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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
PARK RIDGE, Ill.—A Cook County, Ill., judge has approved an $8.3 million settlement in a medical malpractice case in which an infant boy died after being given too much sodium through an intravenous tube.
The settlement was between Fritzie and Cameron Burkett, parents of Genesis, and Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, Ill.
The infant, who was born four months premature, was about 40 days old when he died in 2010. The hospital said the baby died after a process error led to an incorrect concentration of sodium in his IV fluids.
“It was determined that a data entry error was made in the formulation of the IV solution,” the hospital said in a statement. “The dosage of sodium for an IV bag from an order had been incorrectly entered into the machine that mixes IV solutions.”
“We have taken comprehensive steps across Advocate to ensure this type of tragedy does not happen again,” the hospital said.
Patrick A. Salvi, managing equity partner with Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. in Chicago, said the settlement “is a fair amount, and I think the hospital had legitimate concerns” that a jury award might have even been higher.