A Long Island woman who spent the last two years in in-home hospice care doped up on morphine plans to sue Brookhaven Memorial Hospital for misdiagnosing her with cancer, the UPI reports.
Ramona Jimenez of Patchogue, N.Y., alleges that in November 2008, when she went to the hospital with a bad stomach ache, she was diagnosed with stomach and lung cancer and told she had two months to live. The 85-year-old's family claims that someone at the hospital said that Jimenez was too old for chemotherapy and that the cancer was inoperable, according to the New York Post.
After taking so much morphine, she went out of her mind, Jimenez said. Her daughter added that her mother began hallucinating, talking with dead relatives. Her husband abandoned her.
In May, after tests at Stony Brook University Hospital, Jimenez was surprised to learn that there was no evidence of cancer. She is now being weaned off of morphine. A Brookhaven spokesman said privacy laws would not allow him to discuss patient care.
Andrew Siben, Jimenez's lawyer, is preparing a multimillion dollar malpractice suit against Brookhaven. He called the case "everyone's nightmare."
"This woman's whole life has completely fallen apart," he said.
To learn more:
- read the New York Post article
- here is the UPI story
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