Case Title: Sommers v. Sisters of Charity of Providence

Citation: 277 Or. 549, 561 P.2d 603

Docket Number: 

State: oregon

Court: Oregon Supreme Court

Date: 1977-03-17T00:00:00Z

Document:
561 P.2d 603 (1977)
277 Or. 549
Doris E. SOMMERS, Appellant,
v.
SISTERS OF CHARITY OF PROVIDENCE IN OREGON, Doing Business under the Assumed Name and Style of St. Vincent Hospital and Medical Center, Respondent.

Supreme Court of Oregon, Department 1.
Argued and Submitted February 11, 1977.
Decided March 17, 1977.
*604 William B. Murray, Portland, argued the cause and filed a brief for appellant.
Bruce Spaulding, of Souther, Spaulding, Kinsey, Williamson & Schwabe, Portland, argued the cause and filed a brief for respondent.
Before DENECKE, C.J., and HOWELL, LINDE and BRADSHAW, JJ.
HOWELL, Justice.
This is an action for personal injuries allegedly suffered by plaintiff while a patient in defendant hospital. The trial court entered a judgment after a directed verdict for defendant, and plaintiff appeals.
Plaintiff, after being severely injured in an accident, received emergency treatment at defendant hospital in April, 1973. As part of the treatment, a large needle, called an "in-dwelling catheter," was inserted into her lower right arm so that she could receive blood transfusions and intravenous medication and feeding. About three days later plaintiff developed a fever. A culture was made at the site of the insertion, and it was determined that plaintiff had a staph infection. The infection continued for about eight days.
*605 Plaintiff's complaint alleged that: "The defendant treated plaintiff negligently and without due care. The defendant used non-sterile and insanitary implements, equipment and facilities which caused the plaintiff to incur infection, commonly known as staph infection."
Plaintiff states in her brief that there is no dispute that the needle was not sterile when it entered plaintiff's bloodstream and that there was medical testimony that the insertion of the intravenous catheter caused the infection. Plaintiff's statement is correct, but it is somewhat misleading. Defendant's counsel did concede at the trial that the staph infection was the result of the insertion of the I.V. Moreover, at least two physicians testified that plaintiff's infection was caused by the entry of the needle into the bloodstream. However, neither they nor anyone else testified that the needle itself was the source of the infection. The record indicates that the hospital used only disposable needles and that the needles were individually sealed in sterile packaging until immediately prior to their use. There was, therefore, absolutely no evidence that the needle was contaminated prior to its insertion into plaintiff's arm, although this was apparently plaintiff's theory in alleging that defendant's use of "non-sterile and insanitary implements" caused the infection.
According to undisputed testimony, staph bacteria are not only on the surface of the skin but also under the surface where they cannot always be killed by antiseptics. Dr. Frisch described the problem as follows:
Dr. Fuchs, a pathologist, elaborated upon the manner in which bacteria can get into the bloodstream whenever a needle is inserted into a vein:
Thus, when an instrument which is itself sterile punctures the skin, it can carry any bacteria that it may encounter with it when it enters the bloodstream, and there is no precautionary procedure which can obviate this risk.
Plaintiff argues that there was no evidence that the hospital took proper precautions to sterilize the area around the insertion by using an iodine compound, Betadine or Virac, which leaves a temporary discoloration, because plaintiff saw no discoloration. Plaintiff also relies on the fact that neither plaintiff nor her visitor ever saw the nurses wash their hands, although this is a standard procedure; that a friend of plaintiff stated that the area where the I.V. was inserted looked red and pussy; and that there were staph cases among other patients, although not on the same floor as plaintiff.
We fail to see how an inference that the needle used on plaintiff was unsanitary could be drawn from the fact that other patients on other floors might also have had a staph infection at the same time. The fact that plaintiff and her visitor did not see the nurses wash their hands in her room is no evidence that they did not do so, since there was testimony that several other wash areas were available. Moreover, there was no evidence as to when plaintiff and her friend noticed that the area where the needle was inserted became red and pussy. Obviously, if the needle carried the bacteria into the bloodstream when it was inserted and a staph infection later developed, the area of her arm where the needle was inserted would eventually disclose the infection. Lastly, a physician testified that the color stain associated with Betadine will usually disappear fairly rapidly and that the use of alcohol with Betadine will eliminate any remaining discoloration. In our view, there was simply no substantial evidence of any negligence on defendant's part presented to the jury.
Finally, plaintiff argues that the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur applies to the facts of this case. We disagree. The doctrine *607 is applicable only in cases in which the court can say that the probability of plaintiff's injury being caused by defendant's negligence is greater than the probability that the injury was due to a non-negligent cause. Sellars v. Presbyterian Intercomm. Hospital, 277 Or. 101, 559 P.2d 876 (1977); Austin v. Sisters of Charity, 256 Or. 179, 470 P.2d 939 (1970); Kaufman v. Fisher, 230 Or. 626, 371 P.2d 948 (1962). This is not such a case, because the undisputed medical testimony shows that it is impossible in all cases to prevent bacteria which is under the skin or in the pores from being introduced into the bloodstream through the insertion of an I.V. needle and that this was the "most likely" cause of plaintiff's injury. See also Brannon v. Wood, 251 Or. 349, 358-59, 444 P.2d 558, 562 (1968):
Affirmed.