Adams v. Via Christi Regional Medical Center

Nichelle Adams (plaintiff) was five to eight weeks pregnant when she experienced abdominal pain. Around 9:00 p.m., Nichelle’s mother (plaintiff) called the family’s usual doctor, Dr. Ohaebosim (defendant). Ohaebosim had not treated Nichelle for four years, and Nichelle had recently stated on a medical form that she had no doctor. Ohaebosim had once treated pregnant women but had officially stopped treating pregnant women two years earlier. On the phone, Nichelle’s mother told Ohaebosim that Nichelle was pregnant and experiencing abdominal pain. Although Ohaebosim and Nichelle’s mother later disagreed about several details of this conversation, they agreed that Ohaebosim did not ask any questions about Nichelle’s condition or tell Nichelle’s mother to take her to the emergency room at that time. Around midnight, Nichelle’s mother rushed her to the emergency room at a nearby hospital (defendant), where it was discovered that Nichelle had an ectopic pregnancy that had ruptured. Despite the hospital’s efforts, Nichelle did not recover and was put on life support. After hearing about these events at around 4:00 p.m. the next day, Ohaebosim rushed to the hospital and confirmed that Nichelle’s eyes did not respond to light. Ohaebosim discussed Nichelle’s condition with her family. The family agreed to remove the life support, and Nichelle died around 6:30 p.m. There was evidence that Nichelle’s life could have been saved if she had received emergency treatment at 9:00 pm or 9:30 p.m. the night before, right after Nichelle’s mother spoke to Ohaebosim. Nichelle’s parents filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the hospital and Ohaebosim. The hospital settled with the parents. A jury heard the case against Ohaebosim and found for the parents. Ohaebosim appealed the jury verdict to the Kansas Supreme Court, arguing that he had no duty to care for Nichelle because he did not have a physician-patient relationship with her during these events.