CHC sued for negligence • Infant in deep pain allegedly due to hospital staff’s carelessness

A Saipan couple is seeking justice to an unfortunate ordeal allegedly suffered by their child under the hands of the Commonwealth Health Center Intensive Care Unit last year.

Parents Manuel C. Santos and Ana P. Cabrera through counsel Joseph A. Arriola lodged a $100,000-civil action suit against CHC for complaints of gross negligence, alleging that CHC compromised the health and safety of their infant while under its care.

The hospital, along with possibly six other medical personnel, are being accused of carelessness in the administration of their duties, allegedly causing the plaintiffs’ child to experience lasting pain and suffering due to burns on her right hand.

The parents of the infant are demanding for a jury trial to decide on the fate of the case pending before the Superior Court.

Court records reveal that in March of last year, the child victim was admitted to the local hospital, having been diagnosed with sepsis (infected blood from enteroccus bacteremia) as well as life-threatening Meningitis.

The patient was but 36 weeks gestational age, and was prematurely delivered at the same hospital in February of 2000, according to court records.

Due to her illness, the infant then received pediatric treatment from CHC.

During the course of the patient’s treatment, physicians and nurses maintained a daily report of her progress.

The attending pediatrician ordered for three medications to be infused through the veins of the child in the right hand of the neonate and into a vein in her left foot.

Strict instructions were given in great caution, specifically that the medications must be infused in utmost care since they are known with excavasation to cause chemical burns and sloughing to the dermal and subdermal tissue should they infiltrate or seep outside the intended site of the of the vein.

The plaintiffs alleged that medical personnel failed to religiously check up and monitor the child’s medication.

Parents also accused the hospital of using drugs on their child, not in accordance with pharmaceuticals guidelines, citing that its infusion was not monitored within prescribed time periods.

Furthermore, Mr. Santos and Mr. Cabrera also alleged that the medication was infused outside the original part intended, thus constituting extravasation which has resulted in chemical burns and sloughing in the child’s hand area.

The infant reportedly still suffers from the condition created by CHC ICU’s medical personnel and now requires surgery since her right hand is not being used as it should be.

But the position of the hospital appears to be that the burn acquired by the baby is an unfortunate consequence of the complex treatment that she has been exposed to, the plaintiffs’ counsel submits.

But parents claim that aside from the suffering endured by their child, they have also suffered a nervous shock as a result of the circumstances.

The plaintiffs are then appealing to the Superior Court for judgment against the defendants to include general damages, injury, suffering and emotional distress in the amount of $100,000, medical referral expenses for the injured infant and parents to Hawaii and other relief the court deems just.