18th Century Mathematician

18th Century Mathematician
Provides Key Link in Case

Thanks to Rev. Thomas Bayes for his help in winning this case. After a two-week trial, a Sedgwick County, Kansas, jury returned a verdict in favor of the surviving spouse and two children of a 37-year-old assembly-line worker. The jury found the defendant physician 75 percent at fault and the decedent 25 percent at fault, with damages of $1 million, for a net judgment in favor of the plaintiffs of $750,000. Vic Bergman and Steve Six tried the case. Initially, this case seemed difficult on liability because the defendant's actions appeared to comply with generally accepted standards of medical care. But, there is a big difference between a doctor who goes through the motions of collecting facts and ordering tests, and one who truly understands the significance of those facts and the implications of the test results.

In This Issue:

• Bayes Theorem in Practice
• Missouri Statutes of Limitations for Minors
• Rollover Accidents
• Internet Resources
• Trial Judges & Voir Dire
• Crossword Puzzle

On January 25, 1993, while loading boxes at work, Darrel Johnson experienced substernal chest tightness, radiating to his right arm, shortness of breath and diaphoresis (sweating), which resolved in five to ten minutes with rest. 911 was called. Mr. Johnson was taken to the St. Francis Hospital Emergency Department for evaluation. The emergency department physicians did all of the right things. Mr. Johnson had a family history of heart disease, a high non-fasting cholesterol, was a 20-year smoker, and had one prior episode of chest symptoms two days earlier while waxing his car. The ER evaluation ruled out myocardial infarction as the source of the symptoms, leaving angina (myocardial ischemia) at the top of the differential diagnosis. The defendant-internist, Dr. Thanh Truong, then admitted the patient for further evaluation. Dr. Truong's plan was to monitor Mr. Johnson overnight, and, if there was no recurrence of symptoms, to perform stress electrocardiography

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