Willey v. Glasgow Internal Medicine Associates, P.A.
Superior Court of Delaware
February 16, 2018
NICOLE WILLEY, Individually, and as personal representative of the estate of MICHAEL WILLEY, and as parent and next friend of MARISSA WILLEY, a minor, Plaintiffs,
v.
GLASGOW INTERNAL MEDICINE ASSOCIATES, P.A., ANTHONY VASILE, D.O., CURT BLACKLOCK, D.O., CHRISTIANA CARE HEALTH SERVICES, INC., a Delaware Corporation, Defendants.
Submitted: February 1, 2018
Upon
Review of the Affidavit of Merit - Accepted
Joshua
Meyeroff, Esquire, Gregory S. McKee, Esquire, Katherine J.
Sullivan, Esquire, Stephen J. Milewski, Esquire, Timothy E.
Lengkeek, Esquire.
ORDER
ABIGAIL M. LEGROW, JUDGE.
On
February 1, 2018, Defendant Vasile moved to have the Court
review Plaintiffs' affidavit of merit, in
camera, to determine whether it complies with 18
Del. C. § 6853(a)(1) and (c). Specifically,
Defendant asks the Court to determine whether the affidavit
of merit:
a) Is signed by an expert witness as defined in 18 Del.
C. § 6853(c);
b) Is accompanied by a curriculum vitae for each
expert;
c) States all its opinions with reasonable medical
probability;
d) Includes an opinion that there has been healthcare medical
negligence against each defendant;
e) States that the expert gives an opinion that each breach
against each defendant was a proximate cause of injuries
alleged in the complaint;
f) Includes a curriculum vitae that establishes that
each expert is licensed to practice medicine as of the date
of the affidavit;
g) Includes a curriculum vitae that establishes that
each expert, for the three years preceding the negligent act,
has been engaged in the treatment of patients and/or in the
teaching/academic side of medicine in the same or similar
field of medicine (pulmonology) as defendant;
h) Establishes that the expert is board certified in
pulmonology.
In
Delaware, a healthcare negligence lawsuit must be filed with
an affidavit of merit, signed by an expert, and accompanied
by the expert's current curriculum
vitae.[1] The expert must be licensed to practice
medicine as of the affidavit's date and engaged in the
same or similar field as the defendant in the three years
immediately preceding the alleged negligence.[2] The affidavit
must state that reasonable grounds exist to believe the
defendant was negligent in a way that proximately caused the
plaintiffs ...