In 2013, April Strange, a 33-year-old woman from central Illinois, had an elective surgery to remove a non-cancerous growth from her liver. During the operation, the doctor used a surgical stapler to cut a blood vessel but did not seal the vessel. As a result, Mrs. Strange went into cardiac arrest from the blood loss and died that day according to The State Journal-Register.
Mrs. Strange’s husband filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the surgeon, the hospital where the surgery was performed, as well as the surgeon’s employer and the company that manufactured the stapler. The lawsuit claimed that the surgeon did not properly operate the stapler and faulted the surgeon for not controlling the bleeding. It also alleged that the surgeon did not call for assistance quickly enough when the bleeding began.
During the depositions, the surgeon claimed that the stapler, manufactured by Covidien, malfunctioned. Because of this, Covidien agreed to pay $250,000.
In total, the estate of April Strange was awarded $5.5 million earlier this week. The settlement goes to Mrs. Strange’s husband and two daughters. The case was settled before going to trial.
