Inadequate Medical Care Causes Death of 17 Year Old in Delray Beach, Florida
Head injuries are categorized as: (1) external, which are usually just scalp injuries, and (2) internal, involving the skull, the blood vessels within the skull, and/or the brain. An internal head injury could have far more serious consequences even though the skull is there to protect the brain. In fact, any internal head injury could be serious and potentially life threatening.
Each level of injury requires a different level of concern and since it can be difficult to determine the level of injury, you should consult and discuss the head injury with a physician. We all trust that our physicians and medical facilities will render adequate care to assure that our loved ones are cared for in the best possible manner. Unfortunately, sometimes that is not always the case.
One evening, a young 17 year old boy fell from his bicycle hitting his head on the pavement. Early the following morning, he was taken to the hospital emergency room complaining of severe headaches, so severe he was unable to sleep during the night. He was not vomiting, no complaints of numbness or weakness, but he had a large hematoma and a laceration on the left temple area of his head. He was examined and a CT scan of the head was done, which was noted as being negative and he was discharged with pain medication. Since this was on a weekend, he was told to follow up with a neurologist on Tuesday.
The following evening, the boy’s mother took him to another hospital emergency room because he had been complaining of headaches for three days, he was spitting up blood, and the pain medication he had been given previously was not working, he wanted something stronger. The medical records note that he had been injured 72 hours prior and was now complaining of a frontal headache, nausea, weakness, and lightheadedness. The location of the pain was midfrontal forehead and the quality of the pain is pounding intense headache. Severity is severe. The differential diagnoses pending results of another CT scan of the brain were: (1) Intracranial hemorrhage vs. (1) Contusion and abrasion of the forehead. He was given Percocet and Vicodin Extra Strength for pain and discharged with instructions to see his own doctor on Monday.
Shortly after he was released, the CT scan of the brain was re-read as having a fracture of the frontal bone extending into the frontal sinus cavity with fluid density and with a fracture line extending into the inner table. No follow up was done to contact this young boy or his family to request that he return to the hospital immediately.
After his release from the emergency room, he got progressively worse during that day and started tearing up the house and acting incoherently. Therefore, his mother called the paramedics and had him transported back to the hospital. He apparently had a respiratory arrest on the way to the hospital and was placed on a respirator for respiratory support.
Sadly, this young boy died approximately two days later from bacterial meningitis. His family contacted Richard D. Schuler to assist them with their case. After extensive investigation and negotiations, Mr. Schuler was successful in obtaining a settlement in the hundreds of thousands of dollars from the defendants in this case.
