Description

In this case, a 70-year-old patient died in October 1983 of complications six months following surgery to correct a hip fracture. The report chronicles a six-month period of unexplained delays, inadequate pre- and post-operative medical care, and poor follow-up medical and nursing care at both Central Islip and Pilgrim Psychiatric Centers, during which the patient developed many severe and infected bedsores, and suffered a serious weight loss which was untreated. Fragmented care, with no single physician having responsibility for medically monitoring and coordinating the care of the patient, was found to have resulted in both the inattention to her medical needs which led to her progressive deterioration, and in the delay in transferring her back to Central Islip Psychiatric Center until it was too late to save her life.