UIHC to pay woman $1.5M after surgical mishap

IOWA CITY — University of Iowa Health Care has agreed to pay $1.5 million to a Scott County woman who nearly a decade ago in 2017 suffered a lacerated ureter near her bladder during surgery for perforated diverticulosis.

The settlement — approved by Iowa’s Board of Appeals on Wednesday — brings the total the UI Physicians group has paid to settle lawsuits this budget year to $9.4 million. UI Physicians has had to cover the full cost of its settlements so far this budget year after the state in 2023 renegotiated a new self-insurance deal obligating the physicians group to cover up to $6 million per claim and $15 million a year.

The previous cap was $5 million per claim and $9 million per year.

Wednesday’s settlement stems from a March 19, 2017 “open laparotomy, colectomy, and colostomy” deemed necessary after Brenda K. Norman presented to UIHC a day earlier with perforated diverticulosis — a potentially life-threatening condition in which inflamed pouches in the colon wall rupture and release intestinal contents into the abdomen.

According to her 2021 lawsuit against the state — for its oversight of UIHC — Norman during the surgery suffered a laceration of the ureter, a narrow tube that transports urine from the kidneys to the bladder.

She accused UIHC of failing to diagnose the problem while in surgery, necessitating an exploratory surgery a day later, and in her lawsuit said she’s continuing to experience physical and mental pain and suffering, mounting medical bills, and lost wages and future earning capacity.

The settlement Iowa’s Board of Appeals approved Wednesday reports Norman was transferred to UIHC from another hospital and that the laceration “was immediately recognized and repaired.”

“But unfortunately Ms. Norman suffered a series of complications after surgery that led to a prolonged recover,” according to the settlement. “The parties have reached a settlement agreement of $1.5 million to avoid continued litigation and the risks of a jury trial.”

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com