Obstetrics continues to be the most vulnerable medical specialty. A jury awarded damages of $4.5 million for malpractice in the case of a botched caesarian section on a healthy 31-year-old woman. During the procedure the surgeon unknowingly lacerated the small bowel, and closed the primary incision without checking the upper abdomen. The patient continued to have severe pain and nausea during the three-day post-op period. No additional tests or blood work were done. The patient was discharged without being seen again. Because her symptoms persisted, her husband brought her back to the hospital the following day. She was immediately placed in the intensive care unit with a diagnosis of abdominal sepsis and renal failure. Her condition rapidly deteriorated and she was transferred to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center where she died the same evening. The hospital settled their portion of the malpractice complaint, but the doctor proceeded to trial. The jury recognized medical negligence and awarded $4.5 million to the woman's estate.
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