Posted on 08/05/2021 5:19:43 PM PDT by lightman
Note: this article has been updated to include a response from WellSpan.
A Philadelphia law firm said Thursday it filed a lawsuit on behalf of a 72-year-old man who died after staff apparently lost track of him in the emergency room at WellSpan York Hospital.
Terry Lynn Odoms, who arrived by ambulance and was put in a wheelchair, was a Marine Corps and Vietnam veteran, according to lawyer Matt Casey, who is representing Odoms’ family.
“A decorated veteran who fought for our country was abandoned and left to suffer and die by a health system that knew it wasn’t adequately staffed. No one bothered even to check on him when his name was called but elicited no response,” said Casey, who specializes in personal injury lawsuits. “The conduct here is truly shocking and outrageous, and one is left to wonder whether Mr. Odoms’ station in life — he was neither rich nor powerful — had anything to do with what happened.”
Odoms had been brought to the hospital for symptoms including elevated heart and respiratory rates, according to Casey.
He died on Aug. 16, 2019.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health eventually concluded that Odoms was examined shortly after arriving at the ER.
He then sat in a wheelchair for 70 minutes with no further attention from staff, with video footage showing staffers walking past him several times.
Staff called his name three times but, hearing no response, concluded he had left without receiving treatment. He was eventually found unconscious and pronounced dead, according to the health department, which required WellSpan to carry out a plan of correction.
About two months later, WellSpan was again cited by the health department after the department concluded staff had failed to respond to declining vital signs of patient who died of a slow heartbeat.
WellSpan on Thursday afternoon made this statement:
“Our hearts go out to this patient’s family. This was a tragic situation. WellSpan has conducted a top-to-bottom review of our safety and care protocols, created new care team roles and conducted rigorous trainings with our staff. We also have fully implemented all of the PA Department of Health’s recommendations. While we cannot provide additional comment given this is a pending legal matter, our focus remains on providing safe, timely and high-quality care to every patient, every time.”
I just retired after over 46 years in medicine, most of it in ER work. I loved working in ER’s in my early career but in the past 10 years or the majority of patients are homeless bums, drug addicts, and welfare types ( I know, I’m repeating myself). For them the ER is a 24 hour walk-in clinic, a good place to demand a sandwich at 2:00 AM, and ambulances are fancy taxi cabs. I’m done and I don’t miss it.
SEMPER FI BROTHER.
In another 20 years or less, they will have gotten rid of all of us OLD CORPS, Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard WARRIORS that THEY HAVE HATED since the POLITICIANS lost the war we fought for them!
“when I die and go to heaven, to saint Peter I will tell; ONE MORE MARINE REPORTING SIR, I SERVED MY TIME IN HELL”
And as far as I’m concerned, that includes this whole Goddamned f#cked up system!
The more government gets its grimy hands on the health care system, the worse this will get. Stories like this are common in the UK. We basically have socialized medicine here, since government is the biggest player in health care and insurance. That is why so many doctors are quitting, why rural areas are losing their hospitals, and why we often wait months to see a specialist.
Thanks to Covid, many hospitals are not allowing family members to be with their loved ones in ER, surgery and special procedure areas and often in recovery areas.
Our grand kids’ other grandmother died by herself in a NJ Nursing Home in the first few weeks of March a year ago. Our DIL couldn’t view or pick up the body of her mother until later that summer.
A week later one of my best friends died in an upscale nursing home with zero visitors allowed. Clovid had barely shown up yet, but we and his family could not say goodbye. His funeral service was just held this past Saturday. His service was held outside to enable a large crowd to be there.
My wife about 5 weeks ago had special cortisone shots in her lower back. I was not allowed into the procedure room, and they brought her out to the traffic circle after the procedure. Before Covid, I was with her the before, during and after the same procedure. Then, I helped the RN’s with their post op care.
I had a toe amputated last August, and my wife was allowed to bring me up to the procedure area in a wheel chair. Then she went back to the entry area to wait for me to be wheeled down post amputation. Then, she wheeled me to the courtesy car drop off and the valets and she loaded me into our car.
A friend, who is a Covid Survivor at age of 81, needed a pace maker installed after he survived. His two daughters are RNs and work at that hospital. They saw him when he was loaded into an ambulance to be brought to his home in a daughter’s back yard, post pacemaker installation.
Due to the Delta Variant many California hospitals are keeping relatives/friends out of the hospitals where their family members are like they did last year.
I hope his family ends up owning that hospital.
so maybe he was just too sick....where the HELL was his concerned family....
a little sidenote....my BIL had a HR of 26 when he went to the ER in his community....they sent him up to a large medical facility....in his OWN car, driven by his wife....
My goodness, you, your wife and family have had quite a last 15 months! Luckily the two of you were there for each other, as they say: “In sickness and in health”.
Unfortunately I’ve been in an ambulance 3 times, taken to ER. Never once did they plop me in a wheelchair. Always rolled into a ER bed.
Thanks.
One of our adult sons has Covid, probably the Delta variant.
He is being treated as an outpatient. His wife had to cancel a trip back to help their daughter get moved into her new apartment.
Their son is continuing his engineering internship at home and on line for one more week. They and he need more hands on in the field work before he heads back to college. That may be cancelled do the the Clovid crap.
“ While we cannot provide additional comment given this is a pending legal matter, our focus remains on providing safe, timely and high-quality care to every patient, every time.”
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I detest these vapid PR flack statements from companies.
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