Imagine you’re having bladder or urinary problems, go to the doctor and get some tests that are performed with equipment used by other sick patients. And then you get a letter from the clinic saying they’re now offering you new tests to see if you have HIV or hepatitis C, stating how “deeply sorry” they are, and “if you have any concerns, we recommend that you consult with a physician."
An apology, how nice. Luckily, some of these 5,000 patients decided also to consult with an attorney. The culpable clinic sits on the border of Iowa and South Dakota, and its owners are now being sued by some Iowa residents who are seeking class action status. Apparently even the South Dakota Department of Health has confirmed that the clinic used “single-use products such as saline solution bags and tubing on more than one patient before being discarded.”
Sound familiar? It should. This is a terrible case of déjà vu all over again. Think Nevada, New York and New Jersey, and the VA, which have also played host to medical clinics that reused medical equipment, exposing numerous patients to blood-borne disease.
Dear fellow-advocate, my name is Josephine and I am the founder of www.LeapforPatientSafety.org. Please visit our website to learn more about us and our efforts. We are organizing our friendly "Annual Patient Safety Walk" which will be held on Saturday, May 9, 2009 in Rockville Centre, New York starting at 11:00 a.m. and ending at 2:00 p.m. The walk is free and we would be so delighted if you would walk with us. This year's honoree is Esmin Green. Ms. Green was left dead for 2 hours on the floor of the emergency room at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn after waiting 24 hours of not being attended to in a timely-fashion in June 2008. We will meet at the Rockville Centre Long Island Railroad Station and we will start walking to Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre. Mercy Hospital is the hospital where an unidentified young woman died after surgery to remove both breasts - all because of a horrendous blunder by Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre, New York. She didn't even have cancer. Her lab results were mixed up with someone else's. The unidentified woman's left-breast biopsy tissue had been "interchanged" with another patient's at the Rockville Centre, Long Island hospital (Mercy Medical). Please help us organize a group of individuals who might have interest to walk with us. Many thanks for your attention.
Most kindest regards,
Josephine (646-244-5509)
jccicchi@yahoo.com
Posted by: Josephine Cicchini | April 20, 2009 at 09:24 PM