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In 1987 my 19 year old son died in the hospital 6 days after having heart surgery. The surgery was a success but he developed an infection that killed him 6 days later. I received a copy of the autopsy report and showed it to my family doctor. I asked him if it was just one of those things that happens. All he would say is "I don't know about that". I never wanted to receive money from my son's death so I didn't sue. But after talking to many people about it they said that a lawsuit might keep this from happening to anyone else. I wish I had of filed a lawsuit now but it's too late. I'm sorry for your loss. Good luck.
My husband lost his life on Thanksgiving at MDAnderson in Houston.
He suffered from cll, a chronic leukemia and was there to get a bone marrow transplant, for which he had a perfect ten match in his brother.
He did well with the chemo and we were stunned when they postponed the transplant because an underlying lymphoma reared it's ugly head and was not responding to the chemo.
After some discussion he decided he was going to fight like hell anyway, and he did.
A few weeks into the fight I was called away for two weeks, I spoke with every dr and nurse who I saw for two solid weeks before ia greed to leave, every last person assured me he was doing well and I should go.
Meanwhile, dh had an ostomy bag for urine, from bladder cancer many years ago.
He changed his bag himself every couple of days, though I was concerned enough about it being a possible source of infection so I showed every staff member how to change it, made sure every dr and nurse practitioner and assistant knew it needed to be changed every two days, etc etc.
So guess what? Dh became ill with a much more serious infection while I was gone, he was drifting in and out of consciousnous and NO ONE changed the bag while I was gone.
( I know this because the first thing I did was look at the bag and it was full of floating tissue--gross.
I also asked a nurse to go check when it had last been changed and when she returned she said there wasn't ANY mention of the bag AT ALL in his chart!)
she got very upset when I asked about that and stammered that maybe the staff didn't always note those types of things--um NO!)
He died three weeks later from kidney failure brought about by a massive UTI--and the death certificate says this too.
I called a few lawyers and was told that since MDAnderson is owned by the state of texas I basically wont ever win if I sue for wrongful death or whatever the term is.
I struggle between opposing thoughts here---it was fate and he was going to die no matter what I did or didn't do.
OR MDAnderson ****ed up mightily and caused his death---though both lawyers said with his age and recurring leukemia I have no case anyway.
I counter with if that is true why were they continuing with chemo? if he really had no chance why torture him and not just send him to hospice?
I cant believe that we went to the premier oncology hospital in the USA (number one ranking this year iirc) and such a major screwup happened.
My poor love.
Anyway, if you made it this far, thanks, and would you pursue legal action or walk away?
Sorry for your loss. You asked the question about chemo. They do it because there is good money to be made in it.
Suz,
First of all, my condolences for your loss, which would have been painful even without the extenuating circumstances.
In regard to your question, if what you have stated is accurate, the nursing staff was very careless, if not downright negligent. It is unfathomable to me that the care of your husband's urostomy bag was never charted. Now, surely the bag was emptied on a regular basis, as it would get completely full in a day or two. That should have been charted. As far as the "tissue" floating in the bag, that was probably mucous, which should have prompted the doctor to order a urine culture to check for infection. When the bag was emptied, the appearance of the urine should have been charted.
If multiple nurses omitted this basic but vital part of patient care and charting (which frankly is hard for me to fully believe), the hospital definitely needs to be held accountable. Have you talked with the hospital CEO, or at least the nursing manager?
Something is just not adding up. This is so bizarre. Again, IF your details are accurate, I would say you have a duty to dig deeper and hold the hospital accountable.
Having worked in hospitals for years I totally believe this horror story. I could fill a book with the ones I have heard over the years.
So many of the posters here have very good points. Some medical lawsuits, even when the lawyer tells you that you have a case, can take several years and then after wasting your time and energy, they tell you that they can't get enough evidence.
Grief is a difficult thing to deal with in the first place. I'm only suggesting that with all you've been through and are going through, that a grief counselor might help you. Only go to a "grief" counselor.
My grief was interrupted 18 mos. after the death of my son and my anger over the situation I was in didn't allow me to properly grieve him.
You're being "slammed" with both emotions at the same time and I believe a counselor might be able to help you with dealing with what you're going through.
It's only my opinion and I haven't walked in your shoes.
I pray you find strength in whatever road you choose to take. Be kind to yourself though...
I absolutely agree with kayanne. You should sue or do SOMETHING about the horrendous care got husband got. Can you find an out of state lawyer? One who isn't AFRAID to sue MD Anderson? That place needs to be accountable!
My husband lost his life on Thanksgiving at MDAnderson in Houston.
He suffered from cll, a chronic leukemia and was there to get a bone marrow transplant, for which he had a perfect ten match in his brother.
He did well with the chemo and we were stunned when they postponed the transplant because an underlying lymphoma reared it's ugly head and was not responding to the chemo.
After some discussion he decided he was going to fight like hell anyway, and he did.
A few weeks into the fight I was called away for two weeks, I spoke with every dr and nurse who I saw for two solid weeks before ia greed to leave, every last person assured me he was doing well and I should go.
Meanwhile, dh had an ostomy bag for urine, from bladder cancer many years ago.
He changed his bag himself every couple of days, though I was concerned enough about it being a possible source of infection so I showed every staff member how to change it, made sure every dr and nurse practitioner and assistant knew it needed to be changed every two days, etc etc.
So guess what? Dh became ill with a much more serious infection while I was gone, he was drifting in and out of consciousnous and NO ONE changed the bag while I was gone.
( I know this because the first thing I did was look at the bag and it was full of floating tissue--gross.
I also asked a nurse to go check when it had last been changed and when she returned she said there wasn't ANY mention of the bag AT ALL in his chart!)
she got very upset when I asked about that and stammered that maybe the staff didn't always note those types of things--um NO!)
He died three weeks later from kidney failure brought about by a massive UTI--and the death certificate says this too.
I called a few lawyers and was told that since MDAnderson is owned by the state of texas I basically wont ever win if I sue for wrongful death or whatever the term is.
I struggle between opposing thoughts here---it was fate and he was going to die no matter what I did or didn't do.
OR MDAnderson ****ed up mightily and caused his death---though both lawyers said with his age and recurring leukemia I have no case anyway.
I counter with if that is true why were they continuing with chemo? if he really had no chance why torture him and not just send him to hospice?
I cant believe that we went to the premier oncology hospital in the USA (number one ranking this year iirc) and such a major screwup happened.
My poor love.
Anyway, if you made it this far, thanks, and would you pursue legal action or walk away?
Suz, I'm so so sorry for your loss of your beloved husband, and it's even more tragic when you consider that his death may well have been due to, or at least contributed in a large part to neglect on the part of the nursing or medical staff at the hospital.
I could never advise one way or another about a lawsuit, but in your shoes I'm sure I would file a complaint against the hospital with the Texas Department of State Health Services. This is the state agency that licenses hospitals and other healthcare facilities, and part of their duties include investigation of complaints they receive from patients, family members, healthcare professionals. Generally the focus of these investigations is to verify the complaint, determine whether or not a facility has violated any laws relative to the complaint, and to determine if the details in the complaint resulted in adverse effects on the patients involved, and whether or not the deficient practices alleged ( or verified) in the complaint are widespread or continuing. You can go to the state site ( link below is the hospital licensure site), and click on the "file a complaint" link on the left, and follow the instructions there. You can also contact someone by phone there with any questions you may have, and they may be able to help you through the process. I'm sure the state of Texas licensure board would like to know about such incidents. You can generally remain anonymous if you want to when you file a complaint, and the investigators will do what they can to protect your identity as the complainant, and that of your husband as the patient. Depending on the findings of the investigation, the hospital may be fined, sanctioned, or be required to submit a plan of correction for any deficient practices found in the investigation.
Im going to say sue because it might help someone else . My heart goes out to you . Please do think about this carefully before you go forward . God bless you . listen to your heart and do what you feel is right , if you feel like fighting is the right thing to do , then do it .
My husband lost his life on Thanksgiving at MDAnderson in Houston.
He suffered from cll, a chronic leukemia and was there to get a bone marrow transplant, for which he had a perfect ten match in his brother.
He did well with the chemo and we were stunned when they postponed the transplant because an underlying lymphoma reared it's ugly head and was not responding to the chemo.
After some discussion he decided he was going to fight like hell anyway, and he did.
A few weeks into the fight I was called away for two weeks, I spoke with every dr and nurse who I saw for two solid weeks before ia greed to leave, every last person assured me he was doing well and I should go.
Meanwhile, dh had an ostomy bag for urine, from bladder cancer many years ago.
He changed his bag himself every couple of days, though I was concerned enough about it being a possible source of infection so I showed every staff member how to change it, made sure every dr and nurse practitioner and assistant knew it needed to be changed every two days, etc etc.
So guess what? Dh became ill with a much more serious infection while I was gone, he was drifting in and out of consciousnous and NO ONE changed the bag while I was gone.
( I know this because the first thing I did was look at the bag and it was full of floating tissue--gross.
I also asked a nurse to go check when it had last been changed and when she returned she said there wasn't ANY mention of the bag AT ALL in his chart!)
she got very upset when I asked about that and stammered that maybe the staff didn't always note those types of things--um NO!)
He died three weeks later from kidney failure brought about by a massive UTI--and the death certificate says this too.
I called a few lawyers and was told that since MDAnderson is owned by the state of texas I basically wont ever win if I sue for wrongful death or whatever the term is.
I struggle between opposing thoughts here---it was fate and he was going to die no matter what I did or didn't do.
OR MDAnderson ****ed up mightily and caused his death---though both lawyers said with his age and recurring leukemia I have no case anyway.
I counter with if that is true why were they continuing with chemo? if he really had no chance why torture him and not just send him to hospice?
I cant believe that we went to the premier oncology hospital in the USA (number one ranking this year iirc) and such a major screwup happened.
My poor love.
Anyway, if you made it this far, thanks, and would you pursue legal action or walk away?
First, off so sorry for your loss it is always hard no matter the circumstances...
But lets review, your husband had a history of bladder cancer, CLL and Lymphoma...and that's just what we know about from your post.
He was being prepped for a bone marrow transplant which requires knocking down the immune system and he developed an infection...not an uncommon occurrence...
You also note that urine in the bag looked bad...when you returned...when it was already known that he had a UTI so you don't know what it looked like when the infection first started...
Clearly he was in poor health...but people were trying their best to prolong his life.
We are all headed to the same end, if its me I would assume it was his time and try to imagine him in a better place.
I say all of this as someone who lost a wife at a very young age, I too could have likely claimed negligence/malpractice but I didn't because I didn't see the point. My loved one was gone, what was done wasn't malicious, it was an honest error and nothing was going to bring her back.
Hi Suz....I am so sorry for your loss....
I have a question....
First, how long were you gone and second, it doesn't add up for me, and please if I'm not getting it, tell me....but wouldn't the nurses have to bath him and change his bedding? they would have then seen the bag...unless, each of them thought it was the other one's job to do so?
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