Court Opinion

ID: 9517628
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 00:24:01.071156+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:03:24.880374
License: Public Domain

RATLIFF, Judge,
concurring in result.
Where areas of medical specialty overlap, a physician performing in such area is held to the standards of his or her specialty and not to the standard of the other specialty which also may be involved. See, Rickett v. Hayes (1974), 256 Ark. 893, 511 S.W.2d 187 (where defendant in malpractice action was oral surgeon, and area involved was one of overlap between oral surgeon and plastic surgeon, defendant was to be judged by the standards of his own specialty). Because there is evidence that both general surgeons and specialists in obstetrics and gynecology operated in the area involved in this case, the trial court did not err in refusing Hobbs's tendered instructions which would have held Dr. Tierney to the standards expected of a medical specialist in the field of obstetrics and gynecology. For that reason, I concur in the result in this case.
I am not convinced that the instructions numbered 5 and 15 which were given by the trial judge, while correct abstract statements of the law, accurately instructed the jury as to the standard of care required of Dr. Tierney because the jury was not informed of Dr. Tierney's specialty and that he was held to that degree of care required of a general surgeon. See, Joy v. Chau (1978), 177 Ind.App. 29, 377 N.E.2d 670 (court gave instructions that doctor was required to possess the degree of skill and knowledge ordinarily possessed by orthopedic surgeons). However, no objection to these instructions was made on that ground. No issue as to the adequacy of these instructions is before us, however.
Therefore, I concur in result.