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Surgeon Admits Medical Malpractcie Liability In Philanthropist's Death Following Surgery

September 27, 2005

A Jacksonville plastic surgeon has conceded he was liable for the death last year of a 32-year-old philanthropist who had a heart attack after surgery in the doctor's office.

Attorneys for physician Reza Samiian notified lawyers for the family of Martin Gottlieb that they won't contest liability for his death. Gottlieb's widow agreed not to pursue a civil lawsuit against Samiian, meaning the case will proceed to arbitration on the issue of damages.

Shari Gottlieb also authorized release of medical records requested by the Florida Board of Medicine to assist with its inquiry into her husband's death. 'I don't want this to happen again. It was just unnecessary,' she said through tears at her lawyer's office. 'We trusted Dr. Samiian and his promises, and Martin is dead because Dr. Samiian did not tell us the truth.'

Martin Gottlieb, a father of two who operated a medical billing company, underwent liposuction at Samiian's office in April 2004. His wife said the couple researched the doctor and the surgery and believed Gottlieb was in good hands. They even paid an extra $400 for Samiian to hire a private nurse for after-surgery care. 'I said to Dr. Samiian, 'I don't know what to look for should something happen, and I want a nurse available,' ' Shari Gottlieb said. 'I probably could have saved him.'

Instead, Samiian hired an unlicensed surgical technician who didn't know how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation or operate an oxygen mask, said the Gottlieb family's attorney. The technician sent Shari Gottlieb home and told her everything was fine, but a short time later, Martin Gottlieb started having trouble breathing because of excessive drugs and fluid, according to a medical review of his death requested by the Duval County Medical Examiner's Office.

When he complained, he was given Valium, which doctors said further complicated his breathing. When the technician checked on him about an hour later, Pajcic said, he was turning blue. 'How could Dr. Samiian promise Marty Gottlieb a qualified nurse and leave him in the care of an unlicensed incompetent?' the family's attorney asked. 'When rescue got there, she was not even doing CPR.' That delay 'ultimately resulted in death,' concluded Hector Vila, chief anesthesiologist at H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa, who reviewed the death.

Ironically, Samiian was a champion of plastic surgeons performing surgery in their offices when the Board of Medicine temporarily suspended the practice in 2000. A past president of the Florida Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, Samiian appeared on national media broadcasts about the issue and said everyone in his office was certified to perform basic life-support resuscitation. The family's attorney said Gottlieb likely would still be alive if his surgery had been performed in a hospital. The board's inquiry into Gottlieb's death could lead to a reprimand, fine or even removal of Samiian's medical license.

In arbitration, non-economic damages such as pain and suffering are capped at $250,000, but there is no cap on economic damages. Shari Gottlieb described her husband as a kind, compassionate man who loved helping others. Just before he died, he forgave a $5,000 loan to one of his employees who had recently announced her pregnancy. He gave the Jacksonville Jewish Foundation free office space in the building he owned. In January, the Jacksonville Jewish Center renamed its day school for Gottlieb, a 1985 graduate whose children also attended the school. He served on several health care industry boards and foundations and lobbied for emergency medicine causes.