Opinion ID: 853167
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Dorothy's Claim as Lawrence's Representative

Text: As noted above, the Medical Malpractice Act allows a patient or the representative of a patient to bring a malpractice claim for bodily injury or death. Ind.Code § 34-18-8-1 (1998). The inclusion of the term death plainly implies that the claim survives the death of Lawrence, the person treated by the health care providers. A representative is the spouse, parent, guardian, trustee, attorney, or other legal agent of the patient. Id. at § 34-18-2-25. Unlike the Wrongful Death Act, however, the Medical Malpractice Act does not require that the representative be the legally appointed personal representative of the patient. See Cmty. Hosp. v. McKnight, 493 N.E.2d 775, 776 (Ind.1986). Accordingly, Dorothy's claim for Lawrence's medical expenses was asserted as a representative as that term is used in the Medical Malpractice Act. As Lawrence's spouse, Dorothy clearly met the statutory requirements to bring the claim as his representative. The Survival Statute preserves this claim for Dorothy's estate after her death because it is neither a claim for personal injuries to Dorothy, nor a claim for libel, slander, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, or invasion of privacy. Accordingly, it survived Dorothy's death and passed to her estate.