Articles Posted in Hospital Negligence

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Doe’s mother received some of her prenatal care at a federally funded healthcare program. Doe’s mother was admitted to a hospital for induction of labor at more than 40 weeks gestation.

The next day, the fetal monitor allegedly showed prolonged and late decelerations. Approximately two hours later, Baby Doe was delivered by cesarean section.

Doe’s Apgar scores were 1 at 1 minute and 4 at 5 minutes. He was diagnosed as having suffered hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Doe is now 5 years old and requires 24/7 care. Doe’s family and guardians filed a lawsuit against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act. The family alleged negligence by one provider and the hospital. The suit also alleged negligence by another provider and maintained that the provider failed to perform a timely cesarean section that would have prevented the child’s brain damage.
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Doe was born prematurely and underwent surgery. He was prescribed home oxygen therapy in anticipation of his discharge. While still hospitalized, Doe kicked his pulse oximeter off of his foot, prompting an alarm.

A respiratory therapist allegedly adjusted Doe’s nasal mask and repositioned him. Less than an hour later, a desaturation alarm sounded. A clinical assistant at the hospital allegedly silenced the alarm and subsequent alarms while providing care over the next 26 minutes.

Doe became cool to the touch. The clinical assistant allegedly attempted to auscultate a heartbeat. Unable to revive the heartbeat, the clinical assistant called for nursing assistance. When a nurse arrived, Doe was limp and unresponsive.
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Ms. Doe, 30, had a history of cesarean section, stillbirth and miscarriage. When she became pregnant again, she consulted with a maternal-fetal medicine specialist. A plan was put in place for a cesarean delivery at 39 weeks gestation.

During the 37th week of Ms. Doe’s pregnancy, she went to a hospital emergency room complaining of nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. Although she was sent home, her pain persisted. Ms. Doe was admitted to the hospital two nights later.

The hospital’s hospitalist placed Ms. Doe on a fetal monitor, which changed from normal to indeterminate over a relatively short time span. Ms. Doe’s abdominal pain worsened, but she was discharged with instructions to follow up with her treating obstetrician in the morning.
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The parents of a minor child noticed that since his birth, he breathed very loudly and made grunting noises. After a five-month period, pediatrician Aqil Surka and Dr. Ann Marie Edward examined the child multiple times and noted his breathing problems. The child’s sleep pattern deteriorated, and he lost weight.

The child (Doe) was brought to the practice after he vomited twice, refused his feeding and did not sleep well at night. Doe was later diagnosed as having aortic stenosis, which required a heart transplant. Doe is now 4 years old, immune-compromised and requires immune-suppressant drugs. Additionally, Doe requires regular cardiac testing and is expected to need a second heart transplant.

Doe’s parents, individually and on his behalf, sued Prisma Health-Upstate, under which the pediatric practice operated, alleging that the pediatrician and others had chosen not to timely diagnose Doe’s congenital heart defect.
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Towanna Neal delivered her daughter prematurely at Prisma Health Richland Hospital. The baby was transferred to the facility’s ICU, where she was fed intravenously.

The child developed an infection at the IV site, which required surgical grafting on her hand. The child later developed a hernia at the graft incision site, which also required surgery.

Although the child recovered, she will require future surgeries to treat her scar tissue.
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After delivering her second child at Roe Hospital, Ms. Doe, 32, experienced postpartum bleeding. Her pulse increased to 180 beats per minute. Her blood pressure plummeted to 74/44 mm Hg.

Ms. Doe’s treating obstetrician and the attending nurses tried unsuccessfully to stop the bleeding. They used a Bakri balloon and administered Hemabate solution. However, 90 minutes later, the doctor ordered a blood transfusion. Despite these efforts, Ms. Doe’s condition deteriorated and she later passed away.

She was survived by her husband and two minor children, including her newborn.
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At the end of her pregnancy, Ms. Doe experienced bleeding and pain. She went to the triage unit of Grove Hospital where she was seen by a midwife and first-year resident.

Ms. Doe was attached to a fetal monitor system, which showed decreased variability and some deceleration.

Although allegedly called, Ms. Doe’s treating obstetrician did not initially come to the hospital. An hour later, a nurse summoned the physician who arrived at the hospital more than two hours after Ms. Doe first presented to the hospital.
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The Illinois Appellate Court has ruled a woman may be able to hold the hospital liable for injuries her child sustained during labor and delivery.

The Illinois Appellate Court for the 5th District reversed a trial judge’s decision that the patient should have known the doctor who delivered her twins was independent from the hospital.

The appeals panel wrote that there were still questions as to whether the physician and the hospital made it appear the doctor was an agent of the institution rather than a contractor.
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Baby Doe was born prematurely and spent the first 98 days of her life in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit and special care nursery. The day after the baby’s discharge, her mother noticed that she was irritable, grunting, and not eating.

Doe’s mother called the hospital that day and spoke to Nurse Roe, who told the mother that Doe was fine and that she should simply keep her pediatric appointment for the following day.

Four hours after that call, Doe’s parents found Baby Doe turning blue in her crib. She was rushed to a hospital where she later died. An autopsy revealed that Doe’s death resulted from a serious but treatable bacterial infection.
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Katie and Michael Smith were expecting their sixth child when an examination showed that there was an absence of a fetal heartbeat. Katie Smith later delivered the fetus at Maine General Medical Center.

Tissue samples from the chromosomal testing were taken in the presence of the parents and the couple stated unequivocally to an attending physician that they did not want other samples taken from the baby’s body or additional procedures performed.

Nevertheless, pathologist Carol Saunders later removed a tissue from the baby in the pathology lab, leaving a large, gaping hole in the left side of the body. The Smith family discovered this deformity caused by the pathologist when they went to a funeral home to view the baby’s remains.
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