Man dies of massive heart attack after being sent home from ED A seventy-three-year-old man and his
Question:
Man dies of massive heart attack after being sent home from ED
A seventy-three-year-old man and his wife walked into the ED at 3:00 a.m. He told the nurse at the desk that he was having chest pain and tingling in his arm. The nurse phoned the physician on duty who was upstairs. The nurse spoke with the doctor, handed the phone to the patient who spoke with the physician for several minutes, then, handed the phone back to the nurse. The nurse spoke with the physician again, then hung up and told the man and his wife to go home and call his personal physician in the morning. She explained that his insurance did not cover treatment at their facility and that the pain and tingling was probably nothing-just old age. The couple left the hospital and walked the three blocks back to their home and up the four flights to their apartment. While taking his shirt off to get into bed, the man had a massive heart attack and died instantly.
Share your thoughts as to how to handle the media and publicity ensuing the situation.