Over dosage of epinephrine

[ketapruitt]

My 3 month old daughter suffered heat stroke after being left in a car for two hours. She was revived and 911 was called. Detectives and doctors informed me about the situation and they airlifted her to the university children's hospital in Jackson. When I made to Jackson, the doctors stabilize her and sent her to the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit. The doctor told me several times since I was up there that the outside hospital gave her too much epinephrine for her size. 20x the amount to be exact. I did obtain the medical records from the outside hospital, what should I do?

 

[FlyingRon]

Pray your daughter gets better. The question is whether the overdose actually occurred and whether it caused her any lasting issues.
Take everything to an attorney that specializes in medical malpractice if there is some lasting damage. Otherwise, just the fact that there was a mistake isn't necessarily actionable. An overdose of epi is usually pretty trasnient provided the patient survives it. The problem is that if they are giving cardiac doses of epi, you're daughter was already in extremis so attributing some problem to excess epi is likely to be problematic. I'm a little skeptical about the argument of the overdosage as well without know WHY and HOW it was administered. Cardiac doses are pretty strong whacks and not normally biased by patient weight.

 

[ketapruitt]

The doctor at the children's hospital said that they gave her 6 rounds of adult dosage of it, 8mg and that's what it said on the final report. My daughter suffered brain damage, deterioration of her heart, Iungs and kidneys, until she's ultimately passed away that night

 

[ajkroy]

I am so sorry for your loss. But epinephrine is adrenaline, made by the body naturally. Did the doctor specifically say that the overdosage of epi was the cause of brain damage, and not being exposed to the temperatures of the car?

 

[ketapruitt]

The children's hospital doctor did, yes

 

[ajkroy]

The children's hospital doctor did, yes

I've worked with doctors my entire adult life. Never in my experience have I heard of a doctor blaming another doctor for a death (and particularly the death of a child) when so many circumstances could be in play. Is it possible that you heard what you wanted to hear during a traumatic time?

I hope you find closure for your daughter and I understand you want to punish those responsible for her death. Have you considered going after those who were caring for her that day instead?

 

[ketapruitt]

For the heat stroke the state took over that but when the doctor told me the mistake, I wasn't the only one there when he kept saying that, my mother and sister was there with me. He showed me the numbers of what it was and what it should have been

 

[justalayman]

The children's hospital doctor did, yes

I cannot imagine how they determined that at that point, especially given the situation the child was found in very likely caused brain damage itself.


Bottom line; take what you have and speak with some medical malpractice attorneys. See what they say.



I'm curious; who neglected the child and left her in the car? Is that person being investigated for child neglect and possibly causing the death of your child? If so, there is likely to be a lot of investigation by medical professionals looking into the death and causes. You will be able to access that info at some point and if it proves the epi claim, it would go far in a malpractice suit.

 

[Ohiogal]

My 3 month old daughter suffered heat stroke after being left in a car for two hours. She was revived and 911 was called. Detectives and doctors informed me about the situation and they airlifted her to the university children's hospital in Jackson. When I made to Jackson, the doctors stabilize her and sent her to the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit. The doctor told me several times since I was up there that the outside hospital gave her too much epinephrine for her size. 20x the amount to be exact. I did obtain the medical records from the outside hospital, what should I do?

Who left her in the car? Is that person being charged criminally? Are you suing that individual? Have you talked to a medical malpractice attorney? Is the doctor willing to testify against the "outside hospital"?

 

[quincy]

For the heat stroke the state took over that but when the doctor told me the mistake, I wasn't the only one there when he kept saying that, my mother and sister was there with me. He showed me the numbers of what it was and what it should have been

You said in the post quoted above that the "state took over." Can you expand on this, please, when you are back to answer the other questions asked? Thanks.

There were 27 heatstroke deaths of children left in hot cars this year alone (as of August 12, 2016), according to the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science at San Jose State University. The harm to a child as young as yours, after two hours in a hot car, could very well have been irreversible - regardless of the epinephrine dosage.

You did not mention your state name. There are several Jackson's in the US with children's hospitals.

I am really sorry for your loss.

 

[not2cleverRed]

My 3 month old daughter suffered heat stroke after being left in a car for two hours. She was revived and 911 was called. Detectives and doctors informed me about the situation and they airlifted her to the university children's hospital in Jackson. When I made to Jackson, the doctors stabilize her and sent her to the pediatric cardiac intensive care unit. The doctor told me several times since I was up there that the outside hospital gave her too much epinephrine for her size. 20x the amount to be exact. I did obtain the medical records from the outside hospital, what should I do?

What should you do? Thank the doctors for attempting to save your daughter after her heart stopped - that much epi was used because someone was desperately attempting to save her life, to get her heart beating regularly again. Every medical professional that came in contact with your daughter is probably broken hearted by the fact that she was neglected, and that they couldn't save her.

What should you do??? Save your legal actions (if any) for the dingbat who left the baby in the car, find a support group for people who have suffered similar losses, and realize that while nothing can bring your daughter back, there are many positive ways you can try t o honor her memory - reserve your energy for that.