I took my 14 day old son to St. Elizabeth Hospital's Emergency Department on February 22 to seek immediate medical attention. He was having great difficulty breathing, was displaying direct signs of severe respiratory distress. His skin was beginning to become a bluish color, his nail beds and lips were blue in color, and he was retracting (the intercostal spaces between the ribs are visible due to labored breathing). On top of all of this, he was running a high grade temp and I was unable to wake him. After sitting answering questions for around 20 minutes I was sent with him to triage for evaluation and vitals. I had to point out the obvious to the nurse... The skin color, the breathing. I was told that babies "just breathe that way, and that is just his color". I let the woman know that it was not "his color". My baby was white yesterday, and right now he is blue. I also let her know that I knew how my baby breathed. I have another child, I know what is normal and what is not. I pointed out the retractions, the fact that he was using his abdominal muscles to breathe. She said she had six kids, and nothing was wrong with him. Just a fever. We were then sent back to the ER to wait in line.
My husband, my child, and myself sat in that ER waiting room for 4 hours. I watched his condition decline before my eyes. My husband complained to that triage nurse several times only to be told that my baby was not "of high priority" and we would just have to wait for our turn. I watched patient after patient go back before us, none of whom appeared to be at the brink of death.
During the 4th hour of waiting I realized that his condition has taken a turn for the worse, as his breathing has almost stopped completely. He was literally taking 4 breaths per minute.
My husband approached the triage nurse one last time, this time he was screaming at her that our baby was now dying, and demanded immediate attention. She tried to shrug it off. He then just began to beat on the ER doors until a doctor opened them. I was sitting in the back of the waiting room with the baby when a doctor came and grabbed him in his carseat and ran into the ER. My husband was standing at the doors and went in with the doctor. I was close behind, but told to stay out for a few minutes while they gauged the situation.
Then I heard a code being called over the intercom. My heart sank. Every hospital employee in earshot came running and I ran in with them. I found my baby laying on a bed receiving CPR. He had stopped breathing. The triage nurse came bursting in to assist with the code. My husband started yelling about her ignorance and how this was her fault. The doctor told her to leave the room immediately.
After about three minutes of CPR he began to breathe again. He was put on oxygen and air lifted to Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis, MO. While we were waiting for the helicopter to arrive, the doctor explained to us the risk of brain damage due to the length of time he went without oxygen. We informed him we were told he was "not a high priority", and that we had waited for 4 hours. Shortly after talking to the doctor we were escorted to an office to speak with a member of hospital administration who basically apologized and asked that we not sue.
The triage nurse was never fired, and we are in the process of suing now.
My son is fine today. He luckily managed to suffer no brain damage, and was treated in Cardinal Glennon's PICU for a severe RSV infection.
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