Doctors may be held liable for medicine's side effects
By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer
Hawai'i doctors who fail to warn their patients about possible side effects of prescribed medicines can be held responsible if a patient suffers an adverse reaction and injures someone in a traffic accident, the Hawai'i Supreme Court ruled yesterday.
The Supreme Court justices said their ruling pertains to situations in which a "reasonable" patient could not have been expected to know about the risks without a doctor's warning.
But the high court said doctors would not be liable if they weren't negligent in prescribing the medicine and the correct dosage and warned patients about the possible side effects.
The opinion is the outgrowth of a civil lawsuit filed in federal court by the parents of a girl who was run over Aug. 8, 1997, while walking on a sidewalk along Bishop Street in downtown Honolulu.
Carole and Roger McKenzie filed the lawsuit on behalf of their daughter Kathryn "Katie" McKenzie who was 11 years old when she was struck by a car driven by Honolulu attorney Jerry Wilson. The McKenzies and Wilson, who filed a cross claim, contend that Kaiser Permanente Medical Group Inc. and one of its physicians, Dr. Robert Washecka, were negligent in prescribing a drug for Wilson that resulted in his fainting moments before his car hit the girl.
Kaiser disputes the allegations that Washecka was negligent in any way in prescribing the medication prazosin for Wilson.
Prazosin is used to treat high blood pressure and can cause light-headedness and fainting.
According to background information in the Supreme Court decision, Wilson took prazosin for three days without incident. But after taking the medicine on the morning of Aug. 8, 1997, Wilson began to feel nauseous and dizzy and started to hyperventilate while driving down Pali Highway toward Honolulu, the court said.
Wilson allegedly fainted after reaching Bishop Street. His car hit a car in front of him before veering to the right and onto the sidewalk, striking Kathryn McKenzie.
McKenzie eventually recovered after spending nearly a month in a coma, but has undergone extensive rehabilitation. Her legs were broken, other bones were shattered, and doctors removed her left kidney and her spleen.
The Hawai'i Supreme Court became involved in the issue after federal District Court of Hawai'i officials said they could find no clear precedent that answers the question whether a doctor could be sued for negligence by a third party who is not the physician's patient.
Although the state Supreme Court ruled that Hawai'i doctors can be sued by third parties, the justices made it clear they were not taking sides in the federal court case.
The justices said they were not resolving the issues of whether any warnings given to Wilson about the medication were adequate or whether Dr. Washecka should be held liable for the injuries.
"These must be determined in the course of subsequent proceedings," they wrote.
Reach David Waite at dwaite@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8030.
