A 30-year-old Black mother died after giving birth due to a error by a surgical team at a Brooklyn hospital, according to investigators with the New York State Department of Health.
Christine Fields, 30, died in November 2023 after undergoing a cesarean section at Woodhull Medical Center. Her fiancé, Jose Perez, said the procedure wasn’t a part of original birthing plan. Staff performed the surgery after she experienced a medical crisis.
Her baby’s heart rate drops, and there’s fetal distress,” Ira Newman, the family’s attorney, previously said in a statement. “She’s rushed in for a C-section, and we are investigating and have learned from the [medical examiner’s] office that there was pooling blood.”
In a new document obtained by the New York Times, initial findings from an investigation by the state’s department of health show a miscommunication by medical staff contributed to Fields’ death. Investigators said the surgeons failed to notify other staffers about complications Fields experienced from the procedure.
The document states that a “uterine arterial injury” ultimately resulted “in maternal death.”
Fields’ family previously announced a $41 million lawsuit against the hospital, alleging “careless and negligent” treatment. In a statement, the NYC Health and Hospital system said they’ve improved their protocols and brought on new staff in the anesthesiology and obstetrics departments.
“Across our health system we are using innovative interventions that we believe will address the disparities and race-based health care gaps that historically and disproportionally affect the diverse population of patients we proudly serve,” the statement reads.
The New York Department of Health’s investigation into the incident remains ongoing.
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