The Dominion Post
An area woman filed a medical malpractice suit, saying actions prior to the birth of her child led to life-long developmental issues.
The suit, which seeks unspecified damages, was filed in Monongalia County Circuit Court last week and names Monongalia County General Hospital Inc., West Virginia University Hospitals Inc. and Women’s Healthcare of Morgantown Inc. as defendants.
Three employees of those organizations — Richard Kerr, Jann Foley and Tyler Prouty — are also listed as defendants, as are an additional one to 10 unnamed employees from each medical provider. Mon County General is now known as Mon Health Medical Center.
“To protect the integrity of all parties involved, Mon Health will not comment publicly on this pending legal matter. We also have an obligation to protect and honor the privacy of our patients,” said Dottie Oakes, interim president and CEO of Mon Health.
A spokesperson for WVU Hospitals said the organization does not comment on pending litigation.
None of the defendants filed a legal response to the suit yet.
According to the suit:
On Feb. 2, 2006, Angela Rife Wilson, then Angela Rife, went to her obstetrical provider, Foley, at Women’s Healthcare of Morgantown with complaints of decreased fetal movement. Foley advised Wilson to drive to Mon General for more evaluation.
At Mon General, Wilson was seen by Kerr. Instead of ordering an emergency C-section, which the suit claims there were signs for, he ordered a biophysical profile (BPP).
The suit alleges both Kerr and Foley knew the BPP showed the need for an emergency C-section.
Instead, Wilson was sent to WVU Hospitals at 2:33 p.m., where she was again evaluated, this time by Prouty.
At 5:30 p.m., Wilson was admitted to labor and delivery and medical charts show an ultrasound BPP at 5:40 p.m., which showed the need for an emergency delivery, the suit claims.
The C-section was done at 6:35 p.m., and Landon Rife was born at 6:37 p.m. He was on a ventilator in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for about 27 days.
The suit alleges as a result of the delayed C-section, Rife suffered hypoxia in utero and now has developmental disorders, including pervasive developmental disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, a stutter, rage reaction with violent behavior disorder, involuntary muscle movements and developmental delays that will follow him the rest of his life
