Jan 01 2005
$26,053,000. Medical Malpractice, Brain Injury, Catastrophic Personal Injury
Jury verdict for plaintiff in Wright v. St. Rose Hospital, et al. tried by RANDALL H. SCARLETT who served as lead counsel.
On July 16, and July 28, plaintiff, Stephanie Wright (then an 8 month old child), was rushed by her family members to St. Rose Hospital for emergency room care. Stephanie maintained a fever varying between 101° and 103° rectally. She was vomiting and had lost (by July 28), approximately 10% of her body weight. She became increasingly lethargic and was irritable. This symptomology persisted, and in fact increased, despite a ten day course of ampicillin first administered on July 14.
Despite requests by Stephanie’s family that she be admitted at St. Rose Hospital, defendant doctors sent the child home with a diagnosis of middle ear infection. Defendant doctors failed to perform any laboratory testing or otherwise perform diagnostic testing.
On July 30, Stephanie was rushed to Children’s Hospital, Oakland, whereupon an immediate diagnosis of H-Flu meningitis was made. Unfortunately, inner cranial pressure had built up to the point where Stephanie was rendered permanently brain injured and spastic quadriplegic.
After deliberation, the Hayward, California jury rendered its verdict, which totaled $26,053,000. The verdict is one of the largest medical malpractice awards in the State of California.
