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could this be hospital malpractice?

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What is the name of your state? sc

i'll try to be brief. husband had heart attack dec 2nd. he was having trouble breathing, no chest pain-he's diabetic. we went to ER, they diagnosed him, popped him in ICU. did heart cath the next day. we were told he was very blocked: 75-95% in every artery and bypass was the only way for him to survive.
he degenerated mentally: was uncooperative, surly, and very ill. he was transferred 6 days later to our local heart hospital.

a week later, after many tests and breathing treatments, his bypass was done.

everything went reasonably well for about three days, when he again couldn't breathe and became uncooperative and mentally "strange"..i kept trying to tell dr's and nurses that he was very confused and unlike himself.
he began to retain fluid: his heart went back into atrial fib (which he had had before)
he stayed at this hospital for 20 more days: they could never get the fluid to go away. his legs were swollen twice their normal size. leg wounds popped open and were weeping and looked infected.
they finally did a thoracentesis and remove 1000cc fluid from his chest: he was breathing better.

a week after that, they abruptly discharged him. they had told me that morning it would not be that day. i scrambled around and got everything done.

he was discharged with oxygen and instructions to redress and wrap his legs twice a day. he kept turning up his oxygen, saying he could not breathe. the pulmonologist assured me this would pass, he was just insecure.

the following week we were at our doctor's office four times and at the original hospital three times for more chest drainage. (the fluid was under the lungs, in the chest cavity) at total of 5200cc fluid.

he was readmitted: he had dressler's syndrome. the medication (lasix) was not longer working and was changed to demadex, which removed 5000cc fluid the first 24 hours he was on it.

his legs were infected with MRSA. he was kept this time 22 days. he is home, only needs oxygen at night, and is still on home antibiotics. improving rapidly.

i am furious about the mess he was in when they discharged him. i should have seen it: but we were so happy to be going home after 31 says, that i hoped they were right about the improvement.

do i have any recourse? at the very least i have plenty of additional expenses from the second hospital stay.

thanks in advance.
 


ellencee

Senior Member
smbclifton
First, let me say how totally disgusted I am at the callous manner in which your husband's physical complaints were dismissed by the hospital's staff and treating physicians and by the totally inappropriate early dismissal from the hospital. I am tempted to get on my soapbox and shout for healthcare reform, starting in the hospitals of the US and the insurance companies that now dictate healthcare without reason or purpose except the all-mighty profit for the owners--I'll try and refrain!

Secondly, let me say you have no claim of medmal. Your husband suffered no significant damage that he would not have suffered anyway. He would have had the same, if not higher, medical costs if he had been allowed to stay in the hospital and receive appropriate treatment.

I hope your husband is receiving home health skilled nursing visits. If not, demand that your husband's physician order home health services so that your husband will continue to recover under skilled services.

Best wishes,
EC
 
actually, this may all be moot. he had problems breathing this morning: i took him to the ER and he "coded"- now is on a ventilator and we are not sure what will happen. he seems to be in heart failure. we got to the ER just in time.
thanks.
 

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