A young boy left wrapped in a heating blanket has lost his life. Procedures regarding monitoring the patient and reporting the death were reportedly violated, making this a case of hospital negligence. The Pennsylvania hospital was cited for infractions, and a family is left mourning the loss of their son.
The boy was brought into the Hershey Medical Center with an extremely low temperature. He was admitted to the hospital and was treated with a heating blanket designed to bring up a person's body temperature. As his temperature returned to normal, he was monitored with checks. Unfortunately, overnight the temperatures were not properly monitored and documented. In the morning, the boy was found, still wrapped in the heating blanket, unresponsive and with a temperature of over 107.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
The boy was taken to the pediatric intensive care unit where he was later pronounced dead. Regulations require that the incident be reported within 24 hours of the death, but in this case, the death was not reported until almost two months later after a letter from an anonymous employee. The state Department of Health then performed an investigation and cited the hospital for failure to report, failure to meet standards of care and other violations.
The hospital took steps to alter procedures to prevent other similar incidents from occurring. Sadly, for the Pennsylvania boy and his parents, it is too late. The hospital did express sadness at the loss and admitted the error, but it also mentioned in a statement that the boy had other health complications. Families who have experienced the trauma of loss due to hospital negligence have options for justice. Some families choose to consult with an experienced lawyer for an evaluation of a possible medical malpractice case.