Hospital Agrees to Pay $6.5 million to Patient Left in Vegetative State
By Daniel Hawn
Published on August 02, 2005
The settlement was reached in the course of mediation and was announced on Monday, July 18. The recipient of the award was Spencer Sullivan, 41, a former nurse at Fountain Valley Regional Medical Center.
According to the firm of Sullivan's attorney, in December 2001, Sullivan received elective surgery at the UCSF Medical Center to correct a disc protrusion in his neck.
Sullivan's attorney, Daniel Hodes, said that subsequent to the surgery, Sullivan was prescribed contraindicating medications. He went on to say that Sullivan's primary nurse failed to adequately monitor Sullivan's recovery. This, according to Hughes, lead to a narcotic overdose which contributed to respiratory failure and hypoxic brain injury.
On the day following the surgery, nurses could not awaken Sullivan and waited 15 minutes to use a ventilator Hodes said. Nurses waited an additional 15 minutes to provide medications to reverse Sullivan's state, he further alleged.
"What happened to Spencer and his family was avoidable," said Hodes.
Hospital officials did not promptly respond to an attempted contact Monday.
Three months after his surgery, Sullivan was allowed to leave the hospital. Due to his vegetative state, he now requires 24-hour assistance. It is not expected that Sullivan will recover.
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