Jeff Ryan and Kimberly K. Bocell successfully defended a family medicine physician, her practice group, and an employee-medical assistant in District Court in Dallas County in April 2015. Another family medicine physician from the clinic was also named as a Defendant. The Plaintiff alleged that (1) the Co-Defendant physician improperly prescribed a steroid injection of Depo-Medrol to treat Plaintiff’s acute allergic rhinitis; (2) the clinic had an improper policy that instructed staff to inject the depo-medrol into the patients’ deltoid (shoulder) muscle instead of their gluteus (buttock) muscle; and (3) the medical assistant improperly provided the injection without first cleaning the injection site, resulting in a severe bacterial infection known as MRSA. Defendants and their experts argued that (1) the Depo-Medrol injection was appropriate and the best course of treatment for Plaintiff’s symptoms; (2) such injections are given in the deltoid muscle all the time without issue; and (3) the medical assistant absolutely cleaned the patient’s arm before giving the injection, as she does with every single injection she gives. The jury returned a unanimous defense verdict on behalf of all Defendants, agreeing that the injection was appropriate and properly administered.
Attorneys: Jeffrey W. Ryan; Kimberly K. Bocell
