ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 14, 1996 TAG: 9605140043
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NORFOLK, VA.
SOURCE: Associated Press
NOTE: Below
HE WAS TAKING THE BIBLE a bit too literally, and says doctors knew he was not quite competent.
A man who cut off his right hand because he thought it was possessed by the devil, then refused to let surgeons reattach it, is suing the hospital and the doctors over the loss of the hand.
Thomas W. Passmore claims doctors at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital should have contacted his parents or sister to overrule him.
According to the lawsuit, Passmore, a 32-year-old working on a construction job, thought he saw the number ``666'' on his hand and believed it was a demonic sign. Obeying the Biblical instruction ``If thy right hand offend thee, cut it off,'' Passmore sliced off his hand with a circular saw.
At the hospital, the lawsuit said, Passmore told doctors he had a history of psychiatric disorders, including manic-depression, and had had little sleep, little food and racing thoughts for the past week.
He refused to consent to surgery, saying he thought he would go to hell if the hand were reattached. The hospital contacted a judge, who advised that it heed Passmore's wishes, the lawsuit said.
According to the $3.35 million suit, the surgeon and the hospital did not tell the judge that Passmore was incompetent.
The lawsuit, which asks for, was filed April22.
Debbie Meyers, spokeswoman for the hospital, said she could not comment because hospital officials had not seen the lawsuit.
Under state law, a doctor or hospital cannot be held liable for withholding treatment if a judge approves that action and the patient is capable of an informed decision.
LENGTH: Short : 42 linesby CNB