HPS Attorneys Secure a Defense Verdict in Kane County

HPS Attorneys Secure a Defense Verdict in Kane County

July 28, 2023

HPS Attorneys Ben Patterson, Gina Ambrose, and Paige Krueger successfully defended a Chicago suburb hospital and obstetrician against claims that they failed to suspect a placental abruption and to perform a timely c-section resulting in a stillbirth.

In 2017, Plaintiff presented to the emergency room with complaints of abdominal and back pain. Plaintiff was an unknown patient to the hospital as she had her prenatal care and delivery planned at a different area hospital. In the ER, Plaintiff was triaged to labor and delivery where she was assessed and placed on electronic fetal monitoring. Labor and delivery nurses and an in-house obstetrician closely managed her care until the fetal heart rate decreased. Conservative measures were started and a decision for emergency c-section was made. Plaintiff was taken to the operating room and her baby was delivered stillborn. It was found that Plaintiff had a concealed placental abruption of 50-60% of the placenta.

During the trial, Plaintiff’s attorneys argued that the hospital was institutionally negligent in its policies and procedures as well as its training of its nurses to recognize, suspect, and convey the signs and symptoms of placental abruption. They additionally claimed the hospital was negligent by and through its alleged agents, namely the nurses in their monitoring. The Defendant doctor testified that placental abruption was always present on the differential diagnosis. In turn, the Defense was able to successfully argue that the care providers were not negligent in their monitoring of the Plaintiff by showing there was no indication for a c-section as Plaintiff’s lab values and vital signs were normal, there was no vaginal bleeding, and the fetal heart tracings were a Category I or II until the c-section was called.

Plaintiff asked the jury for a verdict in excess of $7 million for future care needs and lost earnings. The jury deliberated for approximately 2 and a half hours before returning a verdict in favor of the defendant.

Disclaimer: This publication is not intended to provide legal advice but to provide general information on legal matters. Transmission is not intended to create and receipt does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Readers should seek specific legal and/or medical advice before taking any action with respect to matters mentioned in this publication. The attorney responsible for this publication is Marilee Clausing. This post constitutes a form of attorney advertising as defined by some state bar associations.