16 NEWS
2025
16 NEWS
8 NOVEMBER 2024 ausdoc . com . au
Ex-wife sues GP for negligence
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Heather Saxena A GP ’ s ex-wife , whom he treated for 17 years during their marriage , is suing him for negligence , accusing him of failing to manage her cardiac risk factors before she had a stroke .
County Court of Victoria documents allege the GP gave her substandard treatment for hypertension and hyperlipidaemia before the stroke in 2012 , which resulted in cognitive deficits and impaired speech .
The doctor accepted that he had treated his then wife , who was an RN , both at their home and at his clinic .
But in his statement of defence , he denied owing her a duty of care , saying any treatment was not “ within a professional relationship of registered GP and patient but rather as an incident of marriage between the parties ”.
He also alleged the stroke was not caused by arterial disease .
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According to court documents , his former wife said he had first measured her blood pressure back in 2007 when she was experiencing palpitations , blurred vision , anxiety and hypertension .
The reading was apparently 140 / 100mmHg , leading him to prescribe telmisartan . But she claimed he had failed to measure her blood pressure when he altered the doses .
In response , the GP said ,
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as a trained nurse , she had “ insisted on taking her own blood pressure ” and that he had assumed , on the advice of his wife , that her blood pressure was adequately managed . His ex-wife also alleged that , during their marriage , he had ordered pathology in 2005 that had shown serum cholesterol levels of 6.2nmol / L and LDL of 3.7nmol / L and then again in 2007 , when the levels were 7.3nmol / L and 4.7nmol / L , respectively .
She accused him of not advising her of the 2005 test results or prescribing relevant medication on the 38 other times he had allegedly treated her that year . He had also failed to refer her for subsequent cholesterol testing after 2007 , she said .
In 2007 , her husband had diagnosed hyperlipidaemia and prescribed fixed-dose amlodipine – atorvastatin , which she had discontinued the next year , she said .
She alleged that a reasonable standard of care required
He had advised her to ‘ pursue a healthy lifestyle , diet and food intake ’, which she failed to do .
him to refer her for lipid profiles every six months and to check her blood pressure every 12 months , referring her to a physician if it could not be controlled .
“ Had [ her ] blood pressure and cholesterol been adequately controlled , [ she ] would have avoided her stroke ,” her statement of claim said .
The GP ’ s defence statement said she did not tolerate cholesterol medication and he had advised her to “ pursue a healthy lifestyle , diet and food intake ”, which she had failed to do .
He also argued that their 2016 divorce agreement , which had included 70 % of assets going to her , prevented her from making a further claim against him .
Previously , he had tried to block the legal action against him because the time period for filing a claim had expired .
But a court judge had found that she was unaware her stroke may have been related to her husband ’ s management until her lawyers obtained medicolegal reports on her behalf and allowed the case to continue .
The Victorian Court of Appeal upheld the decision that the case should continue .
It is due to return to court in November .