After going to a very good emergency room in a private hospital here, my sister was misdiagnosed as suffering a heart attack, even though the tests did not reveal one. Thousands of dollars later (paying for the “heart attack” treatment), she returned to the hospital after another attack, got a better doctor (an Indian, btw), and was diagnosed with gallstones. Her gallbladder had not been working for years and no physician had ever noticed this.
She’s had no problems since the removal of her gallbladder.
Personally, I think some of this woman’s problems did have to do with the fact that she was Hispanic. A family member who was a paramedic used to joke about HHS, Hispanic Hysterical Syndrome, because any ailment, no matter how minor, would bring out a grandmother who would throw herself on the street weeping and screaming. So the hospital probably wrote this woman off.
But they do that a lot. Once when my children were very young, I went to the doctor with severe backpains. He told me it was nerves. When I couldn’t stand it any more, I went to the emergency room, and they found a severe urinary tract infection that was begining to affect the kidneys.
So sometimes preconceptions - while they may have a basis in fact and experience - can interfere with medical treatment. And not only at the local state hospital, but at any level.
My daughter has a friend who was diagnosed with a heart problem and had emergency surgery to insert a pacemaker, all for Chinese restaurant syndrome. They, of course, had to do more surgery to remove the pacemaker. The guy special forces and now works for the Secret Service and has a resting heart rate of 35.
“A family member who was a paramedic used to joke about HHS, Hispanic Hysterical Syndrome, because any ailment, no matter how minor, would bring out a grandmother who would throw herself on the street weeping and screaming. So the hospital probably wrote this woman off.”
I will grant you that some Hispanics tend to be very emotional. A few can be emotional in the extreme.
Hopefully your family member paramedic also told you that it is relatively easy to tell if someone is truly in pain or not. Blood pressure and heart rate should do it. If you can’t do that, you can always watch their feet for a few minutes. Someone in severe pain can’t keep their feet still. They will keep moving them, trying to find a position to aleviate the pain. Have worked in paremedic/firefighting for years. Seen more than my share of drugseekers, and fakes. Most of us are fairly confident in our ability to assess pain. (children can be a little trickier, they tend to be very quiet when they are in pain)
No way the hospital avoids liablity here. ER docs or triage nurse is responsible, unless there is something major left out of the article.