McCormick-Gordon v. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center RB

STATEMENT OF FACTS
A. Gordon's History Of Multiple, Severe Health Problems
Leading Up To His Death.
Gordon was in extremely poor health during the last years ofhis life.
(CT 67:17-18.) He underwent a lung transplant in June 1999, which his
body rejected. (CT 67: 10 & 19; 98: 1.) This resulted in severe immune
suppression that, among other things, precipitated an outbreak of urethral
warts. (CT 67: 10-12; 98:4-7.)
Because the warts caused intractable
bleeding and lesions in the urethral tissue, they had to be surgically
removed, which required installation of an indwelling urethral catheter and
suprapubic tube. (CT 67:2-3 & 12-14.) Besides the urethral surgery,
Gordon had various other surgical procedures, including a hip replacement
and cataract removal. (CT 67:1-2.) Because of these many surgeries and
his overall ill health, Gordon had numerous urethral catheters placed during
his hospital stays at Cedars-Sinai and at several other facilities. (CT 67:21­
22.)
Gordon suffered from many other diseases and disorders. He had
suffered a heart attack and was diagnosed with severe and chronic lung
disease, severe osteoporosis, and chronic anemia. (CT 67:4-7.) His body
was saddled with chronic inflammation and riddled with drug-resistant
infections, both viral and bacterial, that affected his lungs, windpipe,
intestines and nasal passages. (CT 67:7-9 & 18-20; 98:3-7.)
Most likely during the periodic removal and replacement of one of
his catheters, a "small and uncomplicated" fragment of the catheter was left
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