Industry News | 03.10.26
Lawsuit Challenges $300K Hip Replacement That Left Patient Permanently Impaired
By NAMSS Staff
Health Exec (03/03/26) Van Alstin, Chad
Dr. Peter Copithorne, a surgeon in Maine, is facing a lawsuit accusing him of botching a 2019 hip replacement surgery that resulted in patient Mary Shea being permanently impaired. The 71-year-old patient was left with $300,000 in medical bills despite the alleged error. Testimony in the civil trial began last week. The surgery in question took place when Copithorne was on staff at Ellsworth's Northern Light Maine Coast Hospital. According to the plaintiff, the surgeon unnecessarily sawed a gap in Shea's femur during a hip replacement procedure. Lawyers representing Shea said Copithorne read the wrong X-ray and never noticed the implant was not secured to her femur as it should have been. This, in turn, led to a second surgery where a centimeter of bone had to be removed. Court documents show Shea would go on to have more surgeries from another doctor in an effort to repair the damage done by Copithorne. Shea is seeking damages and challenging the validity of the medical debt stemming from the encounters.
Read the full article from Health Exec.