JANET N. MILLER AND RICHARD C. MILLER

v.

DRUG EMPORIUM, INC. AND JAMES T. GARLAND

Fulton County State Court

Civil Action File No. 273637

Liability Facts: On September 9, 1988, plaintiff went to the Drug Emporium pharmacy located at 119 Cobb Parkway in Marietta, Georgia to pick up a prescription for Talwin, a drug for migraine headaches, that her physician had phoned in the day before. At that time the pharmacy gave her a prescription instead for Tenex, a drug used to treat high blood pressure. A pharmacy employee had erroneously paced the Tenex tablets into a prescription bottle marked for Talwin and the pharmacist in charge neglected to check it before it was passed on to the plaintiff. The recommended daily dosage for Talwin in 2 mg. Per day. The recommended daily dosage for Tenex is 1 mg. per day and has known listed side effects including shortness of breath. Plaintiff ingested eight Tenex tablets over the next four days and began experiencing dizziness, vertigo, shortness of breath and fatigue. Plaintiff, a 32-year-old registered nurse, was initially diagnosed as suffering bronchospasm and bronchial hyper-reactivity. Despite the average elimination half-life of Tenex being 17 days, plaintiff’s health continued to deteriorate over the following months and she was eventually diagnosed as having developed a drug induced asthma condition as well as chronic fatigue syndrome which rendered her totally disabled. Plaintiff had no prior history of respiratory problems.

Plaintiff initially alleged professional negligence on the part of the pharmacist on duty as well as the pharmacy under respondeat superior. During discovery it was learned that the pharmacist who was responsible for misfiling the plaintiff’s prescription had previously been convicted for violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act and suffered temporary license suspension by the Georgia Board of Pharmacy. Plaintiffs amended their Complaint to add a count of negligent hiring and retention against the corporate defendant.

Injury facts: Drug induced asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome and depression.

Medical Expenses: Past medical expenses of approximately $14,000.00

Loss of Earnings: Past wage loss of approximately $90,000.00

Expert Witnesses for the Plaintiff: John Gelly, M.D., Internist; David Tinkleman, M.D., Pulmonologist; Cornelius Sullivan, M.D. Pulmonologist; James O’Donnell, Pharm. D., Pharmacologist; Steven Wilson, Pharm. D., Pharmacologist; Robert McGuigan, Ph.D., Vocational Rehabilitation; Richard Cebula, Ph.D., Economist.Expert Witnesses for the Defendants - Ben Branscomb, M.D., Internist; Jack Hasson, M.D., Pulmonologist; Neil Moran, Pharm. D., Pharmacologist.Settlement - Following a court supervised pre-trial settlement conference, the parties agreed to a cash settlement of $850,000.00

Attorneys:

Defendants were represented by Wray Eckl and Elizabeth Helm of Drew, Eckl and Farnham, Atlanta.