Gayle Therrien

Hello, I came across your site on the internet and wish to make my concerns known. My husband died at a hospital in Illinois January 17,1999. I filed complaints with JCAHO in November of 2000 and recently filed complaints to the Professional Regulatory Board and Illinois Department of Public Health Division of Health Care Facilities and programs. I do not know if JCAHO really took any action on my complaint as I did not receive any case number from them although I think that a sentinel event occurred. I was contacted by the Professional Regulatory Board and told they could not investigate until they had the correct name of the physician. I know his last name and am uncertain of his first name although I do believe I did find his name on the AMA list now. Today I spoke with a Karen Kabat at PHD and she told me it would take a very long time to investigate my complaint because they had many over the entire state. She did indicate that she had already contacted one of the providers of care. I did not file any complaint with the hospital as that feels to me like letting the fox guard the hen house. I think healthcare providers should have a formal complaint process in place with copies sent to the PHD for oversight and tracking to be sure something is not a recurring problem that needs to be addressed. This particular hospital has a Patient Relations Administration to address complaints but they don't go around and visit the patients which would be very beneficial. I think standards need to be developed to determine a safe nurse to patient ratio. I think there needs to be closer supervision of medical students etc. My husband died from a hospital acquired infection which is preventable with proper precautions-systems need to be in place to assure this happens i.e. training of staff in infection control, care of immunosuppressed patients etc. Where I work we are mandated to attend an OSHA inservice yearly. The other thing I feel contributed to my husbands death was a delay in medical treatment, Standards of care not followed in treating his illness. I think the patient Bill of Rights should include information on how to contact regulatory agencies for assistance should they need it. I am glad to know this problem with medical errors is being addressed because it is one that is growing by leaps and bounds. I hope some of my suggestions will be useful. Prevention is always the best medicine but if that isn't the case problems/complaints need to be evaluated in a more timely manner. I am willing to share more information surrounding my husbands death if that would be helpful to you.