SBH Attorneys Jenny Blake and Kevin Fleming Successfully Defend Local Hospital

SBH Attorneys Jenny Blake and Kevin Fleming successfully defended a local hospital for the conduct of its nurses and independently contracted physicians against claims arising from the care and treatment of a forty-seven year-old man who suffered a myocardial infarction (heart attack). Plaintiff claimed the physicians should have taken the patient for immediate cardiac catheterization after his second EKG. Plaintiff claimed the nurses should have advocated for an additional EKG to more quickly identify and diagnose his acute ST elevation myocardial infarction. Attorneys Blake and Fleming argued the standard of care did not require immediate cardiac catheterization and further argued the nurses were not required to advocate for a third EKG. They also defended the apparent agency allegations and argued the co-defendant physicians were independent contractors and not agents of the hospital at the time they treated the patient. Plaintiff alleged that as a result of his myocardial infarction, he had a severe reduction of his cardiac function leading to total disability. Plaintiff asked the jury for just under $9 million as claimed damages. The jury returned a decisive verdict in favor of the hospital, the doctors and the nurses. The case was tried in the Circuit Court of Cook County before Judge Elizabeth Budzinski.