Jane Doe Two v. Yaron Zedek, M.D.

Medical malpractice - Doe is a mildly retarded, 52-year-old female who has an IQ
of 64. Prior to hospitalization, Doe had been suffering from
recurrent, nonpsychotic major depressive episodes. Doe was
admitted to the psychiatric unit at Great Plains on September 8,
1993, pursuant to the recommendation of Zedek. On September 27,
Doe left the hospital on a day pass with her caseworker, Jean
Risseeuw. During this excursion, Doe told Risseeuw that Doe had
had sex with someone on the unit. Upon their return to the
hospital, Risseeuw informed the nursing staff of what Doe had
told her. The next day, during morning report, Zedek was notified
of what Doe had reported to Risseeuw. After morning report, Zedek
and the nurse manager met with Doe privately and discussed the
incident. Doe told Zedek that approximately 8 days earlier a
"black man" had come into her room to take her vital signs. Doe
alleged that this man took her into the bathroom and had sex with
her. At trial, Doe testified that what she had meant by a black
man was a man dressed in "black pants and a black shirt."

Zedek testified that he did not believe Doe for many
reasons. Zedek believed that Doe was probably relating a dream,
because she was on antidepressant medications. He also testified
that he believed the sexual assault was highly unlikely because
Doe had a roommate, she was on a locked psychiatric unit, she was
checked every 10 to 15 minutes by the staff, and there were no
black employees or patients on the unit. Although Zedek did not
believe Doe, he told the nurse manager to notify the appropriate
sources to investigate the matter. The police were notified the
same day and began an investigation. The investigation eventually
revealed a suspect who was an employee of the hospital, and
charges were filed against him.

After Zedek learned of Doe's assault, he continued to see
Doe every day during her hospitalization. During these visits,
Zedek would ask Doe general questions about how she was doing and
if she had any concerns. In response to these questions, Doe
never mentioned the sexual assault. After Doe's discharge from
the hospital on October 6, 1993, she continued to see Zedek on an
outpatient basis for another year. Based on hospital records,
nurses' notes, and Zedek's own notes, Doe never asked for, nor
was she ever offered, psychiatric counseling or therapy to treat
any potential trauma or harm she may have experienced from the
assault. After hospitalization, Doe did receive professional
counseling for the sexual assault from Mary Muller, a therapist
with a master's degree in clinical psychology. This therapy,
however, was independent of any offered by Zedek or Great Plains.

Plaintiff's verdict for $100,000.00.

Unknown

Unknown

Reversed and remanded with directions to dismiss by the Supreme Court of Nebraska because plaintiff did not introduce expert testimony indicating that defendant's alleged negligence was the proximate cause of plaintiff's injuries. See: 587 N.W.2d 885 (Neb. 1999). The date shown above is the date of the appellate court decision.