When their services are needed, a great deal of trust is placed in the hands of doctors and other medical personnel. A truly disturbing case tells us that such trust was grossly misplaced in one doctor who appears to have driven directly from a bar to his work in a Las Vegas delivery room.
Equally disturbing is the fact that the doctor has a known reputation for medical malpractice.
The Case at a Glance
When the mother entered the delivery room at Sunrise Hospital, she was accompanied by family members, one of whom recorded the happenings on his cell phone for posterity. With her regular doctor on vacation, Dr. Frank DeLee was called in to substitute.
Clad in Bermuda shorts and wearing no shoes, the doctor entered the delivery room wreaking of alcohol.
Overheard by the mother as she lay in induced labor and anticipating a possible cesarean section delivery was the doctor telling attending nurses that “there weren’t too many people in the bar when I left.”
In showing compassion to the doctor, one of the nurses replied, “I’m sorry. Did you waste a drink?”
As Anesthesia Wears Off, Doctor Offers Crude Advice to Mother
When the mother told that doctor she thought the epidural had worn off because she could “feel everything,” the doctor crudely replied “I was told not to say ‘lift your fat a** up’ and ‘don’t you wish your doctor had stayed in town?’”
Letting the moment pass with no expression of concern or care for the mother and her child, the nurses and doctor had an in-depth conversation on their vodka preferences – all of which was captured on the video.
“It was just jaw dropping,” the mother said. “I couldn’t fathom why this was going on in the midst of me having a child.”
Mother Sues Hospital; Says Baby Now Suffers From Erb’s Palsy
The mother is suing Sunrise Hospital with claims that the boozing doctor’s inebriated condition led to her baby developing Erb’s palsy.
Medical experts brought in by the mother’s attorneys determined that Dr. DeLee used “inappropriate techniques” by pulling the baby’s arms during delivery and failed to recognize the pressure of shoulder dystocia.
About the lawsuit, the mother’s lawyer said “We want to hold (the hospital) accountable for the actions that resulted in the injuries to her son’s arm and shoulder. I think any person would be horrified.”
Dr. DeLee Has Long History of Medical Malpractice
According to reports, Dr. DeLee has at least a half dozen complaints and settlements from medical malpractice totaling over $2.7 million.
Erb’s palsy seems to be nothing new to him. In 2012, he settled a case for “negligent vaginal delivery resulting in shoulder dystocia.”
If Your Child Experienced a Birth Injury, Call The Fitzgerald Law Firm
If you feel that your child developed Erb’s palsy during delivery, our caring and skilled medical malpractice and birth injury attorneys want to speak with you.
To learn more about Erb’s palsy or to schedule a free initial appointment, call us here at The Fitzgerald Law Firm; our number is 800-323-9900.