The Madonia v. Stevens court decision was released by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on December 12, 2008.

On July 15, 2005, Laura Madonia attended at their cardiologist’s office for an electrocardiogram. Amongst other heart ailments, she suffered from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and had a thickening of the heart muscle in the septum area of her heart.  The cardiologist interpreted the results as showing atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm) and prescribed anti-coagulation medication for that condition.

Three weeks later, Mrs. Madonia attended Joseph Brant Hospital suffering from bleeding. She was sent to endoscopy so that the source of the bleeding could be determined. The endoscopy revealed multiple small ulcerations in the stomach. During the procedure, she went into cardiac arrest and did not regain consciousness. Laura Madonia passed away on October 2, 2005 at the age of 78.

Mrs. Madonia’s family hired Oakville medical malpractice lawyers and commenced a lawsuit against the cardiologist for medical malpractice. They alleged that the cardiologist improperly interpreted Mrs. Madonia’s electrocardiogram of July 15, 2005 and as a consequence prescribed her unnecessary anti-coagulation therapy which resulted directly in her death. They also alleged that he failed to accurately assess the risk of bleeding from the anti-coagulation therapy and did not carefully review the potential risks with Mrs. Madonia.

After reviewing expert testimony by experienced cardiologists retained by both parties, the court concluded that the cardiologist’s conduct fell below the standard of a care.  An appropriately trained cardiologist should not have interpreted the electrocardiogram as demonstrating atrial fibrillation and that if it was a “straightforward” electrocardiogram to assess. The court also noted that the cardiologist had failed to consider that Mrs. Madonia had been on anticoagulation medication 5 years earlier and suffered significant bleeding as a result. The court concluded that the cardiologist’s failures caused or materially contributed to Mrs. Madonia’s death.

When considering damages, the court noted that the life expectancy of Mrs. Madonia before the negligent acts of the cardiologist was two years. The court awarded Mrs. Madonia’s family the following amount in damages:

• $50,000 to Mrs. Madonia’s husband for loss of guidance, care, and companionship
• $30,202 to Mrs. Madonia’s husband for pension loss and dependency
• $3000 loss of domestic services
• $17,651.02 for funeral expenses
• $40,000 to Mrs. Madonia’s son and daughter
• $27,500 to Mrs. Madonia’s three grandchildren

Do you have a similar case? We can find you a top medical malpractice lawyer in your area.