the time of the second operation. Up to the time that plaintiff
In Winner v. Lathrop, 22 N. Y. Supp. 516, it is said: “I have been referred to no case, nor have I been able to find any, in which a party claiming a physical injury has first voluntarily submitted the injured part to the inspection of the jury as evidence, and has refused to permit the- adverse party to follow up that examination,
In Haynes v. Trenton, 123 Mo. 326, 336, it is said: “The leg, when shown to the jury, became evidence in the case which may have carried with it great weight, particularly in the matter of the damage sustained. This evidence thus put into the case was open to attack by the
In Chicago, R. I. & T. R. Co. v. Langston, 19 Tex. Civ. App. 568, the court say: “As this was the single specific ground of objection urged to their making an examination of the injured limbs, preparatory to giving an opinion, we come to the question, seeing that the ruling was probably prejudicial, whether the court erred in denying appellant’s request for such preliminary examination. If appellee had not made proferí of her injured limbs to the court and jury, the request to have experts appointed by the court to make an examination over her objection would present the question which has been repeatedly before the courts,
In Chicago & N. W. R. Co. v. Kendall, 167 Fed. 62, 71, the circuit court of appeals of our own circuit held: “Where the plaintiff, in an action for an injury to his knee, while on the witness stand voluntarily exhibited the injured knee for inspection by the jury, the defendant is entitled to require him to submit the same to a surgical examination, and the court has power independently of any statute to compel such submission.” In the opinion, after considering Union P. R. Co. v. Botsford, supra, and other cases, the court say: “In the present case we are not dealing with an application for a surgical examination in advance of the trial. Here the plaintiff at the trial voluntarily exhibited his knee in open court for inspection. Having done this, it was beyond his power to arrest the investigation. The defendant and the court were entitled to employ any agency in its examination which would aid in the determination of the issue on trial. It is universally held that, where an inanimate object is produced upon the trial of a case, it is subject to any legitimate examination and test which will elucidate the matter in dispute.' It may be submitted, for example, to chemical treatment, or to examination by the microscope. Simply looking at the plaintiff’s knee with the eye of a layman furnished little aid in determining its condition. He himself maintained that there were no external evi
While plaintiff was a witness upon the stand she was permitted to testify that some time in April, 1908, which was something like two months after the first, and about a month prior to the last, operation, defendant .brought her to Lincoln to see Doctor Ramey; that he stated that “he was going to be busy that forenoon at the hospital there, and he told me to meet him at the Lincoln hotel and we would have lunch and then go and see Doctor Ramey;” that after luncheon he procured a room and took her to it, and while in the room he insulted her by making an indecent proposal to her. This testimony was strenuously objected to by defendant. The objection should have been sustained. It did not even tend to sustain any averment in plaintiffs petition. The petition clearly and definitely bases plaintiff’s claim for damages upon defendant’s acts in producing the alleged abortion, in performing the surgical operations and in administering poisonous drugs, and makes no reference whatever to an assault of any other kind. In his brief counsel for appellee says': “On page 56, the court says: ‘The indignities, as I understand the petition, are afterwards explained as meaning that the surgical operation was an indignity, and the lacerations and dilations, and that sort of thing, being contrary to direction.’ The above statement of the court is the time interpretation of the petition.” If those words, which in the statement of the ease we have quoted from the second paragraph of the
Instruction No. 6 defined malpractice as “the bad professional treatment of disease, pregnancy or bodily injury, from reprehensible ignorance or with criminal intent.” As an abstract legal proposition, or if based upon pleadings charging “reprehensible ignorance” or “criminal intent,” the instruction would be correct, but a trial court has no right to state in its instructions to the jury an abstract legal proposition that is outside of the issues. In this case neither “reprehensible ignorance” nor “criminal intent” is charged. The charge is negligence, and vre think the court would have been more accurate if it had told the jury that malpractice within the issues ten
By instruction No. 12 the court told the jury that it was the duty of the plaintiff as a patient to follow the instructions prescribed by the physician and surgeon, and that, “if she did not follow the reasonable instructions of the defendant, then the defendant is not liable for damages resulting from such disregard of her duty.” This instruction correctly states the law, but the court followed it with instruction No. 14: “The jury are instructed that, in so far as testimony has been introduced tending to show that the plaintiff did not submit to all of the treatment prescribed by the defendant for her, and recommended in her case, the burden of proof is upon the defendant to show prescriptions were proper and adapted to the end in view.” Our understanding of the law always has been that, in an action for damages against a licensed physician or attorney at law, the presumption is that the defendant had performed his duty to the plaintiff; that the lawyer correctly advised his client or the physician correctly prescribed for his patient; and when the contrary is alleged the burden, in every such case, is on the plaintiff to establish his allegation. In such cases, as in all other cases, under our holdings, where the burden of establishing his case is upon the plaintiff, that burden does not shift, but continues throughout the trial. Instruction No. 14 shifted the burden and placed it upon the defendant, and thereby conflicted with instruction No. 12, which properly placed the burden.
Physicians and surgeons do not impliedly warrant the recovery of their patients, and are not liable on account
For the insufficiency of the evidence1, and the errors of law above set out, the judgment of the district court is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings.
Reversed.