Seven-figure recovery for emergency room delay in diagnosing cardiac chest pain

People who come to the emergency room with sudden onset of chest pain may have a life-
threatening condition and, therefore, it is important that emergency room doctors and nurses
have a full understanding how to investigate or “work up” chest pain. If it is suspected that the
chest pain may indicate an acute heart problem, then it is absolutely essential that an EKG be
obtained immediately. National standards indicate that in these situations an EKG is to be done
within 10 minutes of the patient entering the ER.

In this case, a young man in his early 20’s entered the emergency room and, according to the
record, he made only vague complaints about heavy breathing and anxiety. However, we
obtained a video of the patient’s presentation to the ER, and it showed him bent over in obvious
distress and also repeatedly rubbing his chest and his left arm. Those images suggest that he was
having chest pain radiating down the left arm which is a classic indication of a possible
impending heart attack. This patient was sent to the waiting room where he sat unattended for
approximately 35 minutes. He then went to the bathroom and did not return. Roughly 30
minutes later, he was found unresponsive in the bathroom. CPR was immediately begun, but he
could not be resuscitated. An autopsy determined that he died of a massive heart attack. In
particular, the young man had several blocked arteries in his heart (coronary artery disease) that
interrupted blood supply and led to the heart attack, known in medical terms as a myocardial
infarction.

We pursued a legal claim on behalf of his family against the hospital on the ground that they
should have obtained an EKG within 10 minutes of him coming into the ER, Had they done so,
they should have seen that he was experiencing early signs of a heart attack, and they could have
provided medication to prevent it from evolving further and becoming fatal. Although the
hospital denied that the patient had specific complaints of chest pain, the video was powerful
evidence suggesting otherwise.

The young man was survived by his parents and also a newborn son. Therefore, our primary
claim for damages involved the loss of future wages and, more importantly, the loss of the
parents’ relationship with their son and the newborn’s relationship with his father that he would
never really know. Those sorts of claims involving loss of relationships are sometimes referred
to as “loss of consortium” claims. That is simply a legal term that refers to the love, society,
companionship, and guidance that one person provides to another.

This was a tragic case as it is most unusual for a person in their early 20s to die from significant
coronary artery disease. While the monetary compensation we obtained is never a substitute for
the loss of a loved one, in this case it provided some accountability for the family and financial
stability for the newborn child.