Hospital sued for declaring boy dead
Although relatives saw the boy moving, doctors kept him off ventilator too long, lawsuit alleges
The parents of an eight-year-old boy who has had severe brain damage for years are suing a Chicago hospital, alleging that doctors pronounced their son dead, keeping him off his ventilator for hours, even though relatives continued to insist that the boy's eyes were still moving. The son is now back at home.
The lawsuit filed last week by Sheena Lane and Pink Dorsey on behalf of their son, Jaylen Dorsey, accuses Mercy Hospital and Medical Centre of negligence in the February incident and alleges that nearly five hours passed before staff agreed to perform a cardiac ultrasound, which showed Jaylen's heart was beating.
"You didn't have to be a doctor to see that the heart was pumping blood," said the boy's father, Pink Dorsey.
The hospital denies the allegations, and said in a written statement that Jaylen arrived at the hospital after suffering full cardiac arrest for 25 minutes and doctors treated him for "an extended period of time" before declaring him dead.
"Despite extensive resuscitative efforts, Jaylen did not immediately regain a pulse and no heart activity was noted for several hours," the hospital said.
"While this is a very rare occurrence, extensive resuscitation efforts, medication and young age can result in a patient's heart function returning spontaneously. We hope for continued strength for Jaylen."