Girl Gets $10M Settlement After ER Delay

[dkf]

The family of a California toddler whose feet, left hand and part of her right hand were amputated because of a lengthy emergency room delay has agreed to a $10 million malpractice settlement.

Malyia Jeffers was 2 years old when her parents took her to Sacramento's Methodist Hospital last November with a fever, skin discoloration and weakness. According to court documents, the family was told to wait.

"While in the waiting room, Malyia grew sicker and weaker," according to the complaint filed in Superior Court in Sacramento on Feb. 14. "The parents of Malyia repeatedly asked and begged (hospital workers) to treat their daughter."

The hospital instead told them to continue waiting, and it was five hours before Malyia was first seen by a doctor, the document said.

"Ryan Jeffers and Leah Yang saw their daughter get weaker and sicker hour after hour as (hospital workers) chose to delay treatment," the complaint said. "They saw the bruising on her body increase, affecting her legs, arms and face. They were afraid she would die in the waiting room."

http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=14836692

Heartbreaking.

[cutlassmama]

1. that money isn't going to replace her body parts, but it MAY reduce some

waiting times in ER's. Probably not though.

[etherealtruth]

2. Memories seem short when it comes to things like this

That poor baby

[dkf]

3. No. Not enough. Nothing is.

[canuckledragger]

4. $10 million won't buy back her original hand & feet..

but ought to buy some cool bionic gear!

(not trolling, just trying to lighten to situation a bit)

[sam11111]

5. "ER Express" - anyone experiEnced that? epal says they claim a four minute wait

But website doesn't say if that is till a doc or just the Triage Nurse...who (the nurse) tells them to wait five hours till a doc.

Anyone?

[LeftyMom]

6. I don't understand why they waited there that long.

Don't get me wrong, I'm horrified for them and I don't doubt that Methodist was horribly wrong in their treatment of this kid. But there's another larger hospital with an ER, Kaiser South Sacramento, just down the road. If I thought my kid was going to die, and nobody at Methodist was doing anything I'd carry him over to Kaiser. Or if I had transportation I'd pile him in the car and drive to one of the four other ERs (UCD, Sutter General, Sutter Memorial, Mercy) within 10 miles to get him treated.

I don't want anybody to interpret that as excusing Methodist, but when you're a parent you have to actively advocate for your kid, and if people fuck up and create obstacles to their health and happiness you have to be prepared to go over, around or through them to get your kid taken care of. If the hospital isn't seeing your sick kid and being the squeaky wheel isn't changing that, you go somewhere else, you don't sit there watching your kid get worse and wondering if they'll die. Jesus.

[ret5hd]

7. they probably felt like they would "lose their spot"...kinda like switching lanes...

at the grocery store, but in this instance you can't even see if the other lines are shorter or longer.

[LeftyMom]

8. I guess this doesn't make sense to me because I'm from the area.

In fact I've been treated at that ER. I had a very short wait but it's a relatively small one at a relatively small hospital, I can see how they'd get backed up quickly. I'm not sure if it's the smallest hospital in the city and immediate suburbs, but if it's not it's pretty close. If my kid were THAT sick, it's probably the last place I'd take them to begin with, UCD has a children's hospital so I'd probably take the kid straight there.

[surrealAmerican]

9. They may have been concerned that the trip could kill her.

If your child seems so alarmingly ill, and you are already in a hospital, it might seem safer to keep trying to get her medical attention from the staff there.

[jeff47]

11. Probably felt they would get treatment faster if they stayed.

Since they were already in a hospital.

Yes, there may have been other options, but what if the kid's heart stopped during the 15 minutes it took to get to another hospital? If they're already in an ER, the docs can do something about that. If they're on their way to the next ER, the kid's not going to get treatment until they get there.

The parents were facing a horrible decision, and both staying and leaving posed risks.

[LeftyMom]

12. There's another hospital with a larger ER one block away.

That's why this doesn't make sense to me- I'm not totally sure why somebody'd take a really sick kid to a small, comparatively rinky-dink hospital like Methodist in the first place.

[SharonAnn]

13. Perhaps the only one their insurance took (HMO, PPO, etc.)

[LeftyMom]

14. Unlikely.

First, I'm pretty sure you're allowed to go to any ER in a life-threatening emergency. But second there's at least one other hospital in the same ownership group (Catholic Healthcare West- they bought Methodist years ago) nearby, so I can't imagine any insurer would cover teeny tiny Methodist but not much larger Mercy.

[jeff47]

15. Actually, no you're not allowed to go to any ER, if you want the insurance company to pay for it

For example, my insurance will cover "out of network" hospital care at a lower rate than "in network". It just happens that every hospital near me is "in network".

So while the ER care itself might get paid either way, there's lots and lots of other charges that are not.

[nadinbrzezinski]

16. Let me play devils and explain this from the family perspective

Seen it.

If the family has no clue about hospital type, basic ER care and trauma IV mean nothing. It's a hospital. They were already there. And yes, it can be that simple.

If you know something about it, well you will try your kid to children's in this case.

[Posteritatis]

17. I also doubt I'd get to fault parents in that situation for not being the most clear-headed. (nt)

[nadinbrzezinski]

18. Correct.

[Number23]

10. $10 million is nothing compared to the agony they must have felt watching their baby get sicker

in their arms. And being terrified that she would die right in front of them.

God, my heart goes out to these people.