Morrison v. MacNamara
Facts:
Plaintiff went to defendant for a urethral smear test, an invasive procedure. Defendant had plaintiff stand during the test. Plaintiff fainted during the test, hitting his head on a blood pressure stand and the floor, causing permanent loss of his senses of smell and taste, in addition to other injuries.
Procedural History:
The trial court instructed the jury that a local standard of care, for which the jury found for the defendant.
Issue:
Is a standard of care based on a reasonably prudent local person or a reasonably prudent national person?
Plaintiff's Argument:
Jury should have been instructed to apply a national standard of care.
Defendant's Argument:
Jury should have been instructed to apply a local standard of care.
Rule:
Cases must be judged on a national standard of care.
Reasoning:
Medical cases have historically based on a local standard of care for the benefit of rural areas, but that does not apply to district court, and it is obsolete in a modern society anyway. It encourages medical communities to not advance their medical standards.
Holding:
The standard of care is that a reasonably prudent national person. Reversed.