Trying to research if this baby death actually happened...

Published

I had lunch with a classmate today that told me of a very disturbing story that she saw about a year or so ago on TV...not on the news but on one of those shows that does a documentatary on crimes, etc.

I am trying to see if anyone has heard of this story.

The story:

Parents brought a baby into the ER in respiratory distress...baby was under a year old, about 6 months, give or take.

At some point during treatment the baby appeared to stop breathing, the Pediatrician that was in the ER, that was very prominant in the area, pronounced the baby dead...the parents left the room.

A nurse was told to go to the baby to perform post-mortem care and when she returned to the room the baby was moving. She then noticed that the baby's color was returning--not exactly a case of post-mortem twitching.

She was able to get a full set of VS on the infant and screamed for the doctor to come back into the room in a panic to get the parents because the baby was still alive.

Supposedly the Pediatrician kept insisting to the nurse that the baby was not alive. The nurse said, "Are you crazy? Look at it? I just took a full set of vitals."

Then the nurse watched as the doctor picked up the baby, put it's hand over the baby's mouth and nose, and said, "We are not calling the parents back in here after I have already told them the baby is dead."

He suffocated the infant. The parents were never called in, the nurse didn't say anything out of fear, and the baby was buried.

Supposedly, about a year later, the nurse couldn't take it anymore and finally reported what the Pediatrician did, a full investigation..but she couldn't remember what happened to him.

Has anyone seen this?

To me, if I was the nurse, that would have been the day I would have lost my job....no way could I have sat there and watched a doctor suffocate and infant that I just took vitals on even if I had to call security or physically remove the infant from him myself.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg.

I did see that show. I think it may have been "48 Hours Mystery".

But yes, it was a true story, and included interviews with the people involved.

Oh, and from what I recall, the Dr. is still practicing.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg.

Now that I'm searching google, however, I can't seem to find anything. Maybe some web search guru's will chime in???

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It's a really short article, but it might guide you a bit...

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940CE4DF1338F931A35751C0A96F958260

The doctor's name is Eugene Turner...the baby's name was Conor Shamus McInnerney. Not sure if this is the one you were looking for, but it's similar.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg.
It's a really short article, but it might guide you a bit...

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940CE4DF1338F931A35751C0A96F958260

The doctor's name is Eugene Turner...the baby's name was Conor Shamus McInnerney. Not sure if this is the one you were looking for, but it's similar.

Thanks! That was the case. Here's a link to the DVD of the show, which appeared on A&E's "American Justice"

http://store.aetv.com/html/product/index.jhtml?id=76557&name=Dangerous+Medicine%3F+DVD

I also remember now, the twist in this case was that the other doctor that was on duty that night in the ER later murdered his own wife, and was found not guilty by reason of insanity caused by the whole situation with Dr. Turner...

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A story very similar to that was on Discovery Health's tv show "Mystery Diagnosis."

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

That story was on American Justice on A&E.

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goodness, I am so sorry I read this thread, had not heard that story before, I guess that will teach me that you read these threads at your own risk, very depressing, just another example of physicians and their God complexes and nurses and their tendency to be subservient even when it cost the patient their life,(thankfully not all nurses and doctors are like this)

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

I remember seeing that show also. If I recall the Dr got off because they were unable to prove he actually caused the death. Appearently the Nurse's word wasn't enought.

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I would have gotten fired because I couldn't have sat there. I probably would have screamed out and grabbed the doctor... all of which may get me a jail sentence for battery. I do wish I hadn't read this threat though. :crying2:

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Specializes in ER, Infusion therapy, Oncology.

I actually thought this must be an urban legend until I went to some of the sites posted. I think the nurse in this case should have been ivestigated also. She had a duty as a nurse and a human being to report this. This story is scary.

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Specializes in Surgery - some medicine.

Unbelievable story. I cannot believe the physician would do such a thing... and the nurse just standing by not doing anything!

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