ASCENSION SACRED HEART ORTHOPEDICS TRIAL

The health system has said in court filings, if anyone was negligent, it was the doctor, while attorneys for Dr. Heekin and the Heekin Clinic, but has not yet received a response. The I-TEAM has reached out to attorneys for the health system, as well as attorneys for Dr. Vincent’s has accepted liability in some of the cases involving Dr. It will be up to a jury to decide whether the defendants are liable for the plaintiffs’ injuries and should have to pay damages.Ĭourt records show St.

ASCENSION SACRED HEART ORTHOPEDICS TRIAL

Vincent’s knew doctor wasn’t fit to operate, but allowed him to perform surgeriesĪ trial date for a handful of the cases has been set for August. The I-TEAM has reached out to the plaintiffs’ attorney to see if that estimate sounds accurate but has not yet received a response. “It’s not out of the realm of possibility that there could be a 10-figure verdict in this case,” Schott said. The court has ruled at least some of the plaintiffs can sue not only for their medical costs, pain, and suffering but also for punitive damages. “He’s doing discovery in what appears to be groups of cases rather than hundreds of cases individually.” “ gives the defendant some due process, where he’s not fighting 500 and something cases at one time,” she said. Schott said that helps them move through the system more quickly. However, the lawsuits have been consolidated into one case number. “So normally, you don’t see a class action in cases like medical malpractice.” “When it comes to the physical body, it’s hard to put people into a class because every physical body is different,” Schott said. In court records, the health system denies this.Īttorney Shannon Schott, who is not involved in the litigation, explained why the 522 cases have been filed individually. Heekin’s surgical mistakes because patients he injured would be sent back to him for corrections. This minimally-invasive surgery uses small incisions and may lead to less pain and a shorter recovery. MORE: New audio recordings added to lawsuits against doctor accused of botched surgeries Orthopedic surgeons at Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola Hand & Upper Extremity Center specialize in minimally invasive procedures such as Wide-Awake Local Anesthesia No Tourniquet (WALANT) surgery. The plaintiffs say audio clips demonstrate the doctor slurring his speech immediately after performing surgeries in 2020. The lawsuits claim as the doctor’s condition got worse from 2015 to his retirement in 2020. Plaintiffs allege the surgeon caused devastating injuries including broken femurs, ruptured tendons, severe nerve damage and even death.Īccording to the lawsuits, the doctor’s impairment was obvious yet the hospital didn’t stop him from operating. The suits allege Heekin was allowed to operate on patients for years while he was impaired by a progressive neurological condition that caused him to lose his balance and slur his speech. Vincent’s Riverside Hospital and a former orthopedic surgeon there, Dr. – At least 522 lawsuits have been filed against Ascension St.

Ascension sacred heart orthopedics