Patient Nearly Dies As Nurses, Staffers Ignore. Lawsuit Exposes Alleged Incompetence At Boca Raton Regional.
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2022 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A lawsuit just filed in Palm Beach County exposes the alleged incompetence shown by nurses and medical staffers at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. The standout of several claims made in the malpractice suit: nurses permitted a patient with digestive issues to be fed, then reclined in his bed. His wife found the man choking.
George Wyler, according to the suit, underwent a cardiac procedure at Boca Raton Regional. While recovering, Mr. Wyler suffered from several other issues, including a need for a feeding tube to be inserted due to swallowing problems. Over the days and weeks that followed, medical professionals — including a gastroenterologist — worked to restore Mr. Wyler’s eating ability. An order for specific liquid-based foods was made and nurses were told to ensure that Mr. Wyler was fed slowly and while sitting up. But on October 10, 2019, Mrs. Wyler found her husband lying with his bed semi-reclined.
“Mrs. Wyler noticed that Mr. Wyler had been fed and was choking on his food,” states the suit. ”Mrs. Wyler immediately grabbed her husband and pulled him into a sitting position, using her hands to remove vomitus from Mr. Wyler’s mouth. Mrs. Wyler complained to the staff that her husband needed to be fed in an upright position, if at all, and should have been fed via the J-Tube and not been given food by mouth. Mrs. Wyler requested that Mr. Wyler’s medication be given through his tube, but the hospital staff refused, instead giving it to him by mouth with water, causing him to choke and vomit.”
Then, incredibly, according to the suit, staffers at Boca Raton Regional did it all again.
“At 5:48 p.m. on October 10, 2019, the critical care team was called to Mr. Wyler’s bedside where he was found choking on his food and vomiting. The notes reflect that Mr. Wyler was coughing violently and vomiting. He had pinpoint pupils, minimally reactive, gastric debris noted and was suctioned form oral cavity, intubated, and transferred to the intensive care unit.”
Having had enough of Boca Raton Regional Hospital, Mr. Wyler’s wife had him transferred to a facility in New Jersey, where he remains.
Boca Raton Regional Hospital traditionally does not comment on lawsuits — or, quite frankly, anything that is potentially negative about Baptist Health — the hospital’s owner. The suit seeks in excess of $30,000, the statutory minimum for filing in Palm Beach County Circuit Court.
The Wylers are represented by Theodore S. Forman of Forman Law Offices. Read the complete suit, below.
