Medical Professionals (doctor, surgeon, dentist):
"I'm sorry, I can't go on that Spring Break trip anymore. You know, my mom was in that car accident about three months ago and our whole life has turned upside down. She hasn't been able to go back to work; who am I kidding, she can't even get out of bed most days. Anyway, instead of Daytona Beach, I'll be watching my little brother and sister. Every time I think about it, I get so mad. We've been told that if my mom had seen an orthopedic specialist while she was in the emergency room instead of the regular doctor she would be okay by now. The emergency room guy just looked her over and ignored the bruising on her back and side. He didn't even ask for x-rays. The nurse sort of mentioned to my dad that my mom was pretty banged up but she didn't say anything to the doctor when he was dismissing my mom. Heck, my dad didn't know any different so he brought her home. She just seemed to get worse over the next few days until my dad finally took her back to the hospital. Finally, the same doctor got a bone specialist to examine her. She will be okay, but it'll be at least six more weeks. In the meantime, I'm the baby-sitter/cook/maid."
- What could have been done differently to prevent the mother's long-term injury?
- Who's responsibility was it to determine how serious the injury was?
- How many people were affected by this scenario?
- What all could have been done to prevent this scenario?