The family of an 11-year-old girl who died after surviving cancer received $20.5 million after a jury determined that prescribed morphine ultimately caused her death.
Ava Wilson’s family filed a lawsuit against Advocate Health and Hospitals Corporation after her death in 2020.
On October 31 of that year, Ava died in her sleep due to acute toxicity caused by a combination of morphine, hydroxyzine, and gabapentin, according to a statement released by the family’s attorneys, Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard PC. The lawsuit alleged that she had lethal levels of morphine in her system.
Ava had been discharged from a clinic in Illinois, USA, 36 hours before her death. During her stay, the girl experienced severe pain and difficulty walking, including foot drop, according to her lawyers.
Medical staff conducted tests that showed Ava had low platelet counts, low blood cell counts, elevated liver enzymes, and low blood pressure, according to the statement.
Her lawyers claimed that her blood pressure was not checked again before she was discharged.
“Instead of admitting Ava to the hospital to bring her blood pressure, heart rate, and pain levels within acceptable and normal limits, Advocate employees sent Ava home with an overabundance of painkillers,” Matthew L. Williams, the lead attorney in the lawsuit, said in a statement.
A nurse at the clinic prescribed Ava 100 mg of gabapentin three times a day and 15 mg of morphine every four hours as needed, according to the civil complaint.
The girl’s oncologist did not examine her but supported the specialist nurse’s recommendation.
Before this appointment, all of Ava’s home morphine prescriptions were only 5 mg. The nurse practitioner also increased her gabapentin prescription and sent her home. When taken together, the medications can increase each other’s effects, according to a company press release.
In a written statement, Advocate Health and Hospitals Corporation said, “Our thoughts are with this family. We are committed to providing appropriate care to every patient. Due to patient privacy, we cannot comment further.”
Ava had been in remission from B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia. A press release from the lawyers stated that her condition had improved and she had no detectable leukemia in her blood.