Diagnostic error, treatment delay result in amputation; $2 million settlement

Action: Medical malpractice

Injuries alleged: Amputation of left arm below elbow

Case name: Christy Absher Johnson v. Direct Radiology LLC and Daniel Mark Baker, M.D.

Court/case no.: Wilkes County Superior Court / 21 CVS 454

Mediator: Ray Owens

Amount: $2 million

Date: Sept. 9, 2023

Attorneys: John Chilson, John Kenneth Moser and Zachary Harris of Comerford Chilson & Moser, Winston-Salem (for the plaintiff)

The plaintiff visited the emergency department at Iredell Memorial Hospital with pain and numbness in her left arm. Her emergency physician suspected a potential blood clot and ordered ultrasound images of her left arm, which were transmitted to Direct Radiology, a teleradiology company in Washington state, for review.

Direct Radiology assigned the radiology study to Daniel Baker, M.D., a radiologist in Ohio. Baker spent less than two minutes reviewing the images before sending a final report that indicated the study was normal. The emergency room physician relied upon Baker’s report and discharged plaintiff.

Six days later, plaintiff was referred back to the emergency department with worsening pain. She was diagnosed with a blood clot in her left arm that was causing her symptoms. Because of the six-day delay in diagnosis and treatment, plaintiff’s arm was amputated below the elbow.

The parties agreed that Baker’s final report was incorrect because it showed obvious evidence of a developing blood clot, and plaintiff’s experts testified that Baker was negligent.

Defendants argued that Baker never intended to send a final report, might have pressed the wrong button on his computer and that the delay in diagnosis and treatment was not the cause of plaintiff’s amputation.

North Carolina law requires a doctor to confirm that the contents of a medical record entry are correct before affixing his or her electronic signature to it.

Plaintiff would not agree to a confidential settlement because she wants others to know about the dangers of teleradiology.