As reported in a recent Chicago Tribune article, a settlement is imminent in a pending lawsuit brought by Justine Francique, whose now three year old son was left with severe and irreversible brain damage after a recent hospital encounter. Francique’s young child Keith suffered cardiac arrest following a routine surgery to repair an undescended testicle at Stroger Hospital, located in Cook County, IL.
Baby Keith was recovering post surgery in December 2011 when he suffered a heart attack and lost his pulse. Medical personnel allegedly failed to initiate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until five minutes after his heart stopped. Due to the oxygen deprivation caused by the heart attack, Keith suffered permanent brain damage.
This lawsuit may result in a $20 million settlement. The settlement is structured to help ensure that this child has enough money to receive adequate health care and treatment for the rest of his life. Dr. Ramanathan RaJu, who has been the head of Cook County’s public health system for less than two years has put into effect a more extensive risk-management system, designed to steer clear of medical errors. Hopefully such efforts will assure a better quality of care for the many, mostly low income, patients who turn to Cook County’s health care system for their medical needs.
Our firm has had various cases against Cook County/ Stoger Hospital over the years, most notably the Estate of Carrie Dunklin case reported in the Settlement and Verdicts section of our website.