Sunday, November 25, 2012

Attorneys ask California Supreme Court to force Pomona hospital to release medical records


Lawyers for a Rancho Cucamonga woman suing Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center are asking the state Supreme Court to require the hospital's review board to release medical records they say will help them prove their case.

The patient, April Cabana, alleges that the hospital subjected her to an experimental procedure without her knowledge or consent. The hospital claims state law does not require it to release the documents.

Cabana's attorneys filed their request earlier this month.

The court is expected to determine within 60 to 90 days if it will hear the matter, said Cabana's attorney, Bijan Esfandiari.

The state's highest court only reviews 5 percent to 10 percent of the cases sent its way, said Esfandiari, who expects to be granted a hearing.

"I think (we) have a good chance," he said.

Cabana's lawyers are seeking documents from the hospital's internal review board. The board would have had to approve Cabana's procedure, Esfandiari said.

Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center
Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center
A trial court ruled the hospital must release the documents, but the hospital's lawyers attorneys appealed and won that case.

"Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center is pleased that the Appellate Court ruled in our favor in this law suit," said Kathy Roche, a hospital spokeswoman. "We don't believe the plaintiff's petition to a higher court has any merit."

Some hospital records are protected, especially if they involve physicians' reviews of their colleagues' performance, Esfandiari acknowledged.

He plans to argue, however, that Cabana is seeking records related to medical research that are not subjected to confidentiality law but those being sought involve research, Esfandiari said.

Cabana's lawyers filed the lawsuit in July 2011. The suit names Dr. Ali Mesiwala, who treated Cabana, the hospital and a medical device manufacturer.

The case is expected to go to trial in May 2013.

By Monica Rodriguez, Staff Writer, monica.rodriguez@inlandnewspapers.com, 909-483-9336, Twitter @PomonaNow

Source: The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

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