Defending negligence claims

When a surgical patient suffers injury away from the operative site, an inference is raised that care has fallen below a reasonable standard in the operating room. This was the central issue in Robertson v Hospital Corporation of America, a 'positioning' case heard in 1995 that should interest perioperative nurses and place further expert opinion in the operating room arena. The previous year, a United States court accepted expert evidence that the 'ultimate' responsibility for protection against ulnar nerve injury during a bilateral mastectomy lay with the anaesthetist.