A medical malpractice lawsuit was filed in federal court in Maine today against MaineHealth, Spectrum Healthcare, and a radiologist who is alleged to have misdiagnosed a 63-year-old man's radiology imaging, leading to him developing a stroke that caused permanent injuries. The plaintiffs, Jeffrey Sayward and his wife Kim Sayward, shown below before his injury, are represented in the lawsuit by medical malpractice attorney Elizabeth Kayatta at Berman & Simmons.
On the morning of May 29, 2023, Mr. Sayward sought treatment at MaineHealth's Southern Maine Medical Center in Biddeford after experiencing an episode of syncope.
Attorney Elizabeth Kayatta commented, “Mr. and Mrs. Sayward did exactly what you’re supposed to do in a situation like this: they called 911 and went to the emergency room. They put their trust in the on-duty radiologist to flag all critical and life-threatening findings on the imaging taken of Mr. Sayward’s brain.”
The lawsuit alleges that the Spectrum Healthcare radiologist who reviewed Mr. Sayward’s CTA brain scan negligently misread the imaging and failed to note a critical finding: a dangerous blood clot that was at risk of dislodging and blocking the blood supply to the brain.
The lawsuit claims that based on the radiologist’s “negative” report of the imaging, the ER discharged Mr. Sayward home, suggesting he must have been lightheaded due to dehydration from golfing in the sun the day before.
Nine hours later, the untreated blood clot dislodged and progressed further downstream into Mr. Sayward’s brain, causing a stroke when it blocked the brain’s blood supply in the left superior cerebellar artery.
The injuries from the stroke were devastating. Mr. Sayward remained hospitalized for a week, and then required a lengthy inpatient rehabilitation at New England Rehabilitation Hospital. Despite extensive PT and OT, Mr. Sayward suffered permanent impairments due to his stroke.
The lawsuit is believed to be the first non-governmental medical malpractice case to be filed in Federal court for the U.S. District of Maine since the January 2026 decision by the United States Supreme Court in Berk v. Choy (607 U.S. 187, 146 S. Ct. 546). The Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling found that a state law could not create additional filing barriers for medical malpractice lawsuits in federal court. This will be the first occasion for the U.S. District Court for Maine to apply the Supreme Court’s decision to the Maine Health Security Act.