## Facts

- Francis S. Coker was admitted for a gallbladder removal surgery at a hospital in January 1986.
- Dr. William Brotherton served as anesthesiologist; Linda Falco, R.N., was assigned as a recovery-room nurse.
- After surgery, Coker was taken to the recovery room, initially showing stable vital signs but with shallow respiration noted by Falco.
- Brotherton gave a verbal caution to monitor respiration due to narcotics and left the recovery room after a brief period.
- Falco asked another nurse to watch Coker and left to attend another patient.
- Falco later returned, having obtained no verbal response from Coker earlier, and did not recognize that he had stopped breathing until a respiratory therapist discovered the arrest.
- Coker sustained anoxic brain damage, remained in a coma for more than a year, and died; plaintiffs maintained he was unable to perceive pain or pleasure during the coma.

## Issues

1. Whether an estate may recover survival damages for loss of enjoyment of life when the decedent was continuously comatose and unable to perceive pain or pleasure.
2. Whether the trial court properly used additur to increase the jury’s loss-of-enjoyment award.
3. Whether it was error to allow the jury to apportion wrongful-death damages among statutory beneficiaries rather than having the court do so.
4. Whether the damages instructions and verdict structure created a risk of an unjust damages verdict requiring a new trial on damages.

## Decision

- The court held that loss of enjoyment of life is a compensable element of survival damages even if the injured person was permanently unconscious; awareness is not required.
- The court affirmed the jury’s finding that Falco was solely liable.
- The court held the wrongful-death apportionment procedure was improper because allocation among beneficiaries is for the court, not the jury.
- Due to errors in damages presentation, including apportionment and the risk of double counting between pain-and-suffering and loss-of-enjoyment concepts, the court remanded for a new trial on damages (survival and wrongful death), leaving liability intact.

## Legal Principles

- Loss of enjoyment of life may be awarded as survival damages for objective impairment of the ability to live normally and participate in life’s activities, even when the victim lacks conscious awareness.
- Pain and suffering damages generally require conscious awareness and must be limited to periods of actual awareness, if any.
- Damages instructions and verdict forms must be structured to prevent duplicative recovery where multiple non-economic damage categories are submitted.
- In wrongful-death actions, the jury determines the total pecuniary loss, but the court allocates that award among statutory beneficiaries.

## Conclusion

The appellate court affirmed the nurse’s liability but ordered a new damages trial, holding that an estate may recover survival damages for loss of enjoyment of life despite continuous coma, and that wrongful-death apportionment must be made by the court with damages presented to avoid duplication.


Eyoma v. Falco, 589 A.2d 653 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 1991)