By Gina Tabonares
Variety News Staff

THE Andersen Family Care Clinic, a medical unit at Andersen Air Force Base on Guam, was sued by the wife of an Air Force member for alleged medical practice.
Maresa L. Anderson, through her attorney John S. Unpingco, filed a civil case before the U.S. District Court of Guam on March 1, six months after filing a complaint with the Department of the Air Force.
According to the complaint, Anderson went to the base clinic on Oct. 24, 2005 and sought medical treatment for neck and thoracic pain.
Since her physician, Dr. Palmer, was away for a flight surgeon training, she was instead attended by Capt. Kirin L. Madden, a practicing physician’s assistance at the 36th Medical Group Unit at Andersen Air Force Base.
The woman claimed that Madden caused her to suffer from pneumothorax, more commonly known as a collapsed lung, by repeatedly and negligently administering trigger point injections in her back.
Anderson said Madden negligently inserted needles using unnecessary force into her back.
She said the day after the trigger point injections, she returned to the clinic because she was experiencing shortness of breath and tremendous pain.
Anderson was attended to by Madden, who prescribed Percocet and sent her home without having x-rays taken of her chest.
The complaint states that Madden, as a physician assistant, had a duty and breached that duty by failing to carry out the trigger point injections in a manner that did not expose the Air Force member’s wife to an unreasonable risk of harm.
The doctor allegedly breached her duty as a physician’s assistant when she failed to properly diagnose plaintiff’s condition the day after the trigger point injections, when Anderson returned to the clinic.
As a result of Madden’s alleged negligence, plaintiff sustained a collapsed lung which had to be re-inflated by means of a tube inserted through a puncture wound made by another physician.
The plaintiff stated that she suffered tremendous pain, mental anguish, bodily injury, permanent disability, and medical and hospital expenses, and will continue in the future to suffer pain, mental anguish and medical expenses.
Anderson reportedly submitted a $300,000 claim before the U.S. Air Force on Aug. 8, 2006 and when the department failed to make a final disposition on her claim, she decided to bring the complaint before the district court.
In her lawsuit, Anderson wants a jury trial and compensation of $300,000, together with costs of the case and other relief that the court may deem appropriate.
A summons has been issued to the U.S. Judiciary Center in Washington, D.C. and to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Guam and NMI.
The federal government respondents have 60 days to answer the complaint.