Deputy Coroner Robert Barrett testified that Vance had waited nearly two hours for a doctor to examine her after complaining of classic heart attack symptoms nausea, shortness of breath and chest pains.
'A triage nurse saw her about 15 minutes after she arrived, and the nurse classified her condition as 'semi-emergent,' Barrett said. He said, 'Vance's daughter twice asked nurses after that when her mother would see a doctor.'
'When her name was finally called, a nurse found Vance slumped unconscious in a waiting room chair without a pulse. She was pronounced dead shortly afterward, 'Barrett said.
Barrett subpoenaed records after finding discrepancies in the hospital's version of events.
It was not clear whether the ruling would lead to criminal charges. Dan Shanes, a chief of felony review for the state attorney's office, said his division needed to re-examine the case.
Vista Medical Center spokeswoman Cheryl Maynen said, 'The hospital, just north of Chicago, cooperated with the coroner's investigation and had also investigated the incident.'
Source: Medindia
GYT
