Kangavari

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

I. Facts

At 2:07 a.m. on October 11, 2020, three-year-old Charlie L. (plaintiff) was brought by his mother to the emergency department at PIH Health Hospital-Whittier for abdominal pain. Plaintiff had been in and out of hospitals for conditions related to a malrotated bowel he had at birth, for which he had endured several corrective surgeries as well as prior emergency department visits for incidents of vomiting and constipation. At around 3:00 a.m., the emergency department physician treating plaintiff issued “stat” orders for an X-ray and ultrasound of plaintiff’s abdomen. The images were sent for evaluation to Peymam Kangavari, M.D., an “on-call radiologist” working remotely. The X-ray was taken at 3:12 a.m. and Kangavari issued a report based on the images at 3:51 a.m. The ultrasound was taken at 3:24 a.m. and Kangavari issued another report based on those images at 4:35 a.m. Both reports concluded that plaintiff’s bowel was unobstructed. Based on Kangavari’s reports of the imaging results as well as other examinations of plaintiff by

3 emergency department staff, plaintiff was discharged home at 5:54 a.m. with instructions to follow up…