Memorial Hermann Baptist Hospital in Beaumont
Before he died of infection, an X-ray revealed a nasogastric tube lodged in the late Lester Thomas' right lung. Thomas' widow and daughter believe their benefactor "suffered gross abuse" while in the care of Memorial Hermann Baptist Beaumont Hospital medical personnel and now have their day in court to prove their case.
The trial of Patsy Thomas et al vs. Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas began Tuesday, Nov. 6 in Judge Donald Floyd's 172nd District Court.
Patsy's husband was admitted to Memorial Hermann back on May 12, 2002, for a benign tumor in his rectum. A year later, routine X-rays revealed a nasogastric tube inserted in Lester's right-lower lung.
On May 20, 2003, Lester Thomas died of pneumonia with sepsis.
Patsy and her daughter, Kimberly Wood, blame the hospital and its physicians and nurses for Lester's death, claiming the hospital's doctors and nurses negligently cared for him and failed to follow hospital procedure.
Lester's widow and surviving daughter filed their medical-malpractice lawsuit with the Jefferson County District Court on Aug. 25, 2003.
The plaintiffs allege the miss-inserted nasogastric tube was a causing source of the pneumonia that claimed Lester's life.
On the other hand, the defense argues Lester could not have contracted pneumonia that quickly, and that Lester's death certificate, which cites pneumonia as the cause of death, is in error.
According to MedicineNet, a nasogastric tube (NG tube) is passed through the nose and down into the stomach. It is a flexible tube made of rubber or plastic and can be used to remove the contents of the stomach, including air, to decompress the stomach, or to remove small solid objects and fluid, such as poison. An NG tube can also be used to put substances into the stomach when a patient cannot take food or drink by mouth.
Barbara Hatcher, one of the nurses who cared for Lester during his stay at Baptist, testified that in her 20-year nursing career, until Lester she had never seen a case of an NG tube being left in a patient's lung for days.
Hatcher was the first to note that the tube may have been out of place. Her medical charts indicated that she was unable to hear air passing through the tube and that "white drainage" was flowing from the tube.
The suit named several physicians as defendants, but all defendants, aside from Baptist Hospital, settled or were dismissed before the start of the trial.
Lester was 64 years of age at the time of the tumor surgery.
The plaintiffs' lawsuit alleges Baptist Hospital Beaumont breached the applicable standard of care by failing to institute appropriate medical treatment and instituting medical treatment, which exacerbated Thomas' life-threatening and unstable condition in the following ways:
By failing to properly monitor Thomas;
By failing to timely institute proper nursing interventions;
By failing to communicate pertinent information timely to the physician and appropriate supervisors;
By failing to continuously evaluate and re-evaluate Thomas;
By failing to enforce the policies and procedures, which were in effect;
By failing to obtain further diagnostic testing;
By failing to provide adequate continuing education for the nurses;
By failing to properly supervise the nurses rendering care to Thomas;
By misrepresentation to the public that it is staffed and equipped to provide certain services and a specific level of care to patients.
Patsy and her daughter will ask jurors to award them damages for Thomas' pain and suffering, plus wrongful death and survival damages.
The trial is expected to conclude next week.
They are represented by the Sheldon, Jordan & Dunham law firm.
Case No. A170-875