Monica Thompson Accidentally Smothers Baby While In The Hospital, Suing Hospital For $8.6 M

[cubby]

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/woman-w...red-newborn-sues-hospital-86-million-dollars/

Monica Thompson filed an $8.6 million lawsuit against Portland Adventist Medical Center, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. She claims the hospital is at fault for her child's death because the newborn was put in bed with her at night to breastfeed while she was unsupervised and medicated with pain and sleep aids.

Thompson said she dozed off on the August 2012 night and woke up to find her son not breathing.

She was medicated with Ambien and Vicodin a few hours before a nurse walked into the room, gave her the baby and left, according to the suit.

"She called for a nurse while she tried to get him to respond," the suit stated. "She poked him and talked to him with no reaction. When no nurse came to help, Mrs. Thompson carried her son to the hallway and frantically yelled for help."

Her son suffered brain damage and was removed from life support after doctors said his comatose state was irreversible.

Medical center spokeswoman Kristi Spurgeon Johnson declined comment, saying on Wednesday the hospital hadn't had a chance to review the lawsuit. She also declined comment about the hospital's policies about newborns sharing beds with mothers.

The suit seeks damages for the baby's "desperation and anxiety" as he was suffocated and his mother's "severe emotional distress upon unintentionally killing her firstborn child." The suit also seeks compensation for Monica Thompson's counseling expenses for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

I know my younger son was left with me one night, I called the nurse to come get him, and she said we thought you would want to sleep with him. I said I can't control him on this slick plastic bed, I had a c-section and I couldn't really sit up without pain, and he was sliding further and further down in the bed. She took him back to the nursery but she thought I was one bad mother.

 

[Caligirl90]

This one is really sad. She killed her son, and has to live with that. How was she left alone with that much medication in her? This was foreseeable. Not surprised about the nurse not coming though. I've had too many hospital stay to be surprised by that. I was having trouble breathing and a nurse told me to "get over it", right before I passed out. So on a maternity ward I can bet it's worse. I'm betting that nurse has already been fired.

 

[JackBurton]

Seems quite irresponsible on the hospitals part.

Even worse that she had a hard time getting a hold of someone to help. How are you putting a newborn in with someone, medicated heavily or not, and then not maintaining super close contact?

 

[Chrystan]

I can see this being the hospitals fuck up. I mean, for sure it was if she was given all that medication and then left alone to breastfeed a new baby. Im actually suprised I havent heard more stories like this. When I had my girls, they both slept on my chest in the hospital. Ive never thought about it before, but thats pretty irresponsible of the hospital to let that happen. I know I was medicated then and I dont remember nurses coming in all night to check on us. As much as we hear how dangerous it is to co-sleep, Im suprised that hospitals would do that with new moms.

 

[jenthgr8]

The new "baby friendly" hospitals are a joke. They left me post C section, on heavy narcotic pain meds, alone with my newborn. My husband had to go home with our son and I was alone. This was my worst fucking fear. I could barely get up out of the bed to the bassinet so I kept her in bed with me. I asked a nurse to help and watch her while I struggled to get up and to the bathroom and they were awful.

 

[Sudonim]

What I want to know is why did she have Ambien and Vicodin. Did she already have a prescription for either prior? Those aren't drugs they typically give together(both cause nervous system depression and shouldn't be taken together because it can cause you to stop breathing or go into a coma), never mind after birthing a child. Plus when they give Vicodin to a new mother they can't have more then 30mg per day because it transfers through breast milk into the baby and puts them to sleep. The doses aren't supposed to be enough to make you sleepy, only to take the edge off the pain.

 

[McDanel]

So they gave her ambien and vicodin prior to breastfeeding? I call for a tox-screen on the baby's blood.

 

[cubby]

I believe this happened in 2012, she's only now suing. I wonder why it took her so long to think the hospital so irresponsible.

I know the night my son was left with me, I thought it at that minute. Lying in a bed that's more than two feet up off the floor. I'm short, I had problems getting off the bed beforehand without holding a baby at the same time. I was trying to keep him by my side, since I had been cut from my belly button down, he just kept sliding down to the foot of the bed and I kept pulling back up. I was terrified he would fall off on the floor.

They acted like they didn't know what the problem was when I asked them to take him back to the nursery where he was safe from falling out of bed.

 

[Caligirl90]

I believe this happened in 2012, she's only now suing. I wonder why it took her so long to think the hospital so irresponsible.

.

Maybe she thought there was nothing she could do. Maybe she didn't have a lot of money so she's been looking at options all this time. I don't think she ever didn't believe it was their fault, just didn't know it could legally be their fault. Also, they might have guilt tripped her at the time. She was the one that fell asleep, she was the one that didn't wake up, etc.

 

[Dutchesse]

Also, they might have guilt tripped her at the time. She was the one that fell asleep, she was the one that didn't wake up, etc.

Or she guilt tripped herself. This seems pretty traumatising.
She for sure has a case though.

 

[krissytan]

i had baby #3 left with me all night because they were "understaffed." and while i understand that she is my responsibility, i had also had a c-section and was on meds. she had no extra blankets and nurses could care less about answering call bells. the room was freezing no matter how i adjusted the temp. i attempted to lay her in her bassinet after swaddling her the best i could and she would just scream. so i laid with her in that hospital bed all friggin night, keeping her warm with my body heat - as i dozed from the meds. tried to stay awake but we all know how that goes. couldve easily smothered her the same way this mother did. something needs to be done with these careless nurses in maternity wards.