Errors That Killed Lewis Blackman Lewis Blackman was a fifteen-year-old boy in seventh grade. He was thought of by his peers as gifted, enthusiastic, brilliant, talented across the board, achieved many academic accomplishments at such a young age, had a great memory and was loved by all. Lewis was born with the condition of pectus excavatum, which causes a crease in the chest cavity. He has lived many years with this condition but decided to have elective surgery at the University of South Carolina Children’s Hospital, since there was potential to cause respiratory problems if not corrected. Once Lewis’ elective surgery was completed, his life came to an end five frightful days after, due to septic shock. His mother Helen found many errors that occurred to Lewis and their stay in the hospital. Too much medication was administered; no staff members acted upon or listened to their requests; the medical staff blamed the equipment for malfunctioning; abnormal vital signs were taken but ignored;
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Together they will be able to accomplish more as a team by gathering appropriate information and critically thinking about medical issues in collaboration. Due to this terrible, inexcusable medical case of negligence, the Blackman family has created the Lewis Blackman Patient Safety Act five years after Lewis’ death. This act requires that information from physicians, nurses and anyone else involved in the care of the patient be presented to the family members, so the roles in the care are clearly stated. Second, the medical staff must also wear badges that are easily seen which states their name, their department, and job tittle. Lastly and most important, if there is a request for the attending or veteran physician to be called, the nurse must do so; a resident physician is not acceptable (S.C. Code of Laws: Act 146,
Together they will be able to accomplish more as a team by gathering appropriate information and critically thinking about medical issues in collaboration. Due to this terrible, inexcusable medical case of negligence, the Blackman family has created the Lewis Blackman Patient Safety Act five years after Lewis’ death. This act requires that information from physicians, nurses and anyone else involved in the care of the patient be presented to the family members, so the roles in the care are clearly stated. Second, the medical staff must also wear badges that are easily seen which states their name, their department, and job tittle. Lastly and most important, if there is a request for the attending or veteran physician to be called, the nurse must do so; a resident physician is not acceptable (S.C. Code of Laws: Act 146,