UNANIMOUS VERDICT FOR INTERNAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN

Attorneys, Max Gaujean and Michael Maher, obtained a defense verdict on behalf of an internal medicine physician in Bronx County in June 2022. In summary, the plaintiff was a 66 year old male who presented to the office of the internal medicine physician with urinary complaints on a Sunday morning. The nature of the urinary complaints was in dispute between the parties.

In the lawsuit, it was the contention of the plaintiff that he reported complaints of an inability to urinate. It was the contention of the internal medicine physician that the plaintiff reported urinary frequency, dysuria (or painful urination), and abdominal discomfort.

The plaintiff had been prescribed an antibiotic for urinary tract infection by his community urologist a few days prior to the visit. At the time of the office visit, the internal medicine physician took a history, performed a physical exam, and obtained a urine sample for testing. The internal medicine physician’s diagnosis was urinary tract infection and prostatitis with a new antibiotic being prescribed. Later in the evening, the plaintiff presented to the emergency room with complaints of an inability to urinate, and he was treated for urinary retention with a straight catheterization.

The plaintiff alleged that the internal medicine physician failed to diagnose urinary retention during the visit that took place earlier in the day. In the lawsuit, it was alleged that the plaintiff sustained permanent damage to the bladder wall as a result of the urinary retention, including the need for subsequent procedures. It was the position of the defense that there was no reported history of an inability to urinate at the time of the office visit, that the plaintiff did in fact urinate during the visit as he gave a urine sample, and that the urinary retention developed after the visit. The jury returned a verdict in favor of our client.