Hospital ignored signs of a heart attack

#1 06-04-2008, 04:56 PM

A month ago I took my grandfather to the ER because he was complaining of numbness and soreness in his left side and a tingling in his left arm. The ER saw him and discharged him within 40 minutes, saying he had a "Middle ear infection" and gave him a prescription for some medication. Not 15 minutes after he left the hospital, while in a Publix supermarket, he suffered a massive heart attack. He collapsed and hit his head on the floor of the supermarket.

When they took him back to the hospital in an ambulance, they discovered that one of his arteries was 100% clogged, and another was 70% clogged. He had a stint put in the fully-closed artery, and is going soon for surgery to open up the other one. The question we are wondering is if we have any legal recourse with the hospital for not taking any steps or running any tests in order to determine if he was in danger of a heart attack or stroke, but instead dismissing it as an ear infection. We were able to obtain his medical records, which clearly state that he was having all of the classic warning signs of a heart attack (pain/numbness/tingling in the left side), but the hospital did not take blood or do an EKG or anything.

moderator · #2 06-06-2008, 07:37 PM

I can certainly understand this is a frustrating situation for you. I suggest you contact an attorney to determine your legal options. You can find an attorney through the locator service on LawInfo’s home page at: http://www.lawinfo.com/.

You can also browse through the information in LawInfo’s Free Legal Resource Center here: http://www.lawinfo.com/index.cfm/fus...lient.consumer, or search for your particular topic here: http://resources.lawinfo.com/index.html.

#3 08-15-2008, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wayne62682

A month ago I took my grandfather to the ER because he was complaining of numbness and soreness in his left side and a tingling in his left arm. The ER saw him and discharged him within 40 minutes, saying he had a "Middle ear infection" and gave him a prescription for some medication. Not 15 minutes after he left the hospital, while in a Publix supermarket, he suffered a massive heart attack. He collapsed and hit his head on the floor of the supermarket.

When they took him back to the hospital in an ambulance, they discovered that one of his arteries was 100% clogged, and another was 70% clogged. He had a stint put in the fully-closed artery, and is going soon for surgery to open up the other one. The question we are wondering is if we have any legal recourse with the hospital for not taking any steps or running any tests in order to determine if he was in danger of a heart attack or stroke, but instead dismissing it as an ear infection. We were able to obtain his medical records, which clearly state that he was having all of the classic warning signs of a heart attack (pain/numbness/tingling in the left side), but the hospital did not take blood or do an EKG or anything.

I would definitely contact a Malpractice Attorney as soon as possible. If his chart stated what you have stated above, you would most definitely have a case. Medical records are legal documents and need to be shown to a Malpractice Attorney asap. Good Luck, and Thank God your grandfather is still here with you.

OrchardFunding · #4 12-16-2009, 12:10 PM

I'm sorry about what happened to your father, but like edulaw said, be thankful that you still have him alive and with you. It is amazing the amount of cases like this one i see everyday at my job. If you or grandfather have filed a lawsuit, you may want to check out our website. We know lawsuits are tough and a struggle financially until your case settles. The company I work for specializes in lawsuit funding, which entails getting you money from your settlement ahead of time. Check out our website fro more information: