MBA 5101
Unit 1 Case Study
Gary Campbell

Our text defines a tort as “a civil wrong” and negligence as “a tort, a civil or personal wrong” (Pozgar, 2012). Negligence as it is related to healthcare is an unintentional commission or omission of an act that a reasonably prudent person or organization would or would not do under normal circumstances. Not following a recognized standard of care could be considered negligence. The case I have chosen to study is one from the Circuit Court of Baltimore City Maryland and is that of Enso Martinez a minor by and through his parent (Rebecca Fielding) vs The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore Maryland July 2013. I would describe this as a landmark, “David vs Goliath” case …show more content…

The baby remained at +1 after they gave Fielding a chance to push a few times. At 3:45 a.m., Dr. Christopher Ennen, the treating physician, and Dr. Sherrine Ibrahim, the attending senior resident physician, determined that Ms. Fielding would be unable to deliver Martinez vaginally. Rather, the Hospital's physicians concluded that an "urgent" Caesarean section was required. The Hospital's physicians determined that an "emergency" Caesarean section was not required because the fetal heart rate monitor indicated that the fetus was being adequately oxygenated. The Hospital team took Ms. Fielding's medical history and drew blood for laboratory testing. The blood tests were sent to the Hospital's laboratory on a "stat" basis, meaning they were the highest priority and should be completed as quickly as possible. The Hospital explained at trial that the blood testing was necessary in order to determine whether it would be safe to administer spinal/epidural anesthesia to Ms. Fielding during the Caesarean section procedure. The Hospital also administered IV penicillin to Fielding to reduce the risk of passing her Group B streptococcus bacteria on to Martinez. Further, the Hospital obtained Fielding's consent for spinal/epidural anesthesia, administered medications to reduce the strength of her contractions, and made other pre-delivery preparations. Some of the laboratory test results were returned at 3:57 a.m. At 4:14 a.m., the Hospital re-ordered the remaining blood tests,