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Blood Clots Killed Woman in Waiting Room

Camera caught fallen patient left ignored on NYC hospital floor

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 12, 2008 10:02 AM CDT
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(Newser) – The death of a woman on the floor of a Brooklyn hospital was caused by blood clots from extended inactivity, CNN reports. Chronic deep vein thrombosis formed clots in her legs that eventually reached her lungs. The case has drawn international attention after security-camera footage showed the woman falling to the floor and convulsing, with no one checking on her for an hour. She had sat in the waiting room for more than 24 hours.

Seven workers have been fired from King’s County Hospital over the incident, in which hospital records were apparently falsified. “Some of our employees failed to act based on our compassionate standards of care,” said hospital overseers. The hospital already faces a lawsuit over unsanitary conditions, with patients allegedly sleeping on floors covered in bodily fluids; after the video appeared, the hospital agreed to take steps to improve care.

This combination of 6 still photos taken from a video shows the progression of events in the early morning hours of June 19, 2008 in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y.
This combination of 6 still photos taken from a video shows the progression of events in the early morning hours of June 19, 2008 in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y.   (AP Photo)
In this photo provided by the New York Civil Liberties Union, Esmin Green lies face down on the floor in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., June 19, 2008.
In this photo provided by the New York Civil Liberties Union, Esmin Green lies face down on the floor in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., June 19, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Esmin Green, 49, lies face down on the floor in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., as a security guard wheels over in his chair to see her June 19, 2008.
Esmin Green, 49, lies face down on the floor in the psychiatric ward of the Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., as a security guard wheels over in his chair to see her June 19, 2008.   (AP Photo/NYCLU)
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More on the incident
Associated Press

Loved ones reflect on Green
Jamaica Observer

 
health care • New York City • Brooklyn • autopsy • blood clots • hospital • deep vein thrombosis • negligence • psychiatric treatment center • Esmin Green

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