Atlanta Medical Center complaint alleges inadequate NICU discharge teaching before an infant’s sepsis and amputations
The complaint alleges that an infant delivered at about 25 weeks gestational age spent eleven weeks in the Atlanta Medical Center NICU. He was treated there for apnea, bradycardia, respiratory distress, and sepsis. A NICU care plan set a goal of teaching his first-time mother to care for him with minimal assistance. No record showed that goal was met, or that she was taught to watch for temperature drops, before his August 25, 2016 discharge. No record showed a pediatrician was identified for his follow-up care. On September 5, 2016 he stopped breathing at home. He arrived at a children’s hospital by ambulance in respiratory failure, shock, and severe sepsis, with a temperature of 93.4 degrees. He was hospitalized for twelve more weeks and lost both legs above the knee.
Overview
This page concerns a public complaint alleging that NICU providers discharged a premature infant without teaching his mother the danger signs to watch for. No record showed a follow-up pediatrician was identified, and he was rehospitalized in septic shock eleven days later.
Chronology
The complaint alleges as follows:
- The infant was delivered at about 25 weeks gestational age at Atlanta Medical Center after placental abruption and premature rupture of membranes. He spent eleven weeks in its NICU, treated for apnea, bradycardia, respiratory distress syndrome, and sepsis, among other conditions.
- His NICU care plan called for teaching his mother to care for him with minimal assistance, but no record showed that goal was met.
- No record showed she was taught to monitor his temperature, or given written instructions on recognizing breathing difficulty. No record showed a pediatrician was identified or given details of his NICU course.
- He was discharged to his mother’s care on August 25, 2016, at 36 weeks gestational age.
- On September 5, 2016, he had what his mother believed was another apnea episode. She tapped his back as instructed, but his breathing did not resume.
- An ambulance took him to CHOA Hugh Spalding, where he arrived in respiratory failure, shock, and severe sepsis, with a temperature of 93.4 degrees.
- He was transferred to CHOA Egleston on September 7, 2016, hospitalized twelve more weeks, and underwent bilateral above-the-knee amputations.
Alleged failures
The complaint alleges the following failures:
- Dr. Gottschalk and physician assistant Jeffrey Slepicka ordered the infant’s discharge without ensuring his mother had been taught to care for a premature infant.
- They also did not ensure she was taught the warning signs and when to seek care. They did not identify and contact a pediatrician to receive details of his NICU course.
- Elizabeth Williams, R.N. and the nursing staff did not teach his mother to care for a premature infant or to recognize signs requiring medical attention.
- The filing alleges that Dr. Gottschalk did not adequately supervise Mr. Slepicka’s treatment of the infant.
- The filing alleges that these failures caused the infant’s permanent injuries, including his amputations.
- The complaint pleads medical malpractice, respondeat superior and ostensible agency, inadequate supervision, and loss of consortium, and attaches two expert affidavits under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1.