Jury Finds Georgia Hospital Fully at Fault for Patient's Broken Femur in Wheelchair Fall

Carolyn Byrom, then 47, went to Douglas Hospital in Douglasville, Georgia, in April 2013 for pre-operative testing ahead of a procedure scheduled for the next day. A hospital employee moved her by wheelchair. In July 2018, a Douglas County State Court jury held the hospital entirely responsible for what happened next and awarded her $2,665,511.46.

According to the Georgia Court of Appeals and the trial coverage by Courtroom View Network, the route passed through a doorway too narrow for the wheelchair, and Byrom was asked to get out and walk through it. The foot pedals were still down. As she stood, holding her cane and one arm of the chair, her pant leg caught on a pedal and she fell.

She broke her femur, the thighbone. VerdictSearch reported that the femur fracture was repaired with a plate and screws, that she also fractured a kneecap, and that she went through months of rehabilitation and has used a wheelchair since. Her lawyers told the jury the hospital had no adequate procedure for moving patients in wheelchairs and that its staff handled the transfer carelessly. As Michael Goldberg put it after the verdict, she walked into the hospital on her own and never walked again.

The case nearly ended before trial. The trial court granted summary judgment to the hospital, ruling that Byrom had brought professional negligence claims without the expert affidavit Georgia requires and that she knew as much about the risk as the hospital did. The Court of Appeals reversed both rulings in Byrom v. Douglas Hospital, Inc., 338 Ga. App. 768 (2016). It held that operating a wheelchair is not a matter of professional medical judgment, so the claim was one of ordinary negligence, and it sent the case back for trial.

The trial ran from July 23 to July 25, 2018, before Judge Eddie Barker, in case number 13-SV-00346. Byrom testified, as did her son and hospital staff members, and an orthopedic specialist, Dr. Anthony Carantzas, gave expert testimony. Byrom was represented by Michael Goldberg and Brad Thomas of Fried Rogers Goldberg and by Donald Singleton of the Singleton Law Firm. Curtis Anderson and Jack Slover of Downey & Cleveland defended the hospital.

The hospital contested liability. VerdictSearch reported that the defense argued the employee was experienced, that Byrom had agreed to how she would be moved, and that her preexisting health conditions contributed to her injuries.

The jury deliberated for less than three hours. It assigned 100 percent of the fault to Douglas Hospital and awarded $2.5 million for pain and suffering and $165,511.46 for medical expenses.