In a landmark decision emerging from Georgia, a jury awarded $15.5 million in a case involving alleged radiology malpractice at Gwinnett Medical Center in 2018. The case highlights the evolving standards of care in telemedicine and could influence future litigation involving remote medical services.
The legal dispute began when a patient, after falling down stairs and subsequently visiting the emergency department of GMC wearing a cervical collar, suffered severe and lasting injuries post-treatment. The hospital had engaged the services of a teleradiology group, Quality Nighthawk Teleradiology Group, to interpret the patient’s CT scans remotely.
The crux of the case rested on an initial report by Thomas Bryce, MD, a remote teleradiologist for Quality Nighthawk, which failed to indicate serious abnormalities. Instead, the report mentioned only “degenerative changes.” Based on these findings, an emergency physician at GMC removed the patient’s cervical collar, a decision that preceded the patient’s rapid deterioration into quadriplegia; the patient died nearly three years later.
Attorney Daniel Moriarty of Moriarty Injury Lawyer, representing the deceased’s estate, successfully argued that the misreading by the teleradiologist constituted gross negligence. This argument was supported by leveraging a recent 2024 ruling by the Georgia Court of Appeals, which clarified that gross negligence standards can apply regardless of the physical location of the healthcare provider.
During the trial, the plaintiff’s legal team emphasized discrepancies in medical readings: the preliminary report from Quality Nighthawk contrasted sharply with a later, more detailed report from GMC’s own radiologist that identified critical abnormalities not noted initially. Furthermore, an audit highlighted that the initial CT scans were read in approximately five minutes, significantly under the average duration cited in international radiological standards.
The defense, represented by attorneys from Hall Booth Smith, have moved to appeal the verdict, signaling a potential further examination of remote radiological diagnostics and the standard of care expected.
This case not only underscores the risks and responsibilities of teleradiology but also points to broader implications for telemedicine, particularly in emergency care settings. The ruling by the Georgia Court of Appeals in July 2024 could set a precedent affecting how medical care standards are upheld when patients and providers are not in the same location.
As telemedicine continues to expand, the outcomes of such legal battles will likely shape both the regulatory landscape and the operational protocols for healthcare providers across the nation. Amidst this changing legal terrain, patient safety and provider accountability remain at the forefront of judicial scrutiny.
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