Supervisor\'s Wrong Response to Late Night Medical Problem Opens Door to Liability
Author: William C. Collins.
Source: Volume 02, Number 02, January/February 2001 , pp.25-26(2)
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Abstract:
One of the big “well, what do I do now?” issues for officers in smaller prisons and many jails is what to do when an inmate suddenly says, “I need to see a doctor” at a time when no medical staff are available. Night Shift Ignored Signs of Inmate Heart Attack “What do I do now?” was the question facing third shift staff in the Arrowhead Correctional Center in Colorado at 1:30 a.m. on January 23, 1996. Their response— the wrong one as it turns out—is chronicled in Sealock v. Colorado, 218 F.3d 1205 (10th Cir. 2000).Keywords: chest pain, EKG, heart attack, deliberate indifference, initial diagnosis, physician’s assistant
Affiliations:
1: attorney.