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    Mendoza v. Casumpang

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    miles1280
    This case involves a medical malpractice suit filed against Dr. Mariter Mendoza for negligence. Josephine underwent a hysterectomy and myomectomy performed by Dr. Mendoza and later experienced recurring fever, nausea and vomiting. Three months later, a foul smelling gauze was discovered protruding from her cervix, which was extracted. Josephine filed suit against Dr. Mendoza before dying. The trial court found Dr. Mendoza negligent and ordered damages paid, but later reversed itself. On appeal, the court of appeals reinstated the original ruling, finding Dr. Mendoza breached her duty by leaving a gauze in the patient. The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling and awarded additional exempl

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    Mendoza v. Casumpang

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    miles1280
    273 views2 pages
    This case involves a medical malpractice suit filed against Dr. Mariter Mendoza for negligence. Josephine underwent a hysterectomy and myomectomy performed by Dr. Mendoza and later experienced recurring fever, nausea and vomiting. Three months later, a foul smelling gauze was discovered protruding from her cervix, which was extracted. Josephine filed suit against Dr. Mendoza before dying. The trial court found Dr. Mendoza negligent and ordered damages paid, but later reversed itself. On appeal, the court of appeals reinstated the original ruling, finding Dr. Mendoza breached her duty by leaving a gauze in the patient. The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling and awarded additional exempl

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    15. Mendoza v. Casumpang

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    This case involves a medical malpractice suit filed against Dr. Mariter Mendoza for negligence. Josephine underwent a hysterectomy and myomectomy performed by Dr. Mendoza and later experienced recurring fever, nausea and vomiting. Three months later, a foul smelling gauze was discovered protruding from her cervix, which was extracted. Josephine filed suit against Dr. Mendoza before dying. The trial court found Dr. Mendoza negligent and ordered damages paid, but later reversed itself. On appeal, the court of appeals reinstated the original ruling, finding Dr. Mendoza breached her duty by leaving a gauze in the patient. The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling and awarded additional exempl

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    273 views2 pages

    Mendoza v. Casumpang

    Uploaded by

    miles1280
    This case involves a medical malpractice suit filed against Dr. Mariter Mendoza for negligence. Josephine underwent a hysterectomy and myomectomy performed by Dr. Mendoza and later experienced recurring fever, nausea and vomiting. Three months later, a foul smelling gauze was discovered protruding from her cervix, which was extracted. Josephine filed suit against Dr. Mendoza before dying. The trial court found Dr. Mendoza negligent and ordered damages paid, but later reversed itself. On appeal, the court of appeals reinstated the original ruling, finding Dr. Mendoza breached her duty by leaving a gauze in the patient. The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling and awarded additional exempl

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    CASE # MARITER MENDOZA vs. ADRIANO CASUMPANG et. al G.R. No.

    197987 FACTS: On February 13, 1993 Josephine underwent hysterectomy and myomectomy that Dr. Mendoza performed on her at the Iloilo Doctors Hospital. After her operation, Josephine experienced recurring fever, nausea, and vomiting. Three months after the operation, she noticed while taking a bath something protruding from her genital. She tried calling Dr. Mendoza to report it but the latter was unavailable. Josephine instead went to see another physician, Dr. Edna Jamandre-Gumban, who extracted a foul smelling, partially expelled rolled gauze from her cervix. The discovery of the gauze and the illness she went through prompted Josephine to file a damage suit against Dr. Mendoza before the RTC of Iloilo City. Because Josephine died before trial could end, her husband and their children substituted her in the case. She was a housewife and 40 years old when she died. On March 7, 2005 the RTC rendered judgment, finding Dr. Mendoza guilty of neglect that caused Josephines illness and eventual death and ordering her to pay plaintiffs heirs actual damages of P50,000.00, moral damages of P200,000.00, and attorneys fees of P20,000.00 plus costs of suit. On motion for reconsideration, however, the RTC reversed itself and dismissed the complaint in an order dated June 23, 2005. On appeal, the Court of Appeals (CA) rendered a decision on March 18, 2011, reinstating the RTCs original decision. The CA held that Dr. Mendoza committed a breach of her duty as a physician when a gauze remained in her patients body after surgery. The CA denied her motion for reconsideration on July 18, 2011, prompting her to file the present petition. ISSUE: HELD: Petitioner claims that no gauze or surgical material was left in Josephines body after her surgery as evidenced by the surgical sponge count in the hospital record. But she raises at this Courts level a question of fact when parties may raise only questions of law before it in petitions for review on certiorari from the CA. With few exceptions, the factual findings of the latter court are generally binding. None of those exceptions applies to this case. As the RTC pointed out, Josephine did not undergo any other surgical operation. And it would be much unlikely for her or for any woman to inject a roll of gauze into her cervix. The Court notes, however, that neither the CA nor the RTC awarded exemplary damages against Dr. Mendoza when, under Article 2229 of the Civil Code, exemplary damages are imposed by way of example or correction for the public good, in addition to moral damages. Exemplary damages may also be awarded in cases of gross negligence. Whether or not there is medical negligence on the part of the doctor. March 19, 2012

    A surgical operation is the responsibility of the surgeon performing it. He must personally ascertain that the counts of instruments and materials used before the surgery and prior to sewing the patient up have been correctly done. To provide an example to the medical profession and to stress the need for constant vigilance in attending to a patients health, the award of exemplary damages in this case is in order. Further, in view of Josephines death resulting from petitioners negligence, civil indemnity under Article 2206 of the Civil Code should be given to respondents as heirs. The amount of P50,000.00 is fixed by prevailing jurisprudence for this kind. WHEREFORE, the Court entirely AFFIRMS the decision of the Court of Appeals dated March 18, 2011 with the MODIFICATION ordering petitioner Mariter Mendoza to pay respondents Adriano, Jennifer Adriane and John Andre, all surnamed Casumpang, an additional P50,000.00 as exemplary damages, additional P30,000.00 as attorneys fees and civil indemnity arising from death in the amount of P50,000.00.

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