Abdel-Samed v. Dailey — Feb. 2014 (Summary)

NEGLIGENCE

Abdel-Samed v. Dailey
No. S13G0657 (Ga. Feb. 24, 2014)

In this medical malpractice litigation, the plaintiff alleged that the physician’s assistant and physician who saw him in the hospital’s emergency department were negligent when they failed to timely transfer him to a hand surgeon, resulting in the amputation of the tip of his middle finger and other complications.  The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that the plaintiff’s claim was subject to a state statute requiring plaintiffs who file claims “arising out of the provision of emergency medical services in a hospital emergency department…to show clear and convincing evidence that the physician or health care provider’s actions showed gross negligence.”  The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants.  The appeals court reversed, finding an issue of fact regarding whether the statute applied to this situation.  The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that there was no question that the statute applied, but that summary judgment for the defendants was inappropriate because there was a genuine issue for the jury as to whether the defendants’ action constituted gross negligence.