Opinion ID: 1964773
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Defendant Expert Testimony Admitted

Text: The next issue raised by Green is that the trial judge abused his discretion in admitting testimony by St. Francis Hospital's expert witness. [20] Green alleges that the trial judge abused his discretion in permitting St. Francis Hospital's witness Nurse Matthews to testify because she was not qualified as an expert under title 18, section 6854 of the Delaware Code. At a pretrial hearing on Green's Motion in Limine to exclude the testimony of St. Francis Hospital's expert witness, the trial judge initially deferred ruling on the admissibility of St. Francis Hospital's expert's testimony stating that voir dire of the witness' qualifications would be conducted at trial. Subsequently, the trial judge permitted Nurse Matthews to testify as an expert at trial without either conducting voir dire or making an express ruling on Green's Motion in Limine to preclude her testimony. Green cross-examined Nurse Matthews on her qualifications but did not request a voir dire or renew the pretrial objection to her testimony. D.R.E. 702, which governs the use of expert testimony, provides: [i]f scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise. The provision relating to the qualification of an expert medical witness provides in part: [n]o person shall be competent to give expert medical testimony as to applicable standards of skill and care unless such person is familiar with the degree of skill ordinarily employed in the field of medicine on which he or she will testify. [21] Familiar has been defined as having more than a fair knowledge of the skill ordinarily employed. [22] The record shows that Nurse Matthews holds a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing and was employed for nine years as a nurse at Hahnemann University Hospital, serving in the Intensive Care Unit for the last five years. Nurse Matthews also served on the Hahnemann Hospital Nurse Practice Committee, which adopted and revised standards of care for Intensive Care Unit Nursing. Her employment duties involved providing bedside care to patients, including patient assistance with using commodes on a daily basis. The record supports the trial judge's decision to permit Nurse Matthews to testify as an expert witness under title 18, section 6854 of the Delaware Code.