Janie Sanchez and Kenneth Adams, Spouse v. Lowry Schaub, M.D., and Kevin Crawford, M.D.

# Court Rules Patient May Have Case Over Unauthorized Medical Procedure ## What Happened Janie Sanchez and her husband Kenneth Adams sued two physicians, Lowry Schaub and Kevin Crawford, over a medical procedure. During surgery where Sanchez was under general anesthesia, the doctors performed a stellate ganglion block (a nerve injection for pain relief) without obtaining her permission beforehand. Sanchez claimed the doctors should have discussed this procedure with her and gotten her approval before proceeding. ## What the Court Decided The trial court initially sided with the doctors, dismissing the case. However, an appeals court disagreed. The court found there were genuine questions about whether the doctors properly informed Sanchez about the procedure and obtained her consent. Because these factual questions remained, the case was sent back to the lower court for trial. ## Why This Matters for Workers This ruling reinforces an important patient right: doctors must inform you about procedures and get your permission before performing them, even during surgery. Workers have the right to understand medical treatments affecting their bodies. This case shows courts will allow cases to proceed when there are questions about whether informed consent was properly obtained.