Missed diagnosis causes Oklahoma man to be paralyzed
OKLAHOMA CITY – Vic Chappelle once was an active man. He retired from oilfield supply sales to spend time with his grandchildren, doing chores around the house and tending to his yard.
Following a missed diagnosis, Chappelle, 60, couldn’t do these things any longer. He couldn’t pick up his grandchildren or mend a fence. He needed help dressing and needed a wheelchair to get around.
Chappelle was loading a riding lawnmower onto a trailer in May 2006 when it fell on him, hurting his chest. Over the next several days, Chappelle continued to suffer from low-back pain and weakness in his legs and feet. This wasn’t brought to the attention of his physicians. Chappelle continued to suffer from back pain and weakness in his lower extremities, but his physicians made no effort to determine why this was happening, even after nurses assessed his strength.
Around this time, nurses were helping Chappelle use the restroom. They dropped him screaming in pain while he was on the floor and complaining about numbness in his lower legs. Within 24 hours the numbness had spread to his knees and upper thighs, but his physicians did not order a neurological consultation. Several days later a physician ordered a CT scan, suspecting spinal cord compression.
When the CT scan was performed 12 hours later, it showed Chappelle had a fracture in his spine. Although Chappelle underwent two surgeries and spent a month recovering in the hospital, he was left with partial paralysis in his legs, went through extensive physical therapy and could not walk unassisted. He needed help doing simple things most people take for granted, like putting on socks or taking a shower.
Chappelle’s wife, Barbara, described the effect her husband’s life-altering injury has had on their relationship. “As I have gotten older, I expected to have to care for my parents in some way. I didn’t envision having to care for my spouse,” she said.
Barbara Chappelle wants Oklahomans to know how Senate Bill 863, which passed the Senate Judiciary Committee last week and is expected to be brought up for a floor vote at any time, will affect Oklahomans such as her husband. Despite being forced to use a wheelchair, SB 863 would deny Vic Chappelle and other injured Oklahomans more than $250,000 for a lifetime of suffering.
