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Considering point #4: I am aware of a case locally where a nurse was accused of murdering a baby. Digging deeper we find: The nurses had been complaining of

Considering point #4: I am aware of a case locally where a nurse was accused of murdering a baby. Digging deeper we find: The nurses had been complaining of the low quality supplies that were being provided. Specifically mentioned were IV lines that were prone to breakage. The baby died from a failure of an IV line at just the wrong spot. The hospital's expert witness supposedly said the line had been cut. Dig deeper: No, the witness was asked if the damage to the line was consistent with being cut. Yes, it was, but that doesn't mean it wasn't also consistent with simply breaking. In the end it's pretty clear the hospital tried to throw the nurse under the bus to cover up the fact that it was their shoddy supplies that killed the baby. No idea on what sort of settlement the parents got, no details on what the nurse got but it was substantial.

FireBeyond 3y ago
I worked for an ambulance company that has had one of our local hospitals try to throw us or our employees under the bus on at least two occasions in five years: 1) understand that there are two types of ambulance (generally) - basic life support and advanced life support - the latter carries invasive care options, and narcotics, the former does not. They called us for an interfaculty transport approximately 200 miles. Patient was given pain meds before transport. Late in transport, EMTs on a BLS ambulance (no narcotics physically on board the ambulance) noted the patient was in profound respiratory depression and treated that - arriving at the hospital, it was discovered that the patient had been given vastly too much narcotics. Originating hospital insisted that it must have been given in transport. Kept insisting all the way to a DOH hearing. The EMT and the ambulance company were cleared and the hospital and nurse faced repercussions for documentation, administration, cover-up issues, but they still had to have their day in "court" to get to that point. 2) A deputy cracked his neck, and unbeknownst to him, partially severed a blood vessel. He contacted EMS complaining of nausea and vomiting. Among other things, a stroke test was done (negative) and he was taken to the hospital. CTs were done, and the physician at the hospital was insistent that all was clear, and was about to discharge him with vertigo, while other deputies insisted something was seriously wrong, and getting worse with him. Another provider sent scans to a major trauma center who noted that he had indeed had a stroke. He was also now failing a stroke test. He was transferred and treated but irreversible damage had occurred needing 24/7 nursing care, and lawsuits were launched. He died a month or so later. The hospital tried to throw EMTs under the bus, saying that they failed to diagnose or tell the hospital that the patient was having a stroke. Even though at the hospital another initial stroke test was performed by a physician with a negative result. The hospital then said there were subtle signs that in hindsight the EMTs "should have recognized" (but apparently a physician should not have been expected to...). That case is still ongoing, but the ambulance company managed to extricate itself after settling for policy limits (which was farcical in itself).

FireBeyond 3y ago

I worked for an ambulance company that has had one of our local hospitals try to throw us or our employees under the bus on at least two occasions in five years: 1) understand that there are two types of ambulance (generally) - basic life support and advanced life support - the latter carries invasive care options, and narcotics, the former does not. They called us for an interfaculty transport approximately 200 miles. Patient was given pain meds before transport. Late in transport, EMTs on a BLS ambulance (no narcotics physically on board the ambulance) noted the patient was in profound respiratory depression and treated that - arriving at the hospital, it was discovered that the patient had been given vastly too much narcotics. Originating hospital insisted that it must have been given in transport. Kept insisting all the way to a DOH hearing. The EMT and the ambulance company were cleared and the hospital and nurse faced repercussions for documentation, administration, cover-up issues, but they still had to have their day in "court" to get to that point. 2) A deputy cracked his neck, and unbeknownst to him, partially severed a blood vessel. He contacted EMS complaining of nausea and vomiting. Among other things, a stroke test was done (negative) and he was taken to the hospital. CTs were done, and the physician at the hospital was insistent that all was clear, and was about to discharge him with vertigo, while other deputies insisted something was seriously wrong, and getting worse with him. Another provider sent scans to a major trauma center who noted that he had indeed had a stroke. He was also now failing a stroke test. He was transferred and treated but irreversible damage had occurred needing 24/7 nursing care, and lawsuits were launched. He died a month or so later. The hospital tried to throw EMTs under the bus, saying that they failed to diagnose or tell the hospital that the patient was having a stroke. Even though at the hospital another initial stroke test was performed by a physician with a negative result. The hospital then said there were subtle signs that in hindsight the EMTs "should have recognized" (but apparently a physician should not have been expected to...). That case is still ongoing, but the ambulance company managed to extricate itself after settling for policy limits (which was farcical in itself).