Christopher Yates was awarded $5.7 million for the wrongful death of his wife, Kim Yates, by suicide. The Kansas medical malpractice jury determined that two defendants were at fault for the woman’s death due to medical negligence.
Yates’ medical malpractice wrongful death lawsuit alleged that on April 11, 2021, he brought his wife Kim to the hospital after witnessing her second attempt at suicide. When she was first triaged at the hospital, she was determined to be at “high risk” for suicide. Despite the suicide risk assessment, Kim was discharged to home on the same day she was admitted to the hospital. Three days later, 49-year-old Kim died by suicide in the same manner that she attempted suicide as witnessed by her husband on April 11, 2021.
Kim had been the vice president of marketing and new business development at Russell Stover in Kansas City and vice president of Marketing for Lee Jeans: “She was brilliant. She was well known in the community. She was a high-level executive. She was a football mom, a loving wife, loving mother (and had) friends in many communities,. She didn’t step over people; she brought them along for the ride,. She was one of those individuals that would inspire, mentor, listen and make sure that… everybody was heard.”
Kim had suffered a stroke in late 2020 that changed her demeanor: “That affected her brain. A stroke causes depression, anxiety, insomnia in a lot of people, and so it had that effect on Kim. So she started to struggle mentally and emotionally.”
AdventHealth issued the following statement after the verdict: “Our hearts go out to everyone affected in this case; and our prayers remain with the family. We are unable to respond to the details of this case due [to] the legal nature of this matter. We can share, however, we are disappointed with the outcome and stand behind our providers, who are deeply committed to the health and wellbeing of our patients.”
Christopher Yates stated after the verdict, “That day that I had taken Kim to the hospital to get help, I didn’t feel like I was being taken seriously … This happened four and a half years ago, and my main focus, after my wife passed away, was getting my kids through high school and then getting them into college. Once that had happened, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t let this pass without making the effort to get justice for Kim. I know that if her roles were reversed, she would have been fighting for me as well. (When) the judge read off the verdict form and the (jury) said, ‘Do you find fault?’ And when he responded with their answer of ‘Yes,’ I felt like that I’d finally cross that finish line for Kim and fighting this and getting the Justice she deserved.”
If your loved one died from suicide as a result of medical malpractice in Kansas or in another U.S. state, you should promptly find a Kansas medical malpractice lawyer, or a medical malpractice lawyer in your state, who may investigate your suicide malpractice claim for you and represent you in a suicide medical malpractice case, if appropriate.
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