Attorney: Family Considering Lawsuit After Baby's Hospital Death

INDIANAPOLIS -- The family of one of three babies who died because of an overdose of an anti-clotting drug at Methodist Hospital is thinking about filing a lawsuit against the hospital and the drug's maker, an attorney said Tuesday.

Nathaniel Lee, attorney for the family of infant Emmery Miller, said the family wanted him to investigate Emmery's death "to ascertain all causes and all persons that may be responsible."

Hospital officials said six premature babies were accidentally given adult doses of heparin -- which is often used to prevent blood clots that could clog intravenous tubes -- at Methodist's newborn intensive care unit over the weekend. The mistake was caught and the six were treated, but two of them -- 2-day-old Emmery and 5-day-old D'myia Nelson -- died Saturday, officials said.

Another newborn, Thursday Dawn Jeffers, died late Tuesday at Riley Hospital for Children.

The three other newborns were listed in critical but stable condition at Methodist Hospital and no longer showed ill effects from the heparin, officials said.

Hospital officials said a pharmacy technician on Saturday morning accidentally took the wrong dosage from inventory and stocked it in the drug cabinet in the newborn intensive care unit, Methodist president Sam Odle said. Five nurses, who are accustomed to only one dosage of heparin being available, then administered the wrong dose.

Since the overdoses, Odle said, the hospital has taken steps to ensure the mistake does not happen again. It will no longer keep certain doses of heparin in inventory, and all newborn and pediatric critical care units will require a minimum of two nurses to validate any dose of heparin, Odle said.

Lee said he found it refreshing that the hospital indicated it made a mistake. He also said he wanted to determine whether the drug's manufacturer made the label on the vials of the adult dosage of heparin look too similar to the label for the smaller dosage.

In a news release Tuesday, Emmery's parents said they are deeply saddened by their loss.

The statement said Odle assured Emmery's parents that he would conduct a thorough investigation "so that this type of event does not happen to any additional families."

"We trust that he will do the right thing in terms of the investigation in determining the cause of this so this terrible tragedy does not occur again," Emmery's parents said in the release.

Hospital Offers To Compensate Families

Methodist has offered to financially compensate the families of the six infants who received the overdoses, Odle said Tuesday.

Hospital officials offered to pay funeral expenses for Emmery and D'myia. The hospital also will offer to pay for family counseling and provide restitution to all six families affected, Odle said.

"We are acutely aware that nothing can adequately compensate these families for their loss," Odle said.

Odle said the hospital will discuss compensating the families of the infants who survived the overdose on a case-by-case basis.

"We will make sure that the families are (as) satisfied with the outcome as we possibly can," Odle said.