The Bulletin newspaper from Bend, Oregon, has reported that the daughter of a woman who died after an elective surgery in 2010 has filed a lawsuit naming the St. Charles Health System for negligence.
H.L., the daughter of the deceased, L.D., alleges that both the nurses and anesthesiologist that tended to her mother failed to provide her with the proper care required to sustain her life. H.L. is seeking $1.69 million in damages. L.D. was 48 years old at the time of her death at St. Charles Bend.Anesthesiologist L.J., two nurses and Cardiovascular Consultants of the Cascades – operating under the name The Heart Center – are listed as the defendants.
According to H.L.'s attorney Robert Barton, L.D. entered the hospital in November 2010 for a routine spinal fusion procedure. However L.D.'s important medical history was not taken into account before the neck surgery began. Due to this negligence H.L. believes her mother died unnecessarily.
Barton said, "The bottom line, as we see it, is this was a woman who, other than her heart condition, was relatively healthy. She went in for what should have been a routine procedure and didn't make it out alive."
Had L.D.'s medical records been examined doctors and nurses would have learned that she had a heart attack in 2005 and was treated with a stent.
According to court records, five years later, in October of 2010, L.D. had a chief complaint of chest pain when she entered the St. Charles emergency room. She was evaluated and released. One month later, during her November of 2010, the hospital did not share the medical records from her October visit with Dr. L.J.
The suit states that as soon as L.D. was under the anesthetic she started to show symptoms of distress. As her blood pressure dropped – seriously low – L.J. used an aggressive measure, stabilizing drugs, to try and bring her blood pressure back up to normal.
The suit explained, "There is no documentation indicating Dr. (L.J.) discussed Mrs. (L.D.'s) labile blood pressure with the surgeon, nor did he request or perform any additional diagnostic studies to determine why she was having such difficulty."
After L.D.'s surgery the suit states that Dr. L.J. failed to send her to an intensive care or cardiac care unit to be monitored more attentively. Furthermore, Dr. L.J. noted that his patient had tolerated the anesthesia without any outward complications, as listed in his postoperative report.
While in the recovery room L.D. had a heart attack and the hospital staff were unable to recover her. The spokeswoman for St. Charles, Lisa Goodman, chose not to comment to reporters asking about the pending lawsuit. The pretrial hearing is scheduled for April and Barton said that he thinks the case will go to trial by the fall or winter of 2014.
Loosing a loved one under any circumstance is painful, however, loosing a loved one due to the negligence of a member of the medical profession is grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit. Why don't you click here for our directory and get started when you contact a medical malpractice lawyer today?