Did any of you hear about
- From: califchief@xxxxxxxxxxx (Califchief)
- Date: Sat, 05 Jul 2008 00:11:00 -0500
Donna wrote to ask:
Did any of you hear about that woman who died on the floor of the
waiting room at a hospital (I think it was in N.Y.) without anyone
helping her?
Caught On Camera: Patient Dies Alone In E.R.
/Video Shows Staffers Ignoring Woman/
WNBC-NBC New York, N.Y.
17:03 EDT Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Esmin Green, a 49-year-old psychiatric patient, had been involuntarily
committed the previous morning to the psychiatric unit at Kings County
Hospital in Brooklyn and had waited nearly 24 hours for a bed.
After she fell to the floor at 05:32 on June 19, Green laid unattended
for almost an hour before a nurse kicked her to see if she would
respond.
During that time, two hospital security guards apparently saw her but
didn't do anything to help. The first walked by, and the second didn't
rise from his chair until about 10 minutes later.
The tape shows a doctor walking by as well. He apparently looked at
the woman but kept going.
The Brooklyn woman died on the floor, but not right away. The tape
showed that she moved her legs and even rolled to her side, trying
to get up.
The New York City Health and Hospitals Corp., which runs the hospital,
said six people, including the doctor, the nurse and the two security
guards shown on the tape, have been fired as a result of the incident.
HHC's president said everyone is "shocked and distressed" by the
situation and promises a thorough investigation.
An HHC spokeswoman said the agency has also increased staff and training
and agreed to monitor psychiatric patients every 15 minutes.
"It's an emergency room, it's not a bus terminal," said Attorney Robert
Cohen, of Kirkland. "People who are in desperate need of services, care
and attention come here to be treated and to get better. They don't
come here to die alone."
Tampered Medical Records?
Advocates for the mentally ill said the security video from June 19
showed why immediate reforms are needed at Kings County Hospital.
These advocates also claimed the woman's medical records were altered.
While the videotape showed that she was on the floor at 6 a.m., the New
York Civil Liberties Union said hospital records were filed stating that
she was "awake, up and alert" at that time.
"We were absolutely appalled to get medical documentation kept in
accordance with New York state law which was completely contradicted by
video surveillance feeds," said Beth Haroules, staff counsel for the New
York Civil Liberties Union.
Last year, a state agency sued Kings County Hospital, calling its
psychiatric ward a "chamber of filth, decay, indifference and danger."
At the time, the city's Health and Hospitals Corp. refuted those claims.
But now with the security video, city officials have launched an
investigation into whether the woman's medical records had been altered.
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