Inset: Emily Mitchell (Berman & Simmons law firm). Background: The now-shuttered Northern Light Inland Hospital in Waterville, Maine (Google Maps).
A Maine woman who went in for what was expected to be routine surgery to remove a benign ovarian cyst instead had her bladder “mistakenly removed,” a jury found, resulting in a $17 million medical malpractice verdict over what her lawyers described as a devastating and preventable surgical error.
On July 23, a Kennebec County jury found Northern Light Inland Hospital and Northern Light Health liable for the March 2023 operation involving Emily Mitchell. The award covers past and future medical costs, pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and permanent impairment, according to court records and a news release issued by Mitchell’s attorneys.
The malpractice case centered on a laparoscopic procedure performed March 1, 2023, after medical imaging showed Mitchell’s benign ovarian cyst had increased significantly in size. But rather than removing the cyst, trial evidence showed the surgeon removed Mitchell’s bladder by mistake during the two-week proceedings.
Mitchell’s health declined quickly after the surgery, leading to her transfer to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor for emergency treatment. Surgeons there discovered that her bladder had been taken out during the initial procedure. Pathology later confirmed the removed tissue was full-thickness bladder tissue, and doctors concluded there was not enough healthy tissue left to repair or reconstruct the organ, her attorneys said.
The error triggered a long and painful medical ordeal. For more than eight months, Mitchell depended on catheters that drained urine directly from her kidneys while she suffered recurring urinary tract infections, kidney infections, additional procedures and other complications.
Mitchell was later sent to specialists in Massachusetts, where surgeons carried out a complex reconstructive surgery using part of her small intestine to build what essentially functions as a bladder.
Despite that reconstruction, Mitchell’s injuries are permanent. Her attorneys said she must self-catheterize several times a day and will need continuing medical treatment and specialist care for the rest of her life because of the loss of her bladder.
After hearing two weeks of testimony, jurors found Northern Light Inland Hospital and its parent organization, Northern Light Health, liable for Mitchell’s injuries and returned the $17 million verdict. According to her attorneys, it is the largest medical malpractice verdict ever returned in Kennebec County.
“For our clients, this isn’t just a legal victory — it’s the closure they’ve needed for a long time,” attorney Susan A. Faunce said in a statement. “They can finally begin to move forward, knowing that what happened to them was seen, heard, and acknowledged. This verdict won’t undo the pain our clients have endured, but it does offer something they haven’t had in a long time: closure. They can finally put this chapter behind them.”
Co-counsel Travis M. Brennan said the verdict followed years of waiting for accountability.
“Our clients have waited a long time for this measure of justice, and today the jury delivered it,” he said.
Northern Light Health said it respects the jury’s decision while acknowledging the outcome of Mitchell’s care.
“Every patient who comes to our organization deserves safe, compassionate, and high-quality care,” Senior Vice President Suzanne Spruce said in a statement provided to The Morning Sentinel. “When outcomes fall short of those expectations, we take them very seriously. We are committed to continuously evaluating our care, our systems, and our processes to identify opportunities to improve safety and the care provided to our patients.”
The lawsuit did not name the surgeon individually. The Morning Sentinel reported the physician is no longer employed by Northern Light Health.
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