Medical-Legal Jury Trial at RSNA 2004

"Sympathy is hardly ever the deciding factor in a malpractice case.
They’re won on the medicine. The odds are actually stacked in favor of the physician.”
Keith A. Hebeisen, J.D.

The idea of weathering a malpractice trial is something that makes any medical professional jittery. But at this year’s RSNA Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, members will have a chance to get a glimpse inside a medical-legal jury trial, learn about the proceedings and form their own opinions—without spending a dime on legal advice. It’s part of a special session to be held on Sunday, November 28 from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in room S100AB in the South Building at McCormick Place.

The mock trial involves the case of a lung lesion missed in a previous chest examination. The unscripted trial will include two attorneys, expert witnesses and a Chicago-area judge who regularly presides in medical malpractice litigation. Leonard Berlin, M.D., chairman of the Department of Radiology at Rush North Shore Medical Center in Skokie, Ill., is coordinating the session.
“It’s a malpractice case concerning a 60-year-old man who presented with a cough. The chest x-ray was read as normal by the radiologist. The symptoms get a little better, then they get a little worse,” explains Dr. Berlin. “Ten months later, another chest x-ray shows a lung tumor. Sure enough, it’s cancer and a year later the patient dies, leaving a wife and four kids.”

Dr. Berlin says he picked this particular scenario because of the sympathy elicited by the patient involved, a man with a family, and also because the facts in the case leave plenty of gray areas. “The x-ray shows a subtle shading. It’s not going to be a blatant case. A reasonable person could see both sides,” says Dr. Berlin.
Who are those “reasonable people?” The RSNA meeting staff is sending out questionnaires to RSNA 2004 contractors working at McCormick Place. Florists, booth decorators, audio-visual crews and phone company workers will be asked whether they’d like to spend part of their day participating as potential jurors. They will have no familiarity with the case being presented and will go through a “jury selection” process that will be similar to, albeit quicker than, that of a typical malpractice case.
In addition to assembling a jury similar to one that might actually hear the facts in the suit, session attendees will also benefit from the experience of two seasoned medical malpractice attorneys. Timothy B. Nickels, J.D., of the nationally recognized Chicago law firm Swanson, Bell and Martin will act as the counsel for the defense. Nickels has represented some of the largest corporations and prestigious institutions in cases pending in Illinois, Indiana, and other jurisdictions throughout the United States. Keith A. Hebeisen, J.D., a partner in Chicago’s Clifford Law Firm, will act as plaintiff’s attorney.

Leer en formato PDF Imprimir Enviar por email

Email