Verdict 2014-25; Worcester Partner Joanne Hoban

Worcester Partner Joanne Hoban recently obtained a defense verdict after a two week trial in Suffolk Superior Court before Judge Heidi Brieger. The case involved the death of a 9 week old infant approximately 28 hours after discharge from a Pediatric Emergency Room. The plaintiff claimed the child should have been monitored more closely in the ED and that the ED physician should have waited for test results regarding RSV status prior to discharge. On autopsy, the Medical Examiner found bronchopneumonia as the cause of death, which the plaintiff alleged was caused by the RSV. The focus of the defense was that the child was not in respiratory distress when evaluated at the hospital and that appropriate follow up occurred the next day with the primary care pediatrician, who had been advised of the test results. In addition, the pathology expert for the defense refuted the findings as listed by the Medical Examiner and gave detailed testimony regarding why the listed cause of death was incorrect.