Opinion ID: 2996049
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Post-Operative Negligence Claim

Text: Mr. Massey asserts that the January 29, 1998, postsurgical order instructed that he be confined to the prison observation unit for two days and that he be given Vicodin for the pain, but that FCI-Pekin officials disregarded the post-surgical order by sending him back to his prison unit, requiring him to walk to the infirmary for medication and to the dining hall for meals, and substituting Tylenol 3 for Vicodin. Mr. Massey contends that the prison officials’ failure to follow the post-surgical order was negligent and caused him needless pain. The district court granted summary judgment on Mr. Massey’s claim in favor of the Government, finding that Mr. Massey had failed to support his accusations with medical evidence. On appeal, Mr. Massey submits that the district court should not have granted summary judgment because triable issues of fact remain. The Government, on the other hand, submits that the district court properly granted summary judgment because there was no evidence of negligence or injury. The FTCA “provides a remedy for personal injury caused by the negligent or wrongful act of any government employee acting within the scope of his employment, ‘under circumstances where the United States, if a private person, would be liable to the claimant for the act in accordance with the law of the place’ where the act occurred.” Donais v. United States, 232 F.3d 595, 598 (7th Cir. 2000) (quoting 28 U.S.C. § 1346(b)). Accordingly, Mr. Massey’s claim is controlled by the law of the state of Illinois. “Under Illinois law, in a medical malpractice action, the burden is on the plaintiff to prove (1) the proper standard of care by which a physician’s conduct may be measured, No. 02-1100 15 (2) a negligent failure to comply with the applicable standard, and (3) a resulting injury proximately caused by the physician’s lack of skill or care.” Id.; see also Campbell v. United States, 904 F.2d 1188, 1191 (7th Cir. 1990); Simmons v. Garces, 745 N.E.2d 569, 577 (Ill. App. Ct. 2001); Diggs v. Suburban Med. Ctr., 548 N.E.2d 373, 377 (Ill. App. Ct. 1989). “Unless the physician’s negligence is so grossly apparent or the treatment so common as to be within the everyday knowledge of a layperson, expert medical testimony is required to establish the standard of care and the defendant physician’s deviation from that standard.” Donais, 232 F.3d at 598 (quoting Purtill v. Hess, 489 N.E.2d 867, 872 (Ill. 1986)). Applying the foregoing principles to Mr. Massey’s claim, it is evident that the district court was correct in granting summary judgment to the Government. Dr. Marshall, the surgeon who performed the operation, and Dr. Robert Ewart, the Government’s expert, both testified that there was no breach of due care. Dr. Marshall testified that “Tylenol 3 is in the same level of pain killing medicine” as Vicodin and that he knew, based on his experience, that prisoners who are prescribed pain medicine usually receive Tylenol 3 from the prison formulary. R.43, Ex.4 at 20-21. Dr. Ewart concurred with Dr. Marshall’s assessment of Tylenol 3. Specifically, Dr. Ewart testified that “two Tylenol 3 are more or less the equivalent of one Vicodin,” and that it “absolutely” was not negligent for prison officials to substitute Tylenol 3 for Vicodin. R.43, Ex.5 at 85. Similarly, both Dr. Marshall and Dr. Ewart testified that it was not negligent for FCI-Pekin to require Mr. Massey to walk to the infirmary for medication or to the dining hall for food. Dr. Marshall testified that Mr. Massey was not restricted from walking and that his standard protocol was to advise a patient after hernia surgery that he “should do 16 No. 02-1100 no lifting” but “can do regular activity.” R.43, Ex.4 at 20. Dr. Ewart not only agreed with Dr. Marshall but stated: “I would have thought putting him on bed rest would be negligent” because “[p]eople feel better, they have fewer complications when they get up and get moving.” R.43, Ex.5 at 85. Additionally, when asked whether Mr. Massey needed to be kept in the observation unit, Dr. Ewart responded: “I can’t really see why. If he was a civilian, he simply would have been sent home.” Id. at 86. It was incumbent upon Mr. Massey to substantiate his allegations—that FCI-Pekin officials were negligent and that this negligence caused him physical injury—through expert testimony in order to defeat the Government’s motion for summary judgment. He presented no medical evidence to rebut the opinions of Dr. Marshall and Dr. Ewart that the prison officials did not act negligently and that Mr. Massey was not injured by their actions. Mr. Massey’s failure to bring forth experts to raise the necessary inferences is fatal to his claim because his allegations, standing alone, cannot create a genuine issue of material fact for trial.