The patient’s family members were also deposed during the course of the lawsuit. There were several adult sons and daughters who gave their perspective on the situation. The stories they tell about being informed that their father had died are heartbreaking.
One of the key elements of these depositions is the testimony from the family, claiming that the patient had explicitly expressed hesitation about undergoing the operation at the surgery center as opposed to a hospital. It is easy to see how this information could be played against the defendants.
Here, the patient’s daughter discusses the conversation she had with her father.
One of the patient’s sons was deposed twice. During the initial deposition he stated that he had not remembered any discussion about the location of the operation. However, at the second deposition, he suddenly recalled a conversation about this topic.
The son’s sudden recollection of a piece of information that would help the plaintiff’s case drew suspicion. Was the initial omission an honest mistake, or were his later statements motivated by ulterior motive, possibly after coaching by his attorney?