Hospital Didn’t Inform Patient About Sedative Drug

I was involved in a motor vehicle accident. I arrived at the hospital alert but with a dislocated hip and a fractured ankle. At the time of treatment I was told they needed x-rays and I would be getting something for pain. I asked the nurse what I was receiving she said morphine. So I consented. What I did not know was that I was given Versed (a sedative) without my consent or knowledge. She omitted the information about the Versed. I was medicated twice with this medication which causes amnesia. I was under the influence of this medication for 11 hours. When I woke up I was confused and scared and hospital personnel refused to tell me what I had received. They would only say that it was normal to not remember. I said not for me. I fought the system to get my medical record. I was amazed to find out through research that the drug I had been given has some pretty serious side effects including death. I was also surprised to find out that I had stopped breathing and required hospital staff to breathe for me. I have written letters and made request to the hospital to discuss why they gave me this drug but I get no response. They lied to the health department and said I did consent to treatment. Even with my efforts I have never once received an apology from anyone who treated me. I have PTSD, depression, anxiety, and insomnia as a result of this incident and as I recently found out is also a problem with the drug Versed. I almost failed grad school and my level of functioning has greatly diminished. All of this for treatment of a fracture. Further, on that day the staff did not treat a laceration on my elbow. They removed the bandage that the EMT provided in the ambulance but did nothing else. My family said it was left open and gaping the entire day. They never even cleaned it or redressed it. Later the elbow became infected and took three months to recover with treatment of four antibiotics. The hospital also violated HIPPA law by speaking with family members that were not designated to decide my care. One more thing, my son who was six at the time arrived at the hospital with me he had a laceration on his arm and by sedating me made it impossible for me to be involved with my son’s care thereby terminating my parental rights.

CNN ireports

Do you have a personal story you would like to share about something that happened to you or an immediate family member. Submit it here.