Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Joan Rivers Never Agreed To Surgery That Claimed Her Life

Apparently Joan Rivers thought that when she went to Yorkville Endoscopy she thought she was just having an endoscopy performed and nothing else. When doctors noticed something on Joan's vocal cords, they called Joan's own doctor who asked Yorkville to perform a biopsy. The hospital agreed, but Joan never did. I thought doctors did biopsies outside hospitals all the time, but I guess it is not as common as aI thought and can be very dangerous. The doctor came in and used the facilities of Yorkville which is another no no. He then did something to cause Joan's airway to restrict and her to stop breathing which led to cardiac arrest and her death a week later. 

Posted by ent lawyer at 6:00 AM

47 comments:

  1. Kelly6:10 AM

    I just hate that. Man.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MISCH6:11 AM

    oh man major lawsuit……..the most dangerous part is the anesthesia…

    ReplyDelete
  3. sandybrook6:12 AM

    Sometimes when you are under anesthesia operations can be performed w/o your permission. For example, if you are having a colonoscopy nd something is found they do one right there.


    HAPPY BIRTHDAY RENO!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bacon Ranch6:14 AM

    Well THAT'S not creepy...

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kelly6:15 AM

    Thank you sandy!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Seven of Eleven6:17 AM

    Hard to agree to something when you're under anesthesia and have a tube down your throat.

    The ever awesome Mike Rowe posted a wonderful tribute to Joan.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Crazynailmom6:36 AM

      I read Mike Rowe's tribute last weekend on FB. Hands down, it was the best tribute I read over the past week. It was snarky and fabulous, and truly fitting for Ms. Rivers. :)

      Delete
  7. SugarTitz6:18 AM

    Creepy and wrong. Rip Joan.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Brin6:21 AM

    So sad, poor Melissa.

    ReplyDelete
  9. surfer6:25 AM

    That's not exactly what happened, Enty. Apparently, she arrived at the clinic with an entourage, which included her OWN DOCTOR, an Ear, Nose and Throat guy.

    Here's a link to the story.

    http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/joan-rivers-surprise-biopsy-cut-air-supply-source-article-1.1934178

    ReplyDelete
  10. MontanaMarriott6:26 AM

    Not that it matters at this late juncture but at her age no procedure should have been done in house. It should have been done at a hospital with fully trained staff and various teams on hand and at the ready.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. B62611:05 AM

      Joan could afford it!
      Why go to a clinic??

      Delete
  11. Kno Won6:31 AM

    I agree, Montana. If she'd had the procedure in a fully staffed, appropriately outfitted hospital, she likely could have been resuscitated faster and avoided brain damage. An 81 year old person should never be given full sedation outside of a full scale medical facility. Period. There's no justification, no matter who was present or why.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Kno Won6:33 AM

    And without seeing the actual consent form she signed, I find it near impossible to believe the form didn't mention additional procedures as required that could not be foreseen. Every consent form says that.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Eros6:53 AM

    It must be a slow news morning. Seriously who gives a f#! k. Theres a million more topics you could blog about and you choose this? Smh

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown10:32 AM

      +1 @Eros

      People and children die every minute. No one spends any time talking, remembering, showing such concern for them.

      It's sad a celebrity is dead but she had a full lifw.

      Delete
    2. Unknown10:37 AM

      I would think a little more relevant and concerning is the respiratory mystery virus that's currently spreading like a wildfire in the states.

      And another person brought back to the states with ebola.

      Makes me wonder about that one thread - where some folks scoffed @ the idea of an airborne mutation

      Delete
    3. Hadapúrpura11:31 AM

      It's an entertainment blog, not CNN.

      Delete
  14. Kat has left the building7:01 AM

    I can't take this. She had to be ready to go? She was way too strong to let anything stand in her way so I will only believe that she was ready. I still hope Melissa sues if appropriate to make the clinic safer.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Ay7:20 AM

    I'll be the first one to say it.....murder.

    ReplyDelete
  16. auntliddy7:21 AM

    What difference does this make? Whether she agreed or not? Nothing changes; she is still dead. Even if the family gets a billion dollars, she is still dead. If that nodule was cancer, her dying may have saved her alot of pain and misery, and i say that as a daughter who was by my moms side as she fought cancer. She was 80, it wasnt like she was 30. You more expect an 80 yr old to die than a 30 yr old. If its your time its your time. Both my parents had big mistakes in their care, but my suing wldnt have changed the outcome. And no medical person im sure, did anything on purpose. I just see the wasting of energy in what could or should been, IN THIS CASE.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jennifer H.5:45 AM

      I don't see one person arguing that suing now would somehow change the outcome of anything that's already happened. That would be time travel. However, suing and hitting the clinic in its pocketbook might stop them from doing something like this again. And the whole business that it is somehow okay to just let this go because she was in her 80s is straight up ageism, at its worst. "Oh, it doesn't matter. SHE WAS OLD." That would be a great selling point for a nursing home, "Bring your old people here because they don't matter."

      Delete
  17. kelliknows7:28 AM

    It depends on the biopsy..a skin lesion is taken at the docs, but some are trickier. I had to wait months for an ent doc in a hospital to remove a small bump from my mouth..took about ten seconds. Usually you sign something when the procedure is exploratory that says if something shows up, they remove it..thought this was standard but think her age and any heart problems would've prompted a hospital setting from the start.

    ReplyDelete
  18. All Lace no Leather7:30 AM

    Sometimes lawsuits are money grabs. But sometimes lawsuits bring attention to practices that need to be reviewed and changed. It sounds like Enty is exaggerating the circumstances, but that there are some practices that need to be addressed to ensure the future safety of patients.

    ReplyDelete
  19. nancer8:09 AM

    you can take biopsies in an outpatient facility. and like someone else said, things do come up in surgery that need to be dealt with. i'd like to see the informed consent she signed to see what all possibilities were listed, because as a nurse, i can tell you they cover everything, including possible death.
    so if she was getting scoped for a problem with her vocal cords, and they found something they needed to remove and send off to pathology, she probably did consent to that on the form.

    that doesn't change the fact that something apparently went wrong. we just don't know what, and until we do, the IMPORTANT thing here is that she was 81, she was under general anesthesia and there is ALWAYS a danger something can go wrong.

    this is why i hate elective procedures like cosmetic surgery, which is NOT what killed her, but still is not without huge risks. it may happen rarely, but if it happens to YOU, that means nothing.

    ReplyDelete
  20. NomNom838:13 AM

    Enty's description of events isn't quite adding up. At some point Joan submitted/at least verbally agreed to the procedure, so are they missing a formal, signed doc? Also, I think he uses "doctor" to refer to both the person on site and her own physician and then I lost the thread after that. Also, wait, which hospital agreed to what?! She wasn't in a hospital and they supposedly called her doctor, so when did a hospital enter into this and make some decision on behalf of a medical professional at another site?

    Annnnd this is why I get my pap shots/blinds from Enty and my news from other sources.

    ReplyDelete
  21. PotPourri8:29 AM

    Endoscopy and Colonoscopy always have an assumption that they're going to take a polyp out. I've had them both several times, and I don't want a second anesthesia to remove something they can do right there. Now if it's a surgery like removing cancer, then they wake you up.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Unknown8:41 AM

    Wow. Still gets back to doctors who were interviewed saying that going through the throat, etc is always a little dicier than other things so, anything going down the throat of an older woman outside a hospital was riskier. This, if true, makes it even worse. Poor Joan.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Rosie riveter8:44 AM

    Somethn in the water aint clean here. No wonder Enty is anonymous

    ReplyDelete
  24. SusanB8:44 AM

    I've witnessed a lot of consents in my time and they always say something about dealing with problems that may arise during the procedure. And every consent I've ever seen for ANYTHING always mentions death as a possible outcome. Even for a routine colonoscopy - it was even mentioned in my consent when I had my wisdom teeth removed. She also would have had to mention a next of kin - they can always give consent if the patient is incapacitated. I wouldn't be too quick to judge this clinic - I'd have to see more of the facts first.

    ReplyDelete
  25. wwax9:15 AM

    She may not have directly consented, but somewhere in all the pre procedure paperwork will be a whole if we see something we'll take it out clause that she'll have signed off on. Like with colonoscopies etc, read the damn paperwork.

    ReplyDelete
  26. nancer9:22 AM

    well, i can tell you that i've had thousands of consents sign and they do explain every complication that can arise, including death. it's in there. consent forms are extremely detailed these days just for situations like this.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Tyler10:11 AM

    Presumably Joan's personal physicians and the clinic doctors are/were regarded as first rate, so how did it happen that both parties agreed upon a course of action contrary to good medical practice on multiple levels? It's hard to believe.. waiting for the actual investigation results.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Yoj10:18 AM

    I'm happy for Enty to post show business related news stories, but only if s/he drops the immature editorials (e.g. "another no no"). Here's my suggestion: copy paste an article or extract from a news site (giving credit, of course) and leave the commenting to us.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Sherry10:26 AM

    Sad that she's gone. I watched the Funny Ladies of TV last night and they included Joan for her television work. It was followed by a tribute to Robin Wms.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Kat has left the building10:44 AM

    But isn't this the perfect way for her to go? She said she wanted to die on stage but that would have been traumatic for the audience. This way she died doing what she loved. Having a procedure (even if it wasnt more plastic surgery) that left many questions and an investogation just like a big star. I'm surprised I haven't cried my eyes out like I did for Robin williams but with Joan, she gave us absolutely everything she had. What more could we ask for? She was 81! She was so happy and said it so many times on camera. I'm glad she went peacefully under anesthesia rather than something traumatic and painful. I just hope if the clinic was at fault they have to change their methods. But she would love all this speculating about what happened :)

    ReplyDelete
  31. Kat has left the building10:45 AM

    What I'm wondering is why was Joe Jonas invited to her funeral? Anyone know that connection?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dexamyl7:21 AM

      She loved her gays. And he's very into fashion.

      Delete
    2. Kat has left the building7:49 AM

      Oh thanks D! I didn't know that about him

      Delete
  32. Unknown11:09 AM

    Nancer is 100% correct. I am med professional. You scope folks from top or bottom to look for problems, including polyps, growths, possible tumors, ect. Joan would have signed a consent including consent to biopsy; if she hadn't, there would be no reason to have her undergo an endoscopy! If you find any abnormality but can't extract a sample and examine it under a scope in the pathology lab, the scoping is a useless procedure.

    There are thousands of outpatient surgery centers across the country. Certain surgeries, as well as various medical procedures, can be done safely in such outpatient centers.

    When things go downhill, the anesthesiologist steps in to "run a code". During their residency training, they spend a hack of a lot of time running around the hospital as part of the "code team".

    ReplyDelete
  33. rolotomassi11:53 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Unknown1:00 PM

    OK, I haven't read all the comments but I would be Joan Rivers signed a consent form permitting exactly what happened. Now, did she READ it? Maybe not.

    I was scheduled to have an endoscopy the day after the news broke about her ... I canceled.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Unknown1:01 PM

    be => BET

    And endoscopies are not performed under general anaesthesia.

    ReplyDelete
  36. rolotomassi1:34 PM

    @Yoj, Hear..Hear...

    ReplyDelete
  37. Tina Mallette1:58 PM

    Well wasn't the purpose of the scope in Joan's case to find out if there was an explanation as to why her voice was getting raspier - presumably cancer or suspected cancer is not the only possible answer.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Desert.Fox2:12 PM

    I rarely comment but this whole media frenzy surrounding her death and how this clinic was in the realm of "malpractice" is blown way out of proportion. As a medical provider, I can tell you that colonoscopy and EGD (esophagogastroduodenoscopy) are commonly practiced procedures in a clinic setting. This is the same for vasectomies and wisdom teeth extraction.

    There are ALWAYS risks associated with waking sedation and any anesthesia medication that people are given when undergoing these procedures. Regardless of age! That is why people sign consent forms and why every provider should reasonably cover the possible adverse outcomes before a procedure.

    I have been in colonoscopy cases where patients have had adverse reactions to medication and there are protocols in place to provide life supporting and reversal measures.

    The media is creating a story and trying to scare people. It is crap like this that really grinds my gears. The only story that the media should be putting out is patient education - where you, as a patient, should know what you are supposed to be told before a procedure. There is much scarier stuff out there than going into the doctor for a routine and preventive EGD or colo. Things like people not vaccinating their children, border agents and FBI shuttling people who are at the border on public planes and buses without proper quarantine procedures. But no. That's not as fun, hard hitting news.

    Ugh, sorry but I had to get on my soapbox for a minute.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Unknown6:46 PM

    hear hear, desert fox. or is it here, here? I've never seen it written out.

    Anyway, yeah, I'm living proof that the scare tactics work - they scared me right out of a scheduled endoscopy. I was already freaking out over having something shoved down my esophagus, I was afraid of the gag reflex (though they give you sedatives for that). And mine was scheduled for the GI department of a major urban hospital... I've rescheduled for next month.

    ReplyDelete

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