South Carolina Medical Malpractice Suit Results in $3M Award
A Myrtle Beach-area jury has handed down a $3 million verdict against a South Carolina hospital and doctor in a medical malpractice suit.
Sean Fay filed the lawsuit against Grand Strand Regional Medical Center and Dr. Stephen Law, an emergency room physician, over the death of his wife, Kelly Fay, in 2002. Fay was admitted to Grand Strand on a Saturday in January of 2002, with complaints of stomach and back pain.
Rather than being admitted, Fay was diagnosed as having a kidney stone, given pain medication and scheduled to return on Monday. However, Fay died of septic shock 48 hours after she was discharged, before she could keep her appointment.
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Learn MoreLast month, a Horry County jury determined that both the hospital and Dr. Law were negligent in the care of Fay, and failed to follow nationally recognized standards of medical care. However, Sean Fay was also found partly negligent for not bringing his wife back to the emergency room when her condition worsened, the Sun News reported.
Sepsis infections are a form of body-wide inflammation that results from the reaction to an infection. Symptoms can include high heart rate, a high respiratory rate, a high or low body temperature and elevated white blood cell count. Sepsis can cause the body to go into septic shock, resulting in organ damage and organ failure, and severe cases result in death about 20% to 35% of the time.
Hospital officials said they disagreed with the jury’s decision and believe the hospital and Dr. Law provided Fay with appropriate care. They are considering an appeal of the decision.
3 Comments
AnnaDecember 15, 2022 at 10:50 pm
I need a lawyer. I have one kidney and I have a nephrostomy which is. Bypass in my only kidney. A zip tie or what they call an ostomy ring was placed around my nepheostomy it shut it down for 4 days. I was back in forth the the hospital. It was not outputting at all. They did an X-ray said it was in place it wasn’t draining any urine. My feet, my stomach, hands started swelling. I kept explaining [Show More]I need a lawyer. I have one kidney and I have a nephrostomy which is. Bypass in my only kidney. A zip tie or what they call an ostomy ring was placed around my nepheostomy it shut it down for 4 days. I was back in forth the the hospital. It was not outputting at all. They did an X-ray said it was in place it wasn’t draining any urine. My feet, my stomach, hands started swelling. I kept explaining it. They stated it’s fine but they could inject dye into the line. I’ve had this tube for ten years my second one. I knew if they injected dye it could collapse my only kidney. So I say no to the dye. They state if anything happens I have until the next day to come in nobody is on call on the weekend so it would have to wait till Monday. I had to get on a plane in horrible pain and fly to my home town where I’ve received care for 23 years. They were horrified and stunned that urine hadn’t passed in a week!!!! They went to look at it the zip tie placed around my tube had shut my nephrostomy down. And the zip tie or ostomy ring melted the skin around the site a 3rd degree burn, blisters and blood. My site has never looked like that. They had to decide how to remove the zip tie or ostomy ring from my tube. They had to cut my nephrostomy off in order to get the ring off totally replace it and put topical antibiotics on the site. The burns are still not healed. I was also refused antibiotics which is a standing order due to my numerous infections so I had to be placed on iv and then given oral antibiotics. My anion gap number dropped and my creatinine elevated. They said if I didn’t fly to get care my kidney could have collapsed. I’m back in my hometown to get it changed again and a re test to see if my numbers have improved or if the damage of it not working for a week is the same.
SoniaMay 9, 2022 at 6:53 am
I have been waiting to get an operations x 2 days now and was finally admitted to a room I keep getting as different scheduled date for operation because of other more serious cases I need an attorney I have been told if I go AMA I can go into sepsis
KathleenJanuary 8, 2020 at 1:44 pm
My son was born in grand strand the nurse missed his vein w an IV his skin turned black and fell off as a new born and has terrible infractions scarring and has a hard time walking as an infant. I need an attorney! One year later infection has gone back and he’s on he’s g antibiotics and it’s all around the area where the nurse placed the IV. He was in the beanstalks unit w 2 neonatal nurses and [Show More]My son was born in grand strand the nurse missed his vein w an IV his skin turned black and fell off as a new born and has terrible infractions scarring and has a hard time walking as an infant. I need an attorney! One year later infection has gone back and he’s on he’s g antibiotics and it’s all around the area where the nurse placed the IV. He was in the beanstalks unit w 2 neonatal nurses and 2 doctors w one other child and nobody checked his leg for day’s.