CHARLESTON – A Kanawha County woman blames negligent care at Charleston Area Medical Center for her son’s death.
Londa Turley as administratrix of the estate of Bradley Ethan Turley filed her complaint March 3 in Kanawha Circuit Court against CAMC. Her son was 50 years old at the time of his death.
“This is another instance where CAMC’s reckless conduct caused the unnecessary death of a young man,” attorney L. Dante diTrapano told The West Virginia Record. “It was clearly preventable.”
diTrapano
According to the complaint, Turley was admitted to CAMC on October 14, 2021, complaining of abdominal pain, vomiting and nausea. His admission diagnosis was pancreatitis, cholelithiasis and choledocholithiasis. He was admitted for observation and treatment, and Dr. Hoda Kasem was his attending physician.
On October 17, 2021, Kasem was informed Turley’s oxygen needs had increased and that he was continuing to vomit and was showing signs of tachycardia. It says she failed to consider aspiration in her differential diagnosis of Turley’s hypoxemia or order an NG tube and suctioning to clear Turley’s stomach.
That evening, Turley’s charts showed decreased oxygen saturation and upper airway congestion. A nurse later noted he was having difficulty breathing. A chest x-ray was ordered due to hypoxia. Overnight, a nurse noted he was experiencing shortness of breath and low oxygen saturation levels.
Turley soon experienced cardiac arrest “due to a massive aspiration event.” Because of the injuries he experienced from the aspiration event and cardiac arrest, Turley’s condition deteriorated over several days. He died on October 23, 2021.
The complaint accuses CAMC of negligence in violation of the West Virginia Medical Professional Liability Act, saying staff deviated from the standard of care and were responsible for Turley’s injuries, deterioration, pain, suffering, emotional distress and death.
Londa Turley seeks compensatory, general and special damages, including medical care expenses, lost earning capacity, lost benefits, funeral and burial expenses, pain and suffering, sorrow, mental anguish and severe emotional distress. She also seeks punitive damages, court costs, attorney fees, pre- and post-judgment interests and other relief.
She is being represented by diTrapano and Timothy D. Houston of Calwell Luce diTrapano in Charleston and by Dr. Richard D. Lindsay and Richard D. Lindsay II of Tabor Lindsay & Associates in Charleston. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Tera Salango.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number 23-C-197
