Wednesday, September 24, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Letter ends lawsuit, patient says

Doctors express relief that dispute over appointment missed by hours is over

Aristotelis Belavilas on Tuesday displays a letter of apology from pain specialist Dr. Ty Weller. Photo by Craig L. Moran.

The patient and physician involved in a lawsuit over a long wait for medical care have settled their case out of court.

Patient Aristotelis Belavilas, who recently sued pain specialist Dr. Ty Weller, said the pair have settled because Weller has agreed to apologize for the incident.

"He wrote me a letter and apologized," Belavilas said. "I'm happy. That's exactly what I was looking for. He should have apologized in the beginning, and everything would have been fine."

Attempts to reach Weller on Tuesday failed. Weller's office staff hung up on a Review-Journal reporter calling to seek comment.

Weller's letter of apology reads:

"I am sorry for the fact that I missed our scheduled appointment on February 25, 2003, and for the fact that you had to wait for such a long time. I also apologize for not appearing more sensitive upon my arrival and for the statements which I made and which were reported in the press."

The settlement is a relief to area doctors, who said the case now will not set any kind of precedent. They said physicians need to keep patients apprised when they are running late, but patients have to understand that doctors often keep patients waiting because they are taking care of other people.

They said it is impossible for them to predict what kind of medical problem might arise while they are seeing other patients.

"There are long wait times whether you go to the emergency room, the hospital or a doctor's office. We can't change that," Dr. Rudy Manthei said. "We really don't know what we're going to have to deal with, and we have to tailor our time to our patients' needs."

Belavilas sued Weller after being forced to wait three hours for medical treatment. Belavilas was awarded $250 in small-claims court for his ordeal. Weller filed an objection to the ruling, which was tossed out as part of the settlement agreement, said Weller's attorney, Monica Pierce.

"Dr. Weller agreed to dismiss his appeal," Pierce said. "He is satisfied with the outcome."

As part of the settlement, Weller must donate $360 to the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation.

"I never wanted any money," Belavilas said. "As long as it goes towards some children's charity, everything is fine with me."

In February, Belavilas was scheduled to have a steroid injection in his spine to fight back pain. The injection was scheduled for 2 p.m., but Weller did not show up until 5:15.

In previous interviews, Weller said he was trying to squeeze Belavilas into a packed schedule because Belavilas insisted on having the procedure done the day before he left on his vacation to Greece.

Weller said Belavilas was told that the doctor was running late and was given the opportunity to reschedule.

Weller said he was particularly backed up the day he scheduled Belavilas because of the need to travel to four different surgery centers. To accommodate Belavilas, Weller said he traveled to a center he normally does not visit.

Dr. Ed Kingsley, president of the Clark County Medical Society, said the lawsuit was a sign of a society bent on suing over every little thing. He said such lawsuits help raise the cost of medical care for everyone.

"I told Dr. Weller to take the high road and apologize," he said. "This whole lawsuit was disappointing."