Former Nurse Aids Medical Malpractice Case

Former nurse, Rhonda Skinner-Sullivan, has testified for plaintiffs in a medical malpractice lawsuit lodged against Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville for their alleged poor wound care, as reported by The Florida Times-Union jacksonville.com.

Skinner-Sullivan's December 14 testimony included her repeated warnings to hospital administrators about inferior wound care rendered during her six years at Memorial Hospital.  She flatly stated to attorneys, "Patients are being murdered."

She first told her superiors about her concerns late 2007.

The attorneys at the deposition are representing George Clay Chandler of Green Cove Springs.  They hope that Skinner-Sullivan's statements, joined with the poor reports that the hospital received from state health inspections, will help a jury to award punitive damages for their client. 

The law firm of Edwards and Regatz has five more clients - with similar complaints against the same hospital - and promises more cases after these.

Parts of both the video and transcripts were released to the press on January 18.

Memorial Hospital is an affiliate of HCA. 

Adam Landau, hospital spokesman, stated in response to the lawsuit, "The allegations made today are absurd. The information that has been released is incomplete and out of context."  In the hospital's written statement they believe that the law firm is creating "another made-for-television event" for jurors.

Landau continued, "The hospital and its staff strive for the highest quality of care, as evidenced by its recent designation as a top stroke-care hospital by the American Heart Association and the certification of its cancer center."

The inspection made by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration found issues in the hospital's wound-care program.  For one, the wound care was charged to staff nurses and not to specialists in the field.  Second, the patients did not receive complete assessments.

The March 2010 report concluded by stating that these actions "could lead to the wounds getting worse." 

After the report Memorial hospital promised to increase staff, implement new policies and track at-risk patients more closely. 

Attorney Thomas Edwards noted that the inspection, and its outcome, came just a month after the lawsuit was filed.  Landau didn't respond to further questions stating he wasn't authorized to.

Chandler, 42, broke down and was unable to testify as to his life before his treatment at Memorial Hospital.  Edwards filled in the blanks.  Chandler, a former lieutenant with the Clay County Sheriff's Office, was recommended for bariatric surgery to help reduce some of the 375 pounds he carried in his 6-foot-1 inch frame. 

Prior to the surgery his weight did not prevent him from being active.

The 2007 surgery went as expected but, later, led to complications.  Those complications subsequently led to sepsis - a dangerous infection on its own - that stopped his heart stopping and damaged his brain.

Also while at Memorial Hospital Chandler suffered damage to his corneas, frozen joints and bedsores.  His attorneys stated that all of these complications could have been easily avoided had the proper medical care been rendered.

Skinner-Sullivan stated in her video deposition that the hospital's response to her concerns was, "Yes, I know we have a problem, but it's too big for us to fix."

You may be due monetary compensation if you or a family member has received poor care from a physician.  Click here to contact a medical malpractice attorney from our directory to discuss your case.