On appeal in this medical malpractice action, William Larry Collins and his wife Gail argue that the trial court erred when it granted summary judgment to Dr.Kress and his professional corporation, Resurgens, P.C.; Dr. Sheryl Dickman; and Northside Hospital, Inc. “the defendants” on grounds including that the Collinses’ first medical expert was not qualified, that their second expert affidavit was filed in violation of orders terminating discovery, and that a nurse’s affidavit and testimony failed to establish proximate causation concerning the negligence of Northside nurses. We affirm. “Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Citations and punctuation omitted. Walker v. Gwinnett Hosp. System , 263 Ga. App. 554, 555 588 SE2d 441 2003. A trial court’s grant of summary judgment is reviewed de novo on appeal, construing the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmovant. Ethridge v. Davis , 243 Ga. App. 11, 12 530 SE2d 477 2000. Once the party moving for summary judgment has made a prima facie showing that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law, the nonmovant must then come forward with rebuttal evidence sufficient to show the existence of a genuine issue of material fact. Weldon v. Del Taco Corp. , 194 Ga. App. 174 390 SE2d 87 1990.
So viewed, the record shows that on August 31, 2000, after another doctor administered an epidural for pain control, Dr. Kress replaced both of Collins’s knees. The post-operative orders in the case included to notify a doctor if Collins developed low blood pressure. When Collins’s blood pressure dropped to 99 over 55, Dr. Kress’s answering service was notified. By the time Dr. Dickman went to Collins’s bedside, his blood pressure had improved, but he was non-responsive. After stopping the epidural drip and administering a drug intended to reverse any decrease in blood pressure, Dr. Dickman restarted the epidural at a lower dose. At 10:15 p.m., Dr. Kress ordered the epidural stopped until Collins was fully awake and requesting pain medication. At 1:30 the next morning, Collins could not move his left arm, squeeze his left hand, or feel the nurse touching his left foot. Further tests showed that he had suffered a stroke.
