'Dead' woman wakes up as doctors harvest organs
Published: 2013 July 09 22:15:22 (5108 Views)
Doctors at a Syracuse hospital in the US came within inches of harvesting the organs of a live woman who woke on the operating table, despite previous reports by nurses indicating she was alive.
Doctors at St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center mistakenly ruled that Colleen S. Burns, 41, had suffered a cardiac death in October 2009, according to records published Sunday by the Syracuse Post-Standard behind a $22,000 fine issued by the state department of health.
The mother of three from North Syracuse had overdosed on Xanax, Benadryl and a muscle relaxant but had not died, only slipped into a deep coma, it would later be revealed.
She was mistakenly declared brain dead by hospital staff, with the tragic news presented to Burns' family who gave doctors permission to take her off life support and harvest her organs.
According to hospital records, one day before Burns' organs were to be removed, a nurse noticed something eerie about the patient, a sign someone without a medical degree may even jump to see.
Her toes curled from the simple reflex test of running a finger along her foot.
An investigation by the Health Department determined this and several other signs to come were shockingly ignored by doctors.
Then, just before surgery on Oct. 20, 2009, Burns' nostrils were seen flared as though she was breathing independent of her respirator. Her lips and tongue were seen moving as well.
Despite these signs, a nurse injected Burns with a sedative called Ativan just 20 minutes later, according to hospital records.
In contrast to these records, the doctor's notes show neither acknowledgement of Burns' movements nor the administration of Ativan.
Just when the surgery was to begin, Burns' eyes opened and gazed up at the bright lights hanging over her. It took that final sign to call it off.
Burns was later discharged from the hospital after a two-week stay.
Neither Burns nor her family filed a lawsuit against the hospital or doctors after the horrific incident.
Her mother, Lucille Kuss, explained her daughter was too depressed to care at that point in her life.
Tragically, Burns committed suicide 16 months later, dying of an overdose in January 2011.
Still, Kuss says the hospital never explained to them what went wrong in that dreadful first stay.
The Health Department would later find that hospital officials did not thoroughly investigate her near-death by their own hands until a surprise inspection in March 2010.
The state fined the hospital $22,000 — $6,000 for Burns' case and $16,000 for an incident in 2011 where a patient received a head injury after being left unattended.
- NYDaily
Doctors at St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center mistakenly ruled that Colleen S. Burns, 41, had suffered a cardiac death in October 2009, according to records published Sunday by the Syracuse Post-Standard behind a $22,000 fine issued by the state department of health.
The mother of three from North Syracuse had overdosed on Xanax, Benadryl and a muscle relaxant but had not died, only slipped into a deep coma, it would later be revealed.
She was mistakenly declared brain dead by hospital staff, with the tragic news presented to Burns' family who gave doctors permission to take her off life support and harvest her organs.
According to hospital records, one day before Burns' organs were to be removed, a nurse noticed something eerie about the patient, a sign someone without a medical degree may even jump to see.
Her toes curled from the simple reflex test of running a finger along her foot.
An investigation by the Health Department determined this and several other signs to come were shockingly ignored by doctors.
Then, just before surgery on Oct. 20, 2009, Burns' nostrils were seen flared as though she was breathing independent of her respirator. Her lips and tongue were seen moving as well.
Despite these signs, a nurse injected Burns with a sedative called Ativan just 20 minutes later, according to hospital records.
In contrast to these records, the doctor's notes show neither acknowledgement of Burns' movements nor the administration of Ativan.
Just when the surgery was to begin, Burns' eyes opened and gazed up at the bright lights hanging over her. It took that final sign to call it off.
Burns was later discharged from the hospital after a two-week stay.
Neither Burns nor her family filed a lawsuit against the hospital or doctors after the horrific incident.
Her mother, Lucille Kuss, explained her daughter was too depressed to care at that point in her life.
Tragically, Burns committed suicide 16 months later, dying of an overdose in January 2011.
Still, Kuss says the hospital never explained to them what went wrong in that dreadful first stay.
The Health Department would later find that hospital officials did not thoroughly investigate her near-death by their own hands until a surprise inspection in March 2010.
The state fined the hospital $22,000 — $6,000 for Burns' case and $16,000 for an incident in 2011 where a patient received a head injury after being left unattended.
- NYDaily
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