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Major chyle leak allegedly not identified or treated at Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center

This complaint states as follows: The patient passed away at the age of 77 after receiving negligent care at Wellstar's Atlanta Medical Center. After spine surgery, the patient had a major chyle leak. The medical staff of the hospital failed the patient in multiple ways — chiefly, by doing nothing to investigate or offer treatment as liter after liter of whitish fluid drained out of a suprapubic catheter intended to drain urine. In total, over 50 liters of whitish fluid drained from the suprapubic catheter over 11 days. The leak caused sepsis and multi-organ damage that eventually caused the patient's death.

System
Wellstar Health System
Facility
Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center
Providers involved
Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center / Medical staff
Pattern
Post-spine-surgery chyle leak with liters of whitish fluid draining through a suprapubic catheter without investigation or treatment
Harm
Sepsis, multi-organ damage, and death

Overview

This page concerns care at Wellstar’s Atlanta Medical Center after spine surgery, where a major chyle leak allegedly went uninvestigated and untreated while whitish fluid drained through a suprapubic catheter for 11 days before sepsis and multi-organ damage caused death.

Chronology

  1. The patient underwent spine surgery and then received post-operative care at Wellstar's Atlanta Medical Center.
  2. After surgery, a major chyle leak allegedly caused whitish fluid to drain from a suprapubic catheter intended to drain urine.
  3. The medical staff allegedly did nothing to investigate or offer treatment even as liter after liter drained out over 11 days.
  4. More than 50 liters of whitish fluid drained from the catheter, and the leak caused sepsis and multi-organ damage that eventually caused the patient’s death.

Alleged failures

  • Medical staff allegedly failed to investigate a major chyle leak after spine surgery.
  • Hospital providers allegedly failed to offer treatment while whitish fluid drained from a suprapubic catheter over an extended period.
  • The prolonged failure to identify and address the leak allegedly allowed sepsis and multi-organ damage to cause death.

Entities and tags

Wellstar Health SystemWellstar Atlanta Medical CenterSpine surgerySuprapubic catheterChyle leakMedical staffFailure to diagnosePost-operative complicationSepsisDrain output ignoredHospital medicineCritical careUrology

Questions this example answers

What does the Wellstar chyle leak death allege?

This complaint states as follows: The patient passed away at the age of 77 after receiving negligent care at Wellstar's Atlanta Medical Center. After spine surgery, the patient had a major chyle leak. The medical staff of the hospital failed the patient in multiple ways — chiefly, by doing nothing to investigate or offer treatment as liter after liter of whitish fluid drained out of a suprapubic catheter intended to drain urine. In total, over 50 liters of whitish fluid drained from the suprapubic catheter over 11 days. The leak caused sepsis and multi-organ damage that eventually caused the patient's death.

Who is identified in this public case example?

This public case example identifies Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center and Medical staff. It also tags the source-supported entities Wellstar Health System, Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center, Spine surgery, Suprapubic catheter, and Chyle leak.

What alleged failures are summarized here?

Medical staff allegedly failed to investigate a major chyle leak after spine surgery. Hospital providers allegedly failed to offer treatment while whitish fluid drained from a suprapubic catheter over an extended period. The prolonged failure to identify and address the leak allegedly allowed sepsis and multi-organ damage to cause death.