Valderrama

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Plaintiffs’ Complaint According to plaintiffs’ complaint, on July 22, 2016, Melani Valderrama (Melani)3 presented herself to defendants’ care for the following procedures to be performed by Dr. Barnes, at Beautologie’s surgical facility in Bakersfield: (1) bilateral breast augmentation with right mastopexy and left crescent lift, and (2) abdominoplasty4 with liposuction. Dr. Barnes was aware that Melani was 40 years old, mildly obese, and was taking birth control medication, all of which increased her risk for developing blood clots after surgery. After the surgery, Melani developed a fever and cough. Henry Valderrama (Henry) placed a telephone call to defendants to notify them about these symptoms. Allegedly, Dr. Barnes’s response was that the symptoms were normal, and he did not request that Melani be immediately seen or examined. This conduct (i.e., Dr. Barnes’s failure to take action) constituted medical negligence and resulted in Melani’s death on July 27, 2016, from a pulmonary embolism. Cause of Death There is no dispute that Melani died of a pulmonary embolism. A pulmonary embolism is described in the record as a clot that breaks off from the…