A former Fayetteville, N.C., surgeon has been ordered to pay more than $6 million in a malpractice lawsuit.
The Fayetteville Observer reports that the lawsuit said Geraldine Nicholson of Lumber Bridge died in October 2006 after spending nearly a year in the hospital with complications after surgery to remove cancerous tissue in her rectum and colon.
According to the lawsuit, Dr. Arleen Kaye Thom left a surgical sponge in Nicholson’s abdomen that wasn’t discovered until 10 weeks after initial surgery. A family attorney said the 18-by-18-inch sponge caused infections and illness that prevented Nicholson from receiving cancer treatments.
A Robeson County jury on Oct. 10 ordered Thom to pay nearly $5.1 million to Nicholson’s estate and $750,000 to Nicholson’s husband.
A telephone listing for Thom couldn’t be found Wednesday.
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Balancing Technology and Expertise in Property Insurance Claims 
CommScope Sued by Lenders for at Least $150 Million Over Alleged Breach 
For Carriers, AI Can Now Mean Hyper-Personalized Customer Service, Leaders Say 
Ransom Attacks up, but Payments Headed Down as Cyber Becomes Top of Mind 
Want to stay up to date?
Get the latest insurance news
sent straight to your inbox.