Ky. surgeon fined for kicking nurse

A surgeon with an alleged history of bad behavior must pay a nurse $5,000 in compensatory damages and $35,000 for punitive damages after kicking her and leaving a bruise, the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled. The court upheld a previous decision that ordered cardiothoracic surgeon Robert T. Fried, MD, to compensate Diane Powell, RN, a nurse at King’s Daughters Medical Center (KDMC) in Ashland, Ky., after she sued him for assault and battery.

In October 2008, Powell assisted Fried during a case performed at KDMC. Powell alleges that she was speaking to a co-worker after the procedure when Fried kicked her in the leg. Fried denied intentionally hurting Powell and said the kick was done in a “playful” manner. Powell told the court he had previously kicked her in surgery, hit her hand with steel surgical instruments, clamped her arm with an instrument and threatened to throw an instrument at her head.

She also sued KDMC for negligent hiring and supervision, intentionally inflicting emotional distress by retaining Fried’s medical privileges, and liability for the surgeon’s actions. The court ruled that Powell's claims against KDMC did not show the hospital had any intent to cause her injury—as required under the state’s Workers’ Compensation Act—and said in its decision that her claims “involve, at most, negligence by KDMC.”

Source: Outpatient surgery