Man wins $10M jury verdict after ED physicians order wrong imaging exam
A Pacific Northwest man has won a $10 million jury verdict stemming from an emergency department visit that saw his treating providers order the wrong imaging exam, delaying essential care.
The incident left John Douglas Cox, a longtime diesel mechanic in Washington’s Clark County, partially paralyzed after physicians failed to promptly diagnose and treat a spinal infection.
Cox, who was 62 at the time, first developed the severe infection around December 2021, with it relating to a recently implanted spinal cord stimulator. Such “spinal epidural abscesses” can quickly worsen, compressing the spinal cord and potentially leading to permanent paralysis, notes law firm Paulson Colletti, which represented the patient.
“This verdict reflects the jury’s recognition that when a patient arrives in the emergency department with rapidly progressing paralysis, every hour matters,” attorney Jane Paulson said in a statement March 17.
One PeaceHealth ED physician had recognized that Cox was suffering from acute neurological decline and ordered imaging. However, “critical delays” followed because the care team was unable to determine if the man’s spinal cord stimulator was MRI-compatible, Paulson had argued at trial. Allegedly instead of escalating the issue or contacting a device representative, hospital staff waited for authorization from the patient’s out-of-town physician.
Attorneys charge that no spine or neurosurgeon was consulted during this time, “despite hospital contracts providing 24-hour specialist coverage.” Cox purportedly waited almost 17 hours in the ED while his “paralysis progressed.” And when imaging finally was performed, plaintiff attorneys said it focused on the wrong region of the spine, failing to identify the correct condition. Local media reported that providers had ordered a lumbar scan, rather than the necessary thoracic spinal imaging.
Cox was ultimately transferred back to Kaiser Permanente, with further imaging revealing an abscess that was compressing the spinal cord. Surgeons operated about 27 hours after he had first arrived at the hospital, “by which time the damage had become permanent,” attorneys charged.
“This case was about accountability and patient safety,” Paulson said in a statement. “We hope this verdict will help improve how patients with neurological emergencies are treated in emergency rooms, while giving Doug the resources he needs to live the best life possible going forward.”
The jury pinned about 80% of the eight-figure verdict on Kaiser, while the two PeaceHealth treating physicians were responsible for the remaining 20%. Cox was first transported to the ED by ambulance, arriving with new-onset paralysis beginning at the T7 level of his spine. At trial, defense attorneys had argued that earlier intervention would not necessarily have changed the man’s outcome.
Cox had previously spent about four days at Kaiser being treated for an infection before being discharged with antibiotics. His wife phoned 911 that night when his condition worsened, TV news KGW reported. Cox now faces difficulty getting around, using a walker to help with mobility. The verdict includes $5 million for pain and suffering, $3 million for future care needs and home remodeling, and $2 million to his wife for emotional suffering.
Kaiser told local medial that it “disagrees with the characterization of the care provided,” while PeaceHealth did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to KGW.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.