Man Starves To Death In Hospital After Workers Lost His Dentures

[matcom]

<snip>

CBS) NEW YORK The family of 50s songwriter, Julius Dixson, has filed suit against a Manhattan Hospital charging the elderly man died of neglect after routine surgery.

Julius Dixson, Jr., 53, says there is no way his father should have starved to death in a hospital. "I'm outraged. I'm hurt by it," he said.

Dixson Sr. was 90 when he died on January 30, 2004. He's best known for co-writing hits like "Lollipop," recorded by the Chordettes, and "Begging, Begging," recorded by James Brown.

On January 16, 2004, the elderly Dixson had surgery at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital at 58th Street and 10th Avenue to repair a broken femur near the hip.

Family members say before the surgery, a hospital staffer removed the elderly man's dentures, but after the surgery the dentures couldn't be found.

http://wcbstv.com/local/local_story_029173038.html

[Patiod]

1. Not surprised after my dad's most recent hospital stays

We have a long list, but some of the highlights:

- They put an overdose patient in with my dad, 83-year-old man who was there for pain treatment. The OD experienced explosive diarrhea TWICE, which required them to move my dad into the hall for several hours while they cleaned and fumigated his room. Twice.


- They gave one med twice, then stopped for no reason. When prompted a few days later ("why isn't he getting it anymore?"), they started it up again.

- They forgot to include a vital heart medication when they gave a list of meds to the nursing home.

- I was with him when a non-English-speaking tech of some sort attempted to give him the wrong medicine. She kept insisting he needed his "noozle spray" and I told her that she had the wrong one. It was like a Laurel and Hardy routine -- she didn't understand a word we said, and my dad and I couldn't understand anything she said. I'm glad I was there, though, to see it for myself.

My own experience recently includes being given a tiny little spit cup when I started vomiting, consistently being wakened and asked if I was the 90-year-old multiple-organ-failure patient in the next bed, and never getting the IV anti-emetic that was the only thing I was staying overnight for.

My favorite was a nurse who jabbed my saline IV bag with the IV pole, causing the bag to drip all over the floor. When it was pointed out to her, she giggled and said "Oh, I must have spiked it!" and she went and found a surgical glove to wrap the bag in (rather than replace it with an untorn one).

[crim son]

2. I expect to see Terry Schiavo's adamant supporters

in the streets over this one. The poor man was completely coherent!

[Gormy Cuss]

3. That's just sad.

I believe the family has a good chance to prevail since the medical examiner said that he died from weight loss and dehydration.