In a Texas medical malpractice wrongful death case where the plaintiff alleged that a resident of a rehabilitation facility died as a result of the staff failing to properly monitor her blood glucose levels following a significant change in the administration of her insulin, the trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants, finding that the plaintiff’s expert’s opinion was unreliable.
The Texas Court of Appeals, Third District stated in its Memorandum Opinion filed on January 5, 2024: “CTRH and Dr. Ailnani argue that Dr. Fakheri’s opinion is unreliable because he predicated it on a fact that varied from facts in the record; specifically, that the tests showing Wittkohl’s blood glucose levels to be at 27 and 20 were taken before she died. As previously noted, however, Wittkohl’s medical records included Dr. Spicer’s medical discharge summary, which stated that Wittkohl: [“]was found to be unresponsive in her room; approximately 5 in the morning. She had a pulse at that time. Blood sugar measured in the mid 20s and she lost her pulse and CPR was initiated.[“] Thus, there was evidence in Wittkohl’s medical records to support Dr. Fakheri’s assumption that Wittkohl was alive when the blood glucose readings were taken. CTRH and Dr. Ailnani counter, however, that (1) there is other evidence in the record showing that Wittkohl had in fact died before the blood glucose readings were taken and (2) in June 2022, almost four years after this litigation commenced, Dr. Spicer provided an affidavit in which he attested that he did not have first-hand knowledge of the events that occurred the morning of November 10th and that, although he dictated the medical discharge summary noting that Wittkohl had a pulse when her blood sugar was measured, he did not know where that information came from. Dr. Spicer also stated in his affidavit that, after reviewing CTRH records, he believes the statements regarding Wittkohl having a pulse to be inaccurate. CTRH and Dr. Ailnani argue that Dr. Fakheri’s opinion is unreliable in light of Dr. Spicer’s affidavit questioning the accuracy of the medical discharge summary he prepared at the time of Wittkohl’s death.”
The Texas Appellate Court disagreed: “An expert’s opinion is only unreliable if it is contrary to actual, undisputed facts … In this case, Dr. Fakheri’s opinion is not contrary to actual, undisputed facts. Dr. Spicer’s medical discharge summary provides some evidence, despite his later affidavit to the contrary, to support Dr. Fakheri’s assumption that Wittkohl was alive when the blood glucose readings were taken on the morning of November 10th. Thus, Dr. Fakheri’s opinion was not based on assumptions totally unsupported by the evidence.”
The Texas Appellate Court concluded: “Dr. Fakheri’s opinion that Wittkohl’s death was caused by hypoglycemia was based on facts that, although disputed, were supported by the record. Therefore, the trial court erred in excluding Dr. Fakheri’s expert causation testimony on the ground that it was unreliable. Because Williams presented some evidence on the causation element of her negligence claims, the trial court erred in granting CTRH’s and Dr. Ailnani’s no-evidence motions for summary judgment. We reverse the trial court’s judgment and remand the cause for further proceedings.”
Source Williams v. CTRH, L.L.C. No. 03-22-00465-CV.
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