In this medical malpractice case, Elrena King, individually and as executrix of the estate of decedent Douglas Carter King, appeals from the denial of her motion for new trial following a judgment in favor of Dr. M. S. Zakaria and his professional corporation collectively, “Dr. Zakaria”. The decedent died as a result of massive bleeding from his pulmonary artery the morning after Dr. Zakaria performed surgery to remove the decedent’s right lung. In her complaint, King alleged that Dr. Zakaria violated the standard of care by failing to properly close the decedent’s pulmonary artery during surgery. She also alleged that Dr. Zakaria’s post-operative monitoring and treatment of the decedent, including his failure to timely read the decedent’s x-rays, violated the standard of care. In addition, King claimed that Dr. Zakaria abandoned the decedent after surgery and requested punitive damages based upon her contention that Dr. Zakaria’s abandonment evidenced a conscious indifference to the consequences. At trial, the court directed a verdict in favor of Dr. Zakaria on King’s abandonment claim, her punitive damages claim, and her claim that the decedent’s death could have been avoided if Dr. Zakaria had read the decedent’s x-rays in a timely manner. The jury returned a verdict in favor of Dr. Zakaria on King’s remaining claims. On appeal, King contends the trial court erred when it granted the directed verdicts. She also challenges the court’s exclusion of impeachment evidence and the court’s instructions to the jury. Because King has failed to demonstrate reversible error, we affirm.
The evidence at trial showed the following facts. Dr. Zakaria is a board-certified surgeon specializing in thoracic and vascular surgery. On December 17, 1998, the decedent was a lung cancer patient who underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his right lung at Henry Medical Center. Before the surgery, the decedent signed an informed consent form which listed the material risks of the surgery, which include the possibility of severe loss of blood, cardiac arrest, and death.1 It is undisputed that these complications can arise even when there has been no negligence by the surgeon.
