Medical malpractice case against a West Palm Beach orthopedic surgeon on behalf of a police officer when a drill bit broke off during a hip surgery operation, and was lost in the surgical opening. The physician was aware of the “surgical complication” and chose to close the incision with the drill bit fragment still inside Ms. Larson. The surgeon and the hospital then told the patient and her husband the surgery went fine. They failed to disclose the complication which became known to Ms. Larson only when she was looking at her own x-rays in a follow-up appointment. The orthopedic surgeon tried to escape this claim by having Ms. Larson sign an arbitration agreement hidden in the initial patient paperwork on the intake clipboard. Rubin & Rubin lawyers invalidated the arbitration papers and then forced the Hospital and the surgeon to settle before trial. Florida Statute 766.102(3)(b) provides for a foreign body presumption of negligence. For more information on this issue, see the Florida Supreme Court opinion Dockswell et al v. Bethesda Memorial Hospital, Inc.
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