Jan 7 (Westlaw Journals) - Doctors at a California hospital purposely delayed a baby’s delivery to “increase the probability” that the baby would die after they realized he would be born with significant neurologic brain injuries, according to a lawsuit filed by the baby’s mother.
Aliscia Towles alleges doctors at Centinela Hospital Medical Center knew as early as 10:47 p.m. on July 22, 2010, that her son required immediate delivery and that failure to deliver him within 30 minutes would result in his being born brain damaged.
Despite this knowledge, obstetrician Shereen Lukathy Beverly and anesthesiologist Steven Reid Giles “undertook actions designed to kill [the] baby” so as to “save the defendants the legal responsibility for her son’s future care and loss of earnings,” according to the suit filed against the hospital and physicians in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
Towles arrived at the hospital July 22, 2010, around 3 p.m. in active labor. Fetal monitoring was started, which showed a normal, healthy, reactive fetus, the suit says.
Beverly performed an artificial rupture of membranes around 7:10 p.m. Fetal monitoring continued to show a healthy, reactive fetus.
Beverly ordered administration of Pitocin to accelerate labor and left the hospital with instructions to call her when Towles was “ready to deliver.”
About an hour later, the fetal monitor showed a change in the baby’s heart rate indicating distress, the complaint says. The labor nurse informed Beverly of the heart rate change.
A second call was made to Beverly at 9:29 p.m. when the baby’s heart signaled further distress and the doctor arrived about 15 minutes later.
Three attempts from 10:29 until almost 10:45 p.m. deliver the baby vaginally failed.
Beverly ordered a Cesarean section for the plaintiff and the anesthesiologist, Giles, was called at 10:47 p.m. Fetal monitoring showed the baby’s heart rate was extremely low and “would soon die if not delivered promptly,” the suit contends.
The complaint says that when Giles finally arrived at 11:20 p.m. he and Beverly “decided to purposely delay the delivery of the baby” to increase the probability of the baby dying before delivery.
The baby was delivered at 11:50 p.m. and after a short attempt at resuscitation he was declared a stillbirth.
The complaint raises counts of negligence, negligent infliction of emotional distress and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Towles claims she suffered extreme emotional distress at the death of her child and from the defendants’ actions in conspiring to delay delivery of her son and conceal the true facts of the cause of her baby’s death.
The plaintiff is represented by Bruce G. Fagel of Los Angeles. It could not be immediately determined who will represent the defendants.
The case is Towles v. Prime Healthcare Centinela et al., No. YC063936, Cal. Superior, Los Angeles County Dec. 29, 2010.