Patient Death In Colorado

[2021Doctor]

Posted: Feb 16, 2022 / 05:24 PM MST

Updated: Feb 16, 2022 / 09:46 PM MST

DENVER (KDVR) — The doctor and nurse who killed a patient during a breast augmentation have been criminally charged in the 19-year-old woman’s death.

Dr. Geoffrey Kim faces charges of first-degree aggravated assault and criminally negligent homicide in Emmalyn Nguyen’s death, according to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. Nurse anesthetist Rex Meeker also faces a charge of manslaughter.

“We opened this criminal case in August 2019. The investigation has taken more than two years to complete and involved dozens of interviews and search warrants,” Travis Stewart, captain of investigations for the Sheriff’s Office, in a statement. “Our hope is that this will be the beginning of bringing justice and a sense of closure to Emmalyn’s family.”

Doctor, nurse face charges in fatal breast surgery

Dr. Geoffrey Kim and nurse anesthetist Rex Meeker face felony charges in the death of Emmalyn Nguyen, who was in a coma for 14 months then died after what was supposed to be an outpatient breast au…

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[abolt18]

Posted: Feb 16, 2022 / 05:24 PM MST

Updated: Feb 16, 2022 / 09:46 PM MST

DENVER (KDVR) — The doctor and nurse who killed a patient during a breast augmentation have been criminally charged in the 19-year-old woman’s death.

Dr. Geoffrey Kim faces charges of first-degree aggravated assault and criminally negligent homicide in Emmalyn Nguyen’s death, according to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. Nurse anesthetist Rex Meeker also faces a charge of manslaughter.

“We opened this criminal case in August 2019. The investigation has taken more than two years to complete and involved dozens of interviews and search warrants,” Travis Stewart, captain of investigations for the Sheriff’s Office, in a statement. “Our hope is that this will be the beginning of bringing justice and a sense of closure to Emmalyn’s family.”

Doctor, nurse face charges in fatal breast surgery

Dr. Geoffrey Kim and nurse anesthetist Rex Meeker face felony charges in the death of Emmalyn Nguyen, who was in a coma for 14 months then died after what was supposed to be an outpatient breast au…

kdvr.com

We're walking a fine line when we bring criminal charges for malpractice. It's different from Dr Death, who literally made statements about killing people before operating and yielding devastating results over and over.

 

[The Duck Knows]

I’m generally of the opinion that people do their best and mistakes happen, so forfeiture of licensure is the best call.

But the main issue at play here is refusing to transfer her and waiting hours to call 911. This isn’t medical negligence. This is knowing that this girls life was in danger and choosing to cover it up. In my opinion it’s no different than driving away from the scene after hitting a pedestrian in the middle of nowhere, knowing that the person you hit won’t be taken to the hospital. Whether it would have changed her outcome is irrelevant. They made the wrong decision in a scenario where I would expect the janitor to make the right call.

 

[abolt18]

I’m generally of the opinion that people do their best and mistakes happen, so forfeiture of licensure is the best call.

But the main issue at play here is refusing to transfer her and waiting hours to call 911. This isn’t medical negligence. This is knowing that this girls life was in danger and choosing to cover it up. In my opinion it’s no different than driving away from the scene after hitting a pedestrian in the middle of nowhere, knowing that the person you hit won’t be taken to the hospital. Whether it would have changed her outcome is irrelevant. They made the wrong decision in a scenario where I would expect the janitor to make the right call.

A good point. This circumstance is obviously VERY unique.

 

[chocomorsel]

Same thing is happening to that nurse in Vandy who gave that Vec to that MRI patient. The world is changing.

 

[dabears505]

I want to quit medicine as soon as I can. This will get out off control.

 

[kidthor]

Same thing is happening to that nurse in Vandy who gave that Vec to that MRI patient. The world is changing.

As a nurse faces prison for a deadly error, her colleagues worry: Could I be next?

Yeah for the Vanderbilt nurse, she very clearly made an error. It seems wrong and cruel to go after her criminally for it. Medication errors are incredibly common and underpinned with systems flaws. This could happen to any of us.

The Colorado case is entirely different and it is reasonable to go after those two.

 

[Southpaw]

I think there’s a lot of uniqueness in the issues with Dr Kim. I believe he deserves to face criminal charges for what was done.

 

[OptionOffense]

As a nurse faces prison for a deadly error, her colleagues worry: Could I be next?

Yeah for the Vanderbilt nurse, she very clearly made an error. It seems wrong and cruel to go after her criminally for it. Medication errors are incredibly common and underpinned with systems flaws. This could happen to any of us.

The Colorado case is entirely different and it is reasonable to go after those two.

I agree it is the system's fault by automating everything. So she clearly thought, "Hey if the pyxis dispensed it, it must be ok", instead of having her manually find the medication by looking at the label and checking it multiple times. I disagree with all this automation because it wants to take the thinking out of it which is precisely what you DONT want to happen.

I agree with criminally charging her. She knew she was out of her element and did not ask for help.

 

[OptionOffense]

I want to quit medicine as soon as I can. This will get out off control.

Why do you want to quit medicine over this.

 

[coffeebythelake]

Cosmetic Surgery Leaves Thornton Teen Brain Damaged

Remember yall, no procedure is routine. Article says she was left unattended for 15 mins... https://denver.cbslocal.com/2019/12/18/emmalyn-nguyen-cosmetic-surgery-brain-damage-thornton/?fbclid=IwAR10lhISLcnPzY6AesUBSgrP2RmS11Cb7Nv6E_2KLeBT7xAhB_hTjtBTAps#.XfwPOdZWscI.facebook

forums.studentdoctor.net

This is the case the OP is referring to. We've been following it since the initial reports of the incident in 2019 where Emmalyn was left in a persistent vegetative state, the lawsuits, the settlement, the death, and now the criminal charges.

If the claims made against Geoffrey Kim are even remotely true he deserves prison time.

 

[BLADEMDA]

Prison time? You people are really tough. I support taking their license to practice but not prison time. These days even real criminals hardly do any time in jail. Mr. Meeker should get a "plea deal" like 1 year probation for agreeing to retire completely. Dr. Kim needs to find another line of work and should get maybe 30 days in a local jail followed by 3 years probation.

There was no intent to kill the patient. But, there was recklessness on both defendants in terms of how they handled the situation. Was it "willful" recklessness?

I have seen people panic and freeze in some really bad situations. They don't react properly and make poor decisions. "Denial" enters into the mindset which leads the provider to actually believe everything will be okay and this can't be happening. Unfortunately, I have seen it happen many times but other providers, such as myself, quickly take over and declare the problem/emergency to the entire room/OR. You can't fix a problem unless you identify it and deal with it quickly.

I don't think MOCA simulations really have the same affect on people like a real world crisis. Until you have been in a few disasters yourself it is difficult to explain human reactions.

Recognizing there is a problem and calling for help early is the best way to prevent a death in the OR/PACU/PREOP.

 

[GassYous]

I want to quit medicine as soon as I can. This will get out off control.

Disagree. This was egregious.

Prison time? You people are really tough. I support taking their license to practice but not prison time. These days even real criminals hardly do any time in jail. Mr. Meeker should get a "plea deal" like 1 year probation for agreeing to retire completely. Dr. Kim needs to find another line of work and should get maybe 30 days in a local jail followed by 3 years probation.

There was no intent to kill the patient. But, there was recklessness on both defendants in terms of how they handled the situation. Was it "willful" recklessness?

I have seen people panic and freeze in some really bad situations. They don't react properly and make poor decisions. "Denial" enters into the mindset which leads the provider to actually believe everything will be okay and this can't be happening. Unfortunately, I have seen it happen many times but other providers such as myself quickly take over and declare the problem/emergency to the entire room/OR. You can't fix a problem unless you identify it and deal with it quickly.

I don't think MOCA simulations really have the same affect on people like a real world crisis. Until you have been in a few disasters yourself it is difficult to explain human reactions.

This is meeker's second death in the same way. Who abandons their patient for 15 minutes under anesthesia? I know exactly what you're talking about with the freezing as I've had a few sick patients and some bad situations so I get it. But not calling 911 and letting a healthy girl die after a completely unnecessary cosmetic procedure? That's bad.

 

[BLADEMDA]

What is manslaughter Colorado?


Under Colorado's criminal laws, "manslaughter" is one of several different types of criminal homicide, or the killing of another human being. Colorado law defines "manslaughter" as recklessly causing another person's death or intentionally causing or aiding another person to commit suicide.

 

[BLADEMDA]

Disagree. This was egregious.



This is meeker's second death in the same way. Who abandons their patient for 15 minutes under anesthesia? I know exactly what you're talking about with the freezing as I've had a few sick patients and some bad situations so I get it. But not calling 911 and letting a healthy girl die after a completely unnecessary cosmetic procedure? That's bad.

Mr. Meeker is 71 years old. Let him retire completely and get probation. He doesn't pose a threat to anyone in society if he retires so why send him to jail?
Mr. Meeker's issue was incompetence and ignorance which led to recklessness.

Dr. Kim deserves more punishment but even he should be given the benefit of the doubt here. I am more concerned about the damage Dr. Kim could inflict on future patients than punishment in jail for recklessness. Hopefully, Dr. Kim is smart enough not to risk a jury trial and takes a plea deal.

 

[coffeebythelake]

Geoffrey Kim lied and intentionally misled the ER physician about when the cardiac arrest occurred, and essentially carried out actions to try to cover up what happened. Any cardiac arrest warrants a 911 call, immediately, not hours later after hoping and wishing for another outcome.

Rex Meekers actions likely fall within incompetence and lack of vigilance which is malpractice. Geoffrey Kims actions are well beyond malpractice and showed a criminal amount of recklessness.

 

[OptionOffense]

Mr. Meeker is 71 years old. Let him retire completely and get probation. He doesn't pose a threat to anyone in society if he retires so why send him to jail?
Mr. Meeker's issue was incompetence and ignorance which led to recklessness.

Dr. Kim deserves more punishment but even he should be given the benefit of the doubt here. I am more concerned about the damage Dr. Kim could inflict on future patients than punishment in jail for recklessness. Hopefully, Dr. Kim is smart enough not to risk a jury trial and takes a plea deal.

Kim deserves more punishment? NO way!!! Meeker's primary job was to handle a situation like this seemlessly, which he didnt. His job is to look the surgeon right in the eye and say **** you we are calling for 911. I expect the surgeons to not know what to do. When EMS got there, the patient was not even intubated. Meeker deserves jail time at least a year in lock up along with other CRNAs who call themselves Doctor.

 

[pgg]

Mr. Meeker is 71 years old. Let him retire completely and get probation. He doesn't pose a threat to anyone in society if he retires so why send him to jail?

Four reasons for a prison sentence:
1) retribution
2) incapacitation
3) deterrence
4) rehabilitation

You're saying 2 doesn't apply, and I'd probably agree with that. Maybe 4 isn't necessary either.

But there's value and justice in #1 and #3.

 

[OptionOffense]

This document seems to have more details:

http://www.dora.state.co.us/pls/real/DDMS_Public.Display_Document?p_section=DPO&p_doc_id=983646&p_source=ROD&p_doc_key=993077049C2D3AA3D8B17823E4228B7C

a block of some sort was performed. perhaps a field block and she had last... from it.

 

[anesussy]

I don't think MOCA simulations really have the same affect on people like a real world crisis. Until you have been in a few disasters yourself it is difficult to explain human reactions.

This is why we need to develop VR simulations for emergency situations. Don't expect the boomers on here to understand, but VR has come a long way and would be very helpful in preparing people.

 

[CHARLESTONMMM]

a block of some sort was performed. perhaps a field block and she had last... from it.

Holy Smokes that’s a lot of local.

 

[CHARLESTONMMM]

Holy Smokes that’s a lot of local.

I was wrong. I thought it said 62mL of bupiv. It didn’t say the concentration but I assume it was 0.5% or less. I guess it could be LAST but still sounds like an oxygenation problem.

 

[Beeftenderloin]

I agree it is the system's fault by automating everything. So she clearly thought, "Hey if the pyxis dispensed it, it must be ok", instead of having her manually find the medication by looking at the label and checking it multiple times. I disagree with all this automation because it wants to take the thinking out of it which is precisely what you DONT want to happen.

I agree with criminally charging her. She knew she was out of her element and did not ask for help.

Not trying to derail this thread but, per court docs in another thread, she over-road six hard stops to pull and administer vecuronium. Hard stops that said things like “there is no order for this medication for this patient” and “this is a paralytic agent”. Negligent homicide sounds about right.