The Appellate Court revived a wrongful death lawsuit filed by a former patient's widow, finding the County Judge wrongfully barred a physician from testifying regarding alleged substandard care.

The Case: Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic

The Court: Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas

The Case No.: CV-19-920144

The Plaintiff: Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic

Dennis Kittis was a 74-year-old retired U.S. Army veteran who worked at a General Motors factory and loved running. On January 4, 2018, Kittis went to Fairview Hospital with pain in his stomach. Doctors discovered his bowel was obstructed and performed surgery the next day. The Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic wrongful death lawsuit was filed by the widow of Dennis Kittis, who died days after undergoing bowel obstruction surgery at Fairview Hospital. The Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Ashley Kilbane barred a physician scheduled to testify regarding the alleged substandard care Kittis received from the doctors at Fairview following his bowel obstruction surgery. David Brooks was a physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and a lecturer at Harvard Medical School. After barring the testimony, Judge Kilbane granted the Clinic's lawyers' request to rule in their favor, dismissing the case.

The Defendant: Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic

The defendant in the case, Cleveland Clinic, runs Fairview Hospital at 18101 Lorain Ave. in Cleveland. During court motions, lawyers for the Cleveland Clinic denied that any of their employees acted negligently. Additionally, they claim that no surgical intervention could have prevented Kittis' death.

The Case: Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic

The 8th Ohio District Court of Appeals revived the Kittis v. Cleveland Clinic wrongful death lawsuit filed by a woman whose husband died days after his bowel obstruction surgery at Fairview Hospital in January 2018. The case was reinstated following a unanimous appellate panel that found the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court judge wrongly barred the physician intended to testify regarding the alleged substandard medical care.

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