A couple sues a known hospital in Boston for throwing their baby away by mistake. The parents’ beloved daughter died because of her premature birth complications. Just when we thought it won’t get worse, it did.
Sources said that staff threw away the baby’s remains after mistaking them for soiled linen. They didn’t notice the premature infant’s body among the used linen. To this day, they have not recovered the body.
In this article, you’ll read:
- Parents File Case Against Hospital for Throwing Their Baby
- The Baby’s Untimely Demise
- Hospital Staff Mistook Baby’s Remains for Discarded Bed Linen
Parents File Case Against Hospital for Throwing Their Baby
A Massachusetts couple filed a case against a famous hospital in Boston for throwing their baby. The infant was prematurely born; she died less than two weeks after the birth delivery.
Due to the incident, the couple failed to hold a proper funeral and burial for their child. According to the reports, a hospital staff member inadvertently threw away the infant’s body along with used bed linen.
The Baby’s Untimely Demise
The incident happened almost two years ago. On the 25th of July 2020, Alana Ross and Daniel McCarthy welcomed their precious little girl.
Everleigh Victoria McCarthy weighed only two pounds after her early birth. She was born three months earlier than expected at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Image Source: iStock
Unfortunately, the premature birth caused the baby to develop a brain haemorrhage. Because of that, she needed to be put on a ventilator as she seemed unlikely to survive.
Both of her parents were devastated by her condition. Still, they did not easily give up; instead, they patiently waited and prayed that their baby would come through.
Heartbreakingly, their precious little girl succumbed to her condition on the 6th of August 2020. It was about 12 days after the baby was born.
Hospital Staff Mistook Baby’s Remains for Discarded Bed Linen
After their daughter’s passing, the mourning parents then started arranging and planning a memorial service. Along the process, they found out the shocking news about their daughter.
The funeral home informed the parents that their daughter’s body had gone missing. The couple’s grief turned into their most horrific nightmare as soon as they learned about what had happened.
They decided to call the hospital to get an answer about what had happened. Unfortunately, they could not get adequate information about the devastating incident, so they called the Boston Police Department.
According to a police report, the hospital employees failed to find the infant’s remains. Concerning this, police determined that the baby’s body was discarded after being mistaken as soiled linen.
“It’s like she died all over again,” said Alana Ross, the infant’s mum.
Before she became pregnant with Everleigh, Alana Ross suffered from multiple miscarriages. Unfortunately, she was once again traumatised because of the incident that happened.
The Couple Sue the Hospital Two Years After the Incident
Image Source: iStock
On the 23rd of June 2022, the couple filed a case against the hospital. The lawsuit states that the infant’s body was inadvertently thrown away by a Brigham and Women’s Hospital employee along with soiled linen. It also said that the incident occurred at the hospital’s morgue.
Atty Greg Henning has been working with the couple for nearly two years now. He said the lawsuit was being filed now because he believed it was the best time to resolve the case.
Due to the incident, the couple has been dealing with a lot of trauma and stress. They also believe that now is the appropriate time to file a suit.
According to the lawsuit, the couple suffered severe emotional distress after the tragic incident.
“It was traumatic enough to lose their daughter,” said the couple’s lawyer, Greg Henning. “But it was like losing her all over again when she was literally thrown away.”
Losing Their Daughter Twice
The hospital’s parent company and more than a dozen of its employees serve as defendants. The suit against them includes breach of contract, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and wrongful interference with human remains.
In addition, the court documents stated that the couple aims to claim more than $1.3 million in damages.
Moreover, the lawsuit alleged that the hospital’s management was aware of the problematic conditions of the morgue before the baby’s remains went missing.
The hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr Sunil Eappen, stated, “We continue to express our deepest sympathies and most sincere apologies to the Ross and McCarthy family for their loss and the heartbreaking circumstances surrounding it.”
He also said that he could not comment on the specifics of the case at present. Still, he sympathises with the family.
This article has been republished with the permission of theAsianparent Singapore.