Injured Child Awarded $43.5 Million

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Recommended: healthcare professionals and ethics

As reported in several newspapers thru out the Los Angeles and San Bernardino County, in May 2002, a 19-month old patient in San Bernardino County was awarded $43.5 million dollars in the case of Brown vs. Community Hospital of San Bernardino. According to the claim, Eric (the infant) was 4-months old at the time of the accident. The infant was admitted to the hospital with an upper respiratory infection. In the hospital the infant was attached to respiratory monitors and the parents were at the bedside around the clock. After a few days in the hospital the infant was doing much better so the parents left the hospital for a few hours. When the parents left the infant was laying on his back with the monitors in place. During the time they were gone, the monitors were somehow turned off, but none of the nursing staff would take responsibility for the action. The nurse taking care of the infant came into the room and found the infant on his abdomen, blue. The monitors were off and the patient breathing inadequately for approximately 40 minutes. After the infant was resuscitated he was flown out to another hospital where doctors told the parents that he had irreversible brain damage and the parents should just allow him to die.

According to the article the parents initially agreed to a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) for the infant, but then changed their mind after they were educated as to what the DNR really meant. Originally the hospital and the insurance company agreed to pay for around the clock nursing care for the infant, however, when the parents turned down the hospitals $2.5 million dollar settlement the care ended. After over a year at trial, verdict in favor of the infant’s family was won for the amount of $43.5 million dollars...

... middle of paper ...

... the right thing, the attorney proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the healthcare system had failed the infant Eric Brown and his family and therefore the Code of Ethics for Nursing were not adhered to.

Works Cited

Cardona, M., (May 2002). The Sun, Retrieved from: http://www.fagellaw.com/documents/BruceFagelArticles-Acrobat/SanBernardinoSun-5-10-02-Brown.pdf

Malnic, E., (May 2002). Los Angeles Times, Retrieved from:

http://www.fagellaw.com/images/Article_Full_Size/LATimes-5-11-02-Brown.jpg

McNary S., (May 2002). The Press Enterprise, San Bernardino Edition, Retrieved from: ttp://www.fagellaw.com/documents/BruceFagelArticles-Acrobat/PressEnterprise-5-10-02-Brown.pdf

Code of Ethics for Nurses, (2001). The American Nurses Association, Inc. Retrieved from: http://nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/EthicsStandards/

CodeofEthicsforNurses/Code-of-Ethics.aspx

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