Sargeant v. New York Infirmary Beekman Downtown Hospital
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; December 6, 1995; New York; State Appellate Court
The Supreme Court of New York County, led by Justice Helen Freedman, issued an order and judgment on July 28 and September 23, 1994, which denied the defendant's motion to set aside a jury verdict but reduced the award from $500,000 to $150,000. The plaintiff was given the option to accept the reduced amount or pursue a new trial. This decision was unanimously reversed on appeal. The court vacated the judgment, dismissed the plaintiff's cause of action for disease-phobia, and ordered a new trial. The appellate court found that the jury's determination that the blood transfusion was contraindicated required an instruction for the jury to ascertain whether Dr. Altman, the plaintiff's physician, ordered the transfusion. If so, the jury was to apportion liability between Dr. Altman and the defendant hospital under CPLR article 16 for the medical malpractice claim. The omission of this instruction was deemed prejudicial, necessitating a new trial. Furthermore, the court ruled that the award for disease-phobia was improperly granted, citing a lack of objective medical evidence supporting the plaintiff's fears of contracting diseases. Blood tests indicated that both the plaintiff and the blood donors were negative for HIV, hepatitis C, and other diseases. This rendered the plaintiff's claims speculative and legally insufficient, warranting dismissal. The ruling cited precedents including Iglesias v Townhouse Penthouse Industries and Kaufman v Physical Measurements to support its conclusions.