Woman Died of Internal Bleeding After Surgery, Children Claim
9-6-2016 18:31:00


     SANTA ROSA, Calif. (CN) – A mother of two died from blood loss and multiple organ failure because Kaiser doctors did not properly care for her after abdominal surgery, her children claim in Sonoma County Superior Court.

            Matthew Delaca and Gianna Torres sued several Kaiser subsidiaries, Dr. Laurel Imhoff, the University of Southern California, and Dr. Ara Keshishian for the death of their mother, Elizabeth Thompson.
            They say their mom had abdominal surgery on July 8, 2015 at Keck Hospital of USC, formerly known as USC Verdugo Hills Hospital. 
            Three weeks later, Thompson went to Kaiser for complaints of abdominal pain, vomiting blood, and other complications, according to the complaint. 
            Shortly after she sought treatment, she died from “complications of blood loss, respiratory distress, sepsis, and multi-system organ failure,” the complaint states. 
            Sepsis is a serious complication of infection in which chemicals released into the bloodstream trigger inflammation, which can damage organs and even lead to organ failure, according to the Mayo Clinic website.
            Thompsons’ children claim the defendants did not notice or treat her symptoms, including internal bleeding, infection, abnormally rapid heart rate, and extreme sweating, and delayed surgery that would have saved her life.
            Staff also mischaracterized her health status when communicating with her and should not have encouraged her to drive from Santa Rosa to Glendale in her condition, according to the complaint.
            Torres and Delaca seek special and general compensatory damages for wrongful death and medical malpractice.
            They are represented by Thomas Quick of Pleasanton.
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