Jury verdict for HIV lawyer misdiagnosed awarded $18.4 million by federal court

A US District Court jury announced a verdict in a medical malpractice case awarding Sean Stentiford $18,400,000 against two doctors associated with Lahey Clinic.

Boston, United States – June 19, 2018 /PressCable/ —

A US District Court jury announced a verdict in a medical malpractice case awarding Sean Stentiford $18,400,000 against two doctors associated with Lahey Clinic. The two physicians Dr. Southard and Dr. Hreib attended to Mr. Stentiford while he was a patient at the Lahey Clinic. Mr. Stentiford was a gay man who had complained to his physicians about illnesses and symptoms consistent with HIV infection.

Since 2006, the Centers for Disease Control had recommended HIV screening of all patients from the age of 13 to 64 be implemented immediately and that all high-risk patients should be tested at least annually. Despite these clear recommendations and the rationale behind them to minimize the spread of this deadly disease nationwide Lahey clinic and its physicians completely ignored the CDC recommendations and did not provide HIV screening and/or testing for Mr. Stentiford. While Mr. Stentiford was an inpatient at the Lahey Clinic hospital, a resident at Lahey Clinic advised him that his symptoms were highly suggestive of HIV infection and despite having signed a written consent for the HIV test, the defendant Dr.Hreib chose to cancel the test and never advised the patient that the test had been canceled. As a result, Mr. Stentiford continued to progress to the advanced stage of HIV infection including AIDS, suffering permanent brain damage and destroying his career as a lawyer. This will hopefully be a signal to the medical community that the CDC recommendations regarding the screening and testing for HIV is an imminent public health matter that must be attended to by medical professionals nationwide. Also, hopefully this judgment will send a message to this nation’s medical community that the gay community can no longer be ignored and that HIV infection is a pandemic that affects everyone.

Attorney David P. Angueira can be contacted at Swartz & Swartz, P.C. 10 Marshall St, Boston, MA 02108, (617) 742-1900, www.swartzlaw.com. Swartz & Swartz, P.C., headquartered in the historic John and Ebenezer Hancock House on the Freedom Trail in Boston, maintains a focus on personal injury, product liability, and medical malpractice litigation.

Contact Info:
Name: Swartz & Swartz, P.C.
Organization: Swartz & Swartz, P.C.
Address: 10 Marshall St, Boston, Massachusetts 02108, United States
Phone: +1-617-742-1900

For more information, please visit https://www.swartzlaw.com

Source: PressCable

Release ID: 362182