Hospital Destroys Medical Records When Treatment Goes Wrong
A lawsuit filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court claims that Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto, CA, destroyed portions of medical records and made late entries after the death of a patient. The San Francisco Chronicle reports this patient was suffering pain from an elective surgery. Her doctors refused to examine her until the next morning, when she goes into shock, is rushed into intensive care, and dies.
The California Department of Public Health found that "relevant" portions of the medical records been deleted after her death and that a supervisor instructed a nurse to make postmortem "late entries" to describe her care a week after she died. The hospital stated that only temporary notes that were never intended to become part of the permanent record had been discarded.
In any potential case of medical negligence there is always the possibility that the medical provider will alter the medical records in their favor. In most instances where a patient dies it can be a matter of weeks before the family is able to obtain medical records. As this story highlights, the medical profession will make every attempt to justify hiding what really happened. Wouldn’t keeping all documentation of treatment be the better course of action? Shouldn’t all entries be made within a few days and not a week later?
This is a perfect example of why all Missourians should have an advanced health care directive and a durable power of attorney in place prior to any medical treatment. With these legal documents, it will be much easier for your family to obtain your medical records if anything happens to you. If you are having trouble obtaining medical records contact an experienced Missouri lawyer as soon as possible.
