I was seeking some other opinions about the situation.
A girl with history of heart failure went to a doctor at a clinic with symptoms of extreme water retention, breathlessness weight loss, extreme fatigue and lack of appetite.
The physician who had recently graduated from medical school sent the patient to a series out-patient tests, including bloodwork, ultrasound of the stomach and other outpatient test which went on for about six weeks.
The Doctor could see in the medical records that the patient had a history of heart failure and in the history it was noted that the patient stopped taking her medication about two years prior to seeing her.
Could it be deemed that the doctor failed “standard of care” delaying sending the patient directly to the emergency department at the hospital? The doctor failed to refer a patient with a known history of heart failure who displayed severe, worsening symptoms (like fluid build-up or severe breathlessness) to a specialist or emergency services. Could the doctor be found in negligent if that inaction causes significant, preventable harm and suffering. All signs of stage four heart failure were obvious but action was delayed.
The patient died suddenly at home alone with pulmonary edema two days after getting the ultrasound of their stomach. Ultimately the patient died in distress and suffered immensely at the time of death. The patient should’ve at least been in palliative care.