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Woman Untreated for Six Hours in Hospital ER Goes Home and Delivers Premature Baby, Baby Dies

By Paul Napoli

December 11, 2009

On November 30, a doctor at a Quick Care medical clinic referred patient Roshunda Abney, 25, who was complaining of severe abdominal pain, for 'higher care' at the emergency room of University Medical Center (UMC) in Las Vegas, NV, where allegedly she was bullied by a nurse's assistant, ignored and failed to receive medical attention.

For six hours, Abney and her fiancé, Raffinee Dewberry, sat in the emergency waiting room while Abney pleaded for medical attention and moaned in pain. Other patients begged hospital staff to treat Abney and even volunteered to let Abney go ahead of them.

Fearing Abney would never get the medical assistance she needed, the couple left UMC and went to the emergency room at nearby Valley Hospital Medical Center, where Abney was in so much pain she could not fill out the ER paperwork. Valley employees told Abney that if she had waited so long without help at UMC, not to expect faster service there.

Abney and Dewberry picked up pain medication and returned home. Abney, who did not know she was pregnant, then gave birth to a baby girl in the bathroom. The baby died shortly after her birth, but paramedics revived and transported her to University Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Named Angel Nicole Dewberry by her parents, she weighed only 1 pound 6 ounces and was three months premature.

University Medical Center has investigated the incident by interviewing staff, reviewing patient records and viewing hospital video recordings, leading UMC to suspend six employees pending termination proceedings.

"Any UMC employee who has fallen short of this standard will face serious consequences," said UMC CEO, Kathy Silver. "Our hearts and prayers go out to Ms. Abney and her family for their terrible loss. I assure you we will uncover what happened that day and will not stand for the mistreatment of our patients."

Valley Hospital officials have denied any wrongdoing.

Hospital negligence can result in serious injuries and even deaths. If you have been injured as the result of negligence while you were a patient in a hospital, or if a loved one died due to hospital negligence, you may be able to file a claim and collect compensation for pain and suffering, lost wages, medical expenses and other losses. Some of the most common forms of hospital negligence include wrong-site surgeries, medication errors, surgical errors, development of hospital-acquired infections, improper use of anesthesia, improper treatment of a diagnosed medical condition, failure to monitor or stabilize a patient, or improper use of a medical device. Call Napoli Bern Ripka, LLP at 888-529-4669 today to discuss your legal options.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Napoli

Full post as published by New York City Personal Injury Lawyer on December 14, 2009 (boomark / email).