Woman Dies as a Result of Overmedication; Settled for $375,000

A woman who was admitted to the hospital to undergo elective surgery died as a result of overmedication and faulty oximetry alarms that failed to alert hospital staff of her dangerously hypoxic state in time for her to be resuscitated. Following her surgery, the woman was doing well and was transferred from the ICU to a private room. When hospital staff arrived for a blood draw, she was found to be unresponsive and hypothermic, and died five days later. According to the complaint, the woman was overmedicated, and her PCA pump was not functioning properly. Additionally, the oximetry alarms that should have gone off to alert staff of her hypoxic state malfunctioned, leading to a delay in care that contributed to the woman's wrongful death. Jeffrey A. Milman of Hodes Milman represented the woman's family in mediation, resulting in a $375,000 settlement for damages pursuant to MICRA.