UC Agrees to Pay Huge Settlement in Malpractice Suit

The University of California has agreed to a $20.2-million settlement with the family of a Garden Grove woman who has been comatose since hand surgery 4 1/2 years ago at UC Irvine Medical Center, the family’s attorneys said Saturday.

Most of the money, believed to be the largest medical malpractice award against the hospital, will pay for the future medical care of 39-year-old Denise DeSoto, who has not regained consciousness since her breathing tube was blocked during an operation.

The settlement was triggered by a ruling last fall by Orange County Superior Court Judge C. Robert Jameson. He ordered the UC regents to pay the family nearly $19 million after finding that the university had withheld key evidence and concealed the existence of a crucial witness in a malpractice case brought by DeSoto’s husband, Jose “Pepe” DeSoto, 39.

Jameson said the university had “stonewalled from the get-go” and tried to prevent the court from learning how Denise DeSoto suffered brain damage through “intentional, despicable, unprofessional” conduct.

As a result, the judge took the extraordinary step of barring the university from presenting a defense against the lawsuit.

UC Irvine officials have acknowledged that there were delays in handing over evidence in the case but said they were not meant to stymie the court. The hospital appealed the judge’s decision, but then entered settlement discussions in March.

UC Irvine attorneys could not be reached for comment. However, hospital spokeswoman Kim Pine confirmed the settlement had been reached, but said it calls for a lower figure, $18.3 million. “UCI really regrets this unfortunate event which had such a sad outcome,” Pine said.

The settlement, finalized on Friday, also will pay past medical bills and leave about $500,000 to Pepe DeSoto and another $500,000 in trust for the couple’s two sons.

DeSoto was on her way home from work on Dec. 6, 1993, when she had an accident in her minivan. She was taken to UC Irvine Medical Center, where surgeons amputated two of her fingers and reattached two others.

A week later, she lost circulation in the reattached fingers and underwent surgery a second time to correct the problem.

After 30 minutes in the recovery room, DeSoto turned blue and suffered cardiac arrest and brain damage from lack of oxygen, said Cornelius P. Bahan, the family’s lawyer. When doctors removed her breathing tube, they found it was clogged with mucus, preventing the passage of air.

Bahan asserted in court that the university concealed the existence of some witnesses with firsthand knowledge, including the anesthesiologist who was the first physician to come to DeSoto’s aid.

Bahan said it took more than three years and numerous trips to court for the regents’ attorneys to admit the existence of the anesthesiologist, who had just five months’ experience as a resident.

The lawyer said the family’s nightmare was exacerbated when the hospital billed his client for more than $200,000 in medical bills not covered by insurance.

“They continued to press for collection and completely wiped out the family’s credit,” Bahan said.

Said Pepe DeSoto: “I remember one time I got a bill and they were threatening me. I told them it was under litigation, and they said, ‘We really don’t care. You owe us the bill.’ ”

The attorney said UC Irvine also refused to pay the mounting bills at a long-term care facility in Santa Ana, where Denise was moved.