Nashville Woman Seeks $150 Million Over Surgery Drug Error

Published November 11, 2026: Linda Gilbert, a Nashville woman who was 78 when she underwent knee replacement surgery, has filed a claim against Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown seeking $150 million. Her lawsuit alleges that hospital staff mistakenly injected potassium phosphate into her spinal canal instead of the anesthetic mepivacaine on August 14. The hospital system has said four surgical patients received the wrong medication that day.

The November 6 complaint says Gilbert sustained severe damage to her spinal cord and nerves. It alleges she developed incomplete paraplegia and profound weakness in both legs, leaving her unable to walk, drive or live on her own. She also experienced shock and respiratory failure and needed a ventilator. The filing says her injuries are permanent and that she was receiving inpatient rehabilitation at an Atlanta spinal cord injury center when the suit was filed.

Gilbert alleges staff kept drawing medication from the same batch after two other patients complained of burning pain. The complaint also claims there were breakdowns in preparing and checking medication, and delays in treating her. She requests $50 million for compensatory losses, as well as $100 million in punitive damages.

According to its prescribing information, the medication should be diluted before being given through a vein. The label warns that excessive or rapid intravenous administration may cause severe complications, including seizures and cardiac arrest; those warnings address intravenous use, not the spinal injection alleged in the suit.

Ascension Saint Thomas said it is cooperating with the legal process and cannot provide further details while the case is pending. The hospital has expressed concern for all four affected patients and said it brought in an independent quality consultant to assess corrective measures.