HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) An attorney for Hutchinson Regional Medical Center says he expects to appeal a $1 million award in a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from the death of a Great Bend man four years ago.
The Hutchinson News reports a jury on Wednesday awarded the money to relatives of Jackie Sarff, a 73-year-old who went to the hospital in August 2008 with an upset stomach.
A licensed practical nurse tried to insert a gastric tube into a nasal passage, but Sarff vomited during the procedure and inhaled it into his lungs. That led to brain damage and his death five years later.
Hospital attorney Randy Troutt says jurors apparently were confused when they found the hospital staff didn’t follow proper procedure. He says the hospital was not responsible for Sarff’s death.
