Nurse who survived Ebola is suing the hospital

brownbook · Mar 2, 2015

This is probably not the point, but our whole legal system, litigious society, "I'm going to sue you" mentality, makes me grind my teeth. It is purely anecdotal but I hear horror stories of lawyers suing, winning, then 80% of the settlement goes to the lawyer 20% goes to the claimant.

I had a friend who was treated for several months at a local hospital and completely misdiagnosed. When someone finally figured out what was causing the problem it was like DUH! (Really a BIG DUH!)

She asked the CEO, director, medical attending, heads of various departments, etc., to meet with her. She specifically said she had no desire to sue anybody. She wanted them to remember her, what the "error" was, and make sure this did not happen to anybody else.

Sorry but my gut response when people sue is they (or a lawyer) see dollar signs. They are not trying to fix a problem.

toomuchbaloney · Mar 2, 2015

If she does get compensated, I hope it's only for the amount of her medical bills/furnishing her apartment and future medical expenses (I read somewhere that her medical expenses from THR/NIH were taken care of & she didn't have to pay for anything). It doesn't surprise me that THR was not ready. With the exception of a few hospitals, the US was not prepared for Ebola. Nina needs to understand that outside of Emory & the NIH, THR was the first hospital to handle an Ebola case. They gave her the best care possible and then was sent to the NIH for further treatment. The CDC is more at fault here than THR. They're the ones who set the guidelines we have to follow. She should be going after the CDC for not prepping THR or any other hospital for Ebola.
I'm pretty sure it is her lawyer, Charla Aldous, who contacted her first and not Nina. It's payday for Charla and her firm. If they do go to court and Nina wins great. If they lose, what's Nina going to do without a job? No hospital in the area would want her for fear of a lawsuit. I hope they settle this outside of court.

She wasnt the arrogant ass that decided that the poorly supplied and prepared hospital could handle the care of an ebola patient. She was simply the health professional who received inadequate PPE, minimal support from the hospital administration, and who then agreed to care for the patient anyway.

She deserves EVERY PENNY that she might get and I hope she gets a ton of pennies for the negligence of her employer. Then I hope that nurses everywhere begin to sue their employers for similar budgetary cuts which put them at greater risk for illness and injury.

toomuchbaloney · Mar 2, 2015

Hear, hear! I remember Americans being outraged about our soldiers going into a war zone with insufficient armor. Well, what happened to Nina is no different. The hospital was her warzone and Ebola was her bullet.

Most of us are not in the military.

We are not supposed to be required to put our lives on the line to provide care for our patients. The employers are supposed to provide adequate and appropriate PPE for health professionals. This particular health facility failed to do that and TWO of their nursing staff contracted ebola during care delivery.

The facility deserves as significant financial penalty for their negligence.

BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN · Mar 2, 2015

Can't say I didn't see THIS coming...

For ongoing pain and suffering, loss of future income, and privacy violations among other things. I wonder if she will win?
If nurses contract a disease (in general) because proper protocols were not in place, have you heard of them suing in other cases? Not only for diseases but for injuries?
Newspaper: Nurse who survived Ebola says hospital failed her - San Jose Mercury News

toomuchbaloney · Mar 2, 2015

The hospital will settle and she will get a large settlement.
The guy who lied and exposed the hospital and the rest of the community should of been taken out , and bullet put in his head and he should of been burned once they learned he had lied.

This comment qualifies you as an idiot.

I will accept the reprimand from moderators for saying so outloud and in print.

allnurses Guide · Mar 2, 2015

New article.

Free of Ebola but not fear Nurse Nina Pham to file lawsuit against Presby parent, worries about continued health woes

... She says that Texas Health Resources was negligent because it failed to develop policies and train its staff for treating Ebola patients. She says Texas Health Resources did not have proper protective gear for those who treated Duncan...

Exclusive: Nurse Nina Pham after Ebola: Terrible side effects, lawsuit against employer

MatrixRn · Mar 2, 2015

If she does get compensated, I hope it's only for the amount of her medical bills/furnishing her apartment and future medical expenses (I read somewhere that her medical expenses from THR/NIH were taken care of & she didn't have to pay for anything). It doesn't surprise me that THR was not ready. With the exception of a few hospitals, the US was not prepared for Ebola. Nina needs to understand that outside of Emory & the NIH, THR was the first hospital to handle an Ebola case. They gave her the best care possible and then was sent to the NIH for further treatment. The CDC is more at fault here than THR. They're the ones who set the guidelines we have to follow. She should be going after the CDC for not prepping THR or any other hospital for Ebola.
I'm pretty sure it is her lawyer, Charla Aldous, who contacted her first and not Nina. It's payday for Charla and her firm. If they do go to court and Nina wins great. If they lose, what's Nina going to do without a job? No hospital in the area would want her for fear of a lawsuit. I hope they settle this outside of court.

Agreed. Once the hospital knew what they were dealing with they went out of their way to take care of her. The CDC and the MD who did not diagnose properly is more at fault here.

elkpark · Mar 2, 2015

The hospital will settle and she will get a large settlement.
The guy who lied and exposed the hospital and the rest of the community should of been taken out , and bullet put in his head and he should of been burned once they learned he had lied.

What "lie"??? He wasn't sick when he left Liberia. He developed symptoms after he was back here. He went to the hospital as soon as he started developing symptoms and asked for help. They sent him home the first time, when he was first starting to show symptoms, which the hospital ED didn't take too seriously. He came back a few days later, much more ill. If the hospital had admitted and treated him in the first place, he wouldn't have exposed anyone in the community. Also, after being sent home the first time, he continued to live with his fiance'e and several other family members in close quarters (sharing an apartment), and none of them became ill. No one caught Ebola from him except the two nurses who were involved in caring for him, with inadequate PPE, once his illness was advanced and severe. Again, what lie??

Fortunately, catching an illness is not a capital offense in the US; we don't shoot people for getting sick.

ShelbyaStar · Mar 2, 2015

Agreed. Once the hospital knew what they were dealing with they went out of their way to take care of her. The CDC and the MD who did not diagnose properly is more at fault here.

They did? I didn't really get that sense. I mean, they treated her and transported her, but that's kind of bare minimum treatment? What are you referring to as evidence that they were going out of their way for her?

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Mar 2, 2015

I agree completely!

However, I took that comment

I remember Americans being outraged about our soldiers going into a war zone with insufficient armor. Well, what happened to Nina is no different.

not as nurses should be as willing to put our lives on the line as our military are... but rather, Americans were outraged at the thought of military not having adequate protection for combat; likewise, we should be outraged at the thought of RNs not having adequate PPE for such virulent contagions

Most of us are not in the military.
We are not supposed to be required to put our lives on the line to provide care for our patients. The employers are supposed to provide adequate and appropriate PPE for health professionals. This particular health facility failed to do that and TWO of their nursing staff contracted ebola during care delivery.
The facility deserves as significant financial penalty for their negligence.

caliotter3 · Mar 2, 2015

Maybe someone can explain this for me. I don't understand why her employer is providing her with her regular paycheck. Shouldn't she be on short term disability while she is at home?

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Mar 2, 2015

What "lie"??? He wasn't sick when he left Liberia. He developed symptoms after he was back here. He went to the hospital as soon as he started developing symptoms and asked for help. They sent him home the first time, when he was first starting to show symptoms, which the hospital ED didn't take too seriously. He came back a few days later, much more ill. If the hospital had admitted and treated him in the first place, he wouldn't have exposed anyone in the community. Also, after being sent home the first time, he continued to live with his fiance'e and several other family members in close quarters (sharing an apartment), and none of them became ill. No one caught Ebola from him except the two nurses who were involved in caring for him, with inadequate PPE, once his illness was advanced and severe. Again, what lie??
Fortunately, catching an illness is not a capital offense in the US; we don't shoot people for getting sick.

I support Nina's right to sue, but just wanted to address the comment about Duncan's "lie." The ER nurse who took care of Mr. Duncan on the night he was delivered to PHD by ambulance states that he was not honest when asked about the statements he had previously given HER in the ER.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Pp28QYJDMI

That is at about 2:30 I think.