Indiana Accident News

Marion County Woman Wins $5 Million In Wrong Diagnosis Medical Malpractice Case

In many cases, it's not what a doctor does that leads to medical mistakes - it's what they don't do that can lead to lifelong disabilities. In July of 2000, an 18-year-old Roxxana Smith arrived in the emergency room at Methodist Hospital in Marion County after a softball accident. The young woman's x-ray - which clearly showed a ruptured diaphragm - was either misread or miscommunicated -  and the woman was sent home with a wrong diagnosis of muscle strain and a urinary infection.

Over the next two weeks, Smith's condition worsened, leading to an emergency surgery that revealed her correct diagnosis. By that time, doctors were forced to remove almost half of Smith's stomach in order to save her life.

Now, nine years later, the 27-year-old Smith has won $5 million in a Marion County medical malpractice lawsuit. Even now, the Mooresville woman struggles to eat without vomiting and has had six follow-up surgeries since her accident. She is unable to work due to the constant weakness and fatigue she suffers as a result of her missed diagnosis. She is married with two children.

In the medical malpractice suit, Clarian Health Partners, Radiologic Specialists of Indiana, and retired radiologist Dr. Richard L. Gilmor were named as contributing to the medical mistake.

Although the jury agreed to award the woman $5 million, Indiana's medical malpractice caps from Indiana's Medical Malpractice Act will limit the award to $1.25 million -- $250,000 from each provider named and the remainder paid from the Indiana Patient's Compensation Fund.

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