A Fayette County

woman has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit

over a 1999 incident that resulted in amputation

of her son's arm.

According to

records filed Feb. 10 in Fayette County Superior

Court, the Hughston Clinic, which has an office

in Fayetteville, is a defendant, along with one

of its doctors, who is listed individually.

Tia Bradford-White,

filing individually and as "next

friend" of Darius White, who is a minor,

charges that the clinic and Dr. Alan Davis did

not meet the normal standard of care for cases

such as Darius' and their negligence resulted in

the loss of his arm.

The child was

discharged from Southern Regional Medical Center

April 15 last year, the suit states, where he was

under the care of Dr. Michael Behr for treatment

of a fractured left forearm. Behr, also an

employee of the Hughston Clinic, is not named in

the suit.

Bradford-White

called the Hughston Clinic the next day to

schedule a follow-up appointment. She was told

that none were available that day and given a

slot April 20.

She called back

April 17 to report that the child had various

postoperative complications, such as "pain,

swelling, fever, discharge and

discoloration," according to court records.

She reportedly

spoke to Davis twice that day and again the next

day, and the plaintiff claims that at none of

those times did Davis suggest Darius should be

seen by a physician.

Bradford-White

brought the child to the clinic April 19, and he

was examined by Behr and admitted to Fayette

Community Hospital for compartment syndrome and

infection of the left forearm. He was then

airlifted to Egleston Children's Hospital in

Atlanta.

His forearm was

amputated April 20.

The lawsuit

includes a sworn affidavit by Dr. Robert Bright,

a pediatric orthopedic surgeon in Maryland, who

affirms based on his review of the records that

the level of care was not adequate in this case.

Court records did

not indicate the child's age or the cause of the

original fracture. A call to the plaintiff's

attorney in Stone Mountain seeking a comment was

not returned by press time.

The suit also

states that Davis is a Fayette County resident.

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