Daniel E. Holloway
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Egleston Hospital complaint alleges a hot plaster splint burned a child’s leg after surgery, requiring a skin graft

The complaint alleges that hospital staff and the surgeon used dangerously hot water and plaster while splinting a 13-year-old patient’s leg. This happened after ankle-fracture surgery at Egleston Hospital on April 10, 2019, and the splint lacked adequate padding. The patient suffered a third-degree burn to her calf. The treating surgeon later confirmed it as a stage 3 burn to the back of her left leg. She was referred to a separate hospital’s burn center, where staff confirmed a full-thickness burn on May 3, 2019. On May 7, 2019 she underwent a skin graft using tissue from her hip, leaving a second area of permanent scarring.

System
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
Facility
Egleston Hospital
Providers involved
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Inc. d/b/a Egleston Hospital / Elmer Dunn / Deanna Mahaley, RN / Albert Pendleton, MD / Pediatric Orthopaedic Associates, P.C.
Pattern
Alleged use of dangerously hot water and plaster, with inadequate padding, while applying a post-surgical splint to a child’s leg
Harm
Alleged third-degree burn requiring a skin graft and permanent scarring

Overview

This page concerns a public complaint alleging that hospital staff and the surgeon burned a pediatric patient’s leg while applying a post-surgical splint. A skin graft followed.

Chronology

The complaint alleges as follows:

  1. The patient, then 13, fractured her ankle’s growth plate on April 6, 2019 and was first seen at an urgent-care clinic.
  2. An orthopedist at Pediatric Orthopaedic Associates evaluated her on April 8, 2019 and planned surgery to fix the fracture.
  3. A surgeon performed the fracture surgery at Egleston Hospital on April 10, 2019 without significant complications.
  4. A cast technician, a nurse, and the surgeon then used dangerously hot water and plaster to splint her leg, without adequate padding.
  5. The heat from the water and the lack of adequate padding caused a third-degree burn to her calf. The surgeon later confirmed a stage 3 burn.
  6. In May 2019 she was referred to a separate hospital’s burn center, where staff confirmed a full-thickness burn on May 3, 2019.
  7. On May 7, 2019 she underwent a skin graft using tissue from her hip, leaving a second area of permanent scarring.

Alleged failures

The complaint alleges the following failures:

  • Hospital staff and the surgeon used water and plaster that were dangerously hot and did not use adequate padding under the splint.
  • The treating surgeon did not adequately supervise the splint’s application or personally assess it before the patient was discharged.
  • The filing alleges that these failures caused the patient’s third-degree burn, skin necrosis, and the need for a skin graft.
  • The complaint pleads negligence and vicarious liability against the hospital, the orthopedic practice, and the individual providers. It also pleads negligent hiring, supervision, and credentialing, and inadequate splint policies. It seeks punitive damages and attorney’s fees, and attaches an expert affidavit under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1.

Entities and tags

Egleston HospitalChildren’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Inc.Pediatric Orthopaedic Associates, P.C.Albert Pendleton, MDThird-degree burnSkin graftDeKalb CountyBurn injuryNegligent hiring or supervisionOrthopedic surgeryPediatricsNursing care