Dentist, clinic to pay combined $1.1 million to settle lawsuit
Phillips Law Offices partner Jill Webb led the settlement for the family of a man who died in the dentist’s chair. Contact Phillips Law Offices today if you or a loved one has been injured by a dentist or other medical professional.
Dentist, clinic to pay combined $1.1 million to settle lawsuit
CHICAGO (AP) - The family of a 73-year-old man who died while sedated at a dentist’s office has settled a lawsuit against the dentist and clinic for more than one million dollars.Robert Pauly died in the dental chair at Glen Ellyn Family Dental Care in June 2004 after going in to have his tooth pulled.
Jill Webb is the Pauly family’s attorney. She says the Glen Ellyn man began having trouble breathing after being sedated. He stopped breathing, and paramedics could not revive him.
The lawsuit filed last year alleged that Doctor James Morrone failed to properly monitor his vital signs.
Robert Pauly of Glen Ellyn went to Glen Ellyn Family Dental Care for the procedure June 15, 2004, but after receiving intravenous sedation, he began having difficulty breathing, Jill Webb, an attorney for the Pauly family, said Tuesday in a news release.
Pauly stopped breathing, and paramedics were unable to revive him, Webb said. Pauly died in the dental chair while his wife, Eleanor, sat in the waiting room, Webb said.
In a lawsuit filed last year, Pauly’s family alleged that Dr. James Morrone failed to properly assess swelling in Pauly’s airway. The suit also contended that Morrone failed to properly monitor Pauly’s vital signs and used the wrong drug to try to resuscitate him.
From the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin:
The wife of a 73-year-old man who died while having a tooth pulled settled a lawsuit against the dentist and a dental facility for about $1.1 million, the plaintiff’s attorney said.
Robert Pauly died in a dental chair in 2004 after receiving intravenous sedation administered by Dr. James Morrone, according to the suit, which alleged that Morrone did not fully inquire into Pauly’s medical history, or take his age into account before the procedure. The suit also alleged that Pauly had complained of swelling in his mouth, but Morrone did not fully assess the swelling before initiating the anesthetic. The family also said that Morrone did not properly monitor Pauly’s vital signs and oxygenation levels after the sedation and that Morrone also used the wrong resuscitative drug.
Morrone and Midwest Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Associates will pay $900,000, and Glen Ellyn Family Dental will pay $235,000.
The family was represented by Stephen D. Phillips and Jill M. Webb of Phillips Law Offices.