What is your sex life worth if it has been taken away because of a failed back surgery?
On August 2, 2017, a state jury in Oregon, awarded more than $4.5 million to a couple after the 30-year-old husband underwent a failed spine surgery which left him with numbness in his genital area, seriously altering his sex life with his wife.
The surgery was performed by neurosurgeon Warren Roberts, M.D., of Tualatin, Oregon.
The Oregonian reported that after deliberating for eight days, the jury found that Roberts and his practice, Aspen Spine and Neurosurgery Center, were negligent. The jury awarded Jason Croff $94,000 in economic losses and $3.5 million in noneconomic damages for pain and suffering. The jury also awarded his wife, Kassandra, $1 million for loss of consortium with her husband.
In September 2013, after experiencing back pain, Croff went to see his primary-care doctor who referred him to Roberts. A month later, Roberts performed surgery with a plan to remove a disc from Croff’s spine. Croff was 27 at the time.
According to the report, Croff claims that Roberts mishandled the surgery, in part by failing to remove the disc and failing to tell him about it. Croff argued that led to his worsening symptoms and causing his permanent trouble to urinate and genital numbness.
Roberts’ lawyers contended that the surgeon did tell Croff that he couldn’t remove his disc and that he would need future surgery. In court papers, Roberts’ attorney argued that Croff couldn’t prove that his medical conditions were Roberts’ fault and that the standard of care had been met.
But the jury disagreed. It was not the only time Roberts has had his professional behavior questioned.
According in a pretrial deposition, Roberts no longer performs neurosurgery and examines patients during house calls after his privileges were revoked at the Legacy Health and Legacy Meridian Park Medical Center in Tualatin.
In July, Roberts, an African American, filed a $24 million lawsuit against the medical center, claiming that his privileges at the hospital were revoked as part of a “sham” process, driven in part by racism and the desire of other doctors to remove him as competition.
“No one will even consider him as a neurosurgeon due to the toxic adverse actions reports in the NPDB (National Practitioner Data Bank),” Roberts’ lawsuit states.
Roberts has been practicing medicine since 2001, according to Oregon Medical Board records. He is in his mid-40s.
The Oregonian also reported that the Oregon Medical Board issued a notice of proposed disciplinary action against Roberts in 2014 and 2015 for alleged “unprofessional or dishonorable conduct, and gross or repeated acts of negligence.”
Jurors weren’t allowed to hear about those cases after the judge ruled they weren’t relevant to Croff’s lawsuit.
