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Appeals court rules in favor of Covenant Health, other defendants in excessive radiation lawsuit

Posted at 6:29 pm June 25, 2015
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Methodist Medical Center Main Entrance

A three-judge appeals court panel has ruled in favor of Covenant Health and two other defendants in five lawsuits that alleged that the absence of shielding in part of the emergency department at Methodist Medical Center exposed five X-ray and radiologic technologists, including two who were pregnant, to excessive radiation.

The unanimous opinions by the three Tennessee Court of Appeals judges—D. Michael Swiney, John W. McClarty, and Thomas R. Frierson II—were filed June 9 in Knoxville. They affirmed an order by Anderson County Circuit Court Judge Donald R. Elledge granting a summary judgement in favor of the defendants: Covenant Health, Rentenbach Engineering Company, and TEG Architects LLC.

The lawsuits were filed in January 2014 by Connie Raby, Keith Gillis, Michael Phillips, Mary Ridenour on behalf of her and her child, and Micah Noelle Lewellen on behalf of her and her child.

The lawsuits alleged that the technologists were exposed to excess radiation for several years at Methodist Medical Center because some walls in and around a radiology imaging center in the new emergency department, which opened in February 2006 as part of a hospital remodel, were built without the required lead shielding, elevating the workers’ risk of health problems, including cancer. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Business, Front Page News, Government, Health, Health, Oak Ridge, Slider, State, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Circuit Court, cancer, Connie Raby, Covenant Health, D. Michael Swiney, emergency department, excessive radiation, John W. McClarty, Keith Gillis, lead shielding, Mary Ridenour, Methodist Medical Center, Micah Noelle Lewellen, Michael Phillips, MMC, radiologic technologist, radiology imaging center, Rentenbach Engineering Company, shielding, statute of repose, substantial completion, summary judgement, TEG Architects LLC, Tennessee Court of Appeals, Thomas R. Frierson II, X-ray technologist

Inadequate shielding exposed workers to excess radiation at MMC imaging center, lawsuits allege

Posted at 12:30 pm January 15, 2014
By John Huotari 3 Comments

Methodist Medical Center

Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge

Methodist Medical Center says it will ‘vigorously’ refute allegations

Note: This story was last updated at 3:38 p.m.

Five lawsuits filed in Anderson County on Monday allege that X-ray and radiologic technologists, including two who were pregnant, were exposed to excess radiation for several years at Methodist Medical Center because some walls in and around a radiology imaging center in the new emergency department were built without the required lead shielding, elevating the workers’ risk of health problems, including cancer.

The five lawsuits allege the walls in the emergency department, which opened in February 2006 as part of a hospital remodel, did not have the required protective radiological shielding because of building, design, and inspection errors.

Lead-lined walls are required in radiological areas to limit radiation exposure under local and federal regulations and construction and health standards, the lawsuits say.

But the defendants—Covenant Health of Knoxville, Rentenbach Engineering Co. of Knoxville, and TEG Architects LLC of Jeffersonville, Ind.—failed to have qualified personnel survey or check the installation and construction parameters, or conduct proper barrier determinations for lead barrier thickness, to ensure that the walls in the radiological areas would adequately reduce scatter and leakage radiation, the lawsuits say. The defendants also failed to have qualified personnel certify that the MMC in-department imaging center and nearby areas were built in compliance with all applicable regulations and guidelines so that the plaintiffs “would only be exposed to levels of radiation that were as low as reasonably achievable, all before allowing work to be done at that facility.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Health, Health, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Circuit Court, Connie Raby, Covenant Health, emergency department, John D. Agee, Keith Gillis, lead barrier, lead shielding, Mary Ridenour, Methodist Medical Center, Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, Micah Noelle Lewellen, Michael M. Stahl, Michael Phillips, radiation, radiation exposure, radiation injury, radiological shielding, radiology imaging center, Rentenbach Engineering Co., Ridenour and Ridenour, TDEC, TEG Architects LLC, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Wayne Estopinal

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