DOCTOR SUED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23517, 3 June 1938, Page 8

DOCTOR SUED

ALLEGED IMPROPER TREATMENT SUCCESSFUL CLAIM FOR DAMAGES LEAVE GRANTED FOR NEW TRIAL (Per United Press Association) PALMERSTON N., June 2. Following deliberations lasting for a full four hours, the jury awarded damages, £4OO general and £172 special, to Mrs Olive Rita Paterson against Dr Kenrick Dean, the allegations being improper treatment of an injured knee. Mr Justice Quilliam, however, granted counsel for the defence leave to apply for a new trial on the grounds that the verdict was against the weight of evidence. In his address to the jury, his Honor suggested that there was a preponderance of evidence in favour of the view that the disability Mrs Paterson is now suffering was the result of the injury and not of the treatment, Dr tDean had done a very wise thing He saw the case was not responding, so he called in a surgeon. Some doctors felt diffident in calling in another doctor. His Honor also directed attention to the medical evidence that the injury was a rare one, so one might expect that it would not be correctly diagnosed the first time. There was also a preponderance of medical evidence that Mrs Paterson would completely recover.