Personal Injury Law

Government Settles Naval Center Medical Malpractice Case

By Steven M. Levin and John J. Perconti

The federal government has agreed to pay $450,000 to settle a medical malpractice case filed by the family of a woman who died at a Naval Medical Center after a routine surgery to remove an infected boil. The federal government admitted no wrongdoing in the medical malpractice settlement. The woman died after anesthesiologist failed to intubate her after the surgery. Her airway became obstructed and she stopped breathing, causing cardiac arrest. According to the medical malpractice complaint, the victim was being treated at a hospital for an infected boil and when it worsened they determined emergency surgery was necessary. The surgery was successful but the victim was left without a breathing tube for at least 15 minutes while being transferred from the operating room to the intensive care unit. The anesthesiologist should have known that the woman had other medical issues, which included diabetes, and but a breathing tube in place. When she finally arrived in the ICU she had no pulse or blood pressure. This victim represents one of the 98,000 people who die annually from medical mistake. To read more about the medical mistake, please click the link.

Full post as published by Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog on September 30, 2009 (boomark / email).