S.C. Supreme Court upholds SJ in med mal action

In David v. McLeod Regional Medical Center, the state supreme court upheld a grant of summary judgment in a med mal action because an affidavit submitted in opposition to the motion did not establish the prospective expert's knowledge of the standard of care. According to the Court:

A doctor need not practice in the particular area of medicine as the defendant doctor to be qualified to testify as an expert. Creed v. City of Columbia, 310 S.C. 342, 345, 426 S.E.2d 785, 786. (1993). However, regardless of the area in which the prospective expert witness practices, he must demonstrate to the court that he is familiar with the applicable standard of care for the medical procedure under scrutiny before he may be qualified as an expert witness. Again, despite Dr. Frist's qualifications, his affidavit does not provide that he is familiar with the standard of care he alleges was breached. Therefore, we hold that the trial court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of Respondents.