Jesica: Expected to die in transplant error

frolic- Sad, very sad. The thing is, Jessica's case is a high profile one. I have read many articles about the thousands of people who die in hospitals every year, not because of their own illnesses, but through sloppiness of the staff. I could tell you a few stories of my own. A couple of years ago, a surgeon in my town amputated the wrong leg from a person.

Hospitals are in dreadful condition right now. Nurses are bogged down with paperwork, and don't have the time to really check thoroughly. Because of managed care, doctors are so rushed to see enough patients so as to maintain their incomes, that slipups are bound to happen.

That is so sad! It breaks my heart and makes me extremely angry at the same time. How do you put the wrong organs in a person? There is absolutely no excuse in the world for that!!!

Gezzy- One thing that I have learned. If a loved one is in a hospital, there had better be a family member who is around to watch like a hawk.

Phoenix
I can see why. There is absolutely no room for mistakes when your dealing with people's lives, yet they make mistakes constantly. It scares me to death!

North Carolina (CNN) -- Doctors on Thursday were transplanting a heart and lungs into a critically ill teenager who was clinging to life after receiving another set of organs with the wrong blood type.

The procedure at Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, began around 6 a.m. EST Thursday.

Jesica Santillan underwent transplant surgery February 7 at Duke, but she was given organs with type A blood that did not match her type O-positive blood. Her body immediately began to reject the organs.

Jesica needed the transplant because of a heart deformity that kept her lungs from getting oxygen into her blood.

The 17-year-old has a 50 percent chance of survival in the second operation, doctors say. She showed signs of recovery on Wednesday, said a spokeswoman for a foundation set up in Jesica's name.

"Yesterday the CAT scan results were clearly insignificant, not showing any brain damage to speak of," Jesica's Hope Chest spokeswoman Renee McCormick said. "She did squint her eyes when her mother asked her ... if she could hear her." A CAT scan, now called CT, uses multiple X-ray images to construct views of organs.

The organs for Thursday's operation had been donated in Jesica's name, the spokeswoman said, although it was not clear exactly how they became available.

Doctors told the family the heart and lungs are "an incredibly good match," McCormick said.

Without the operation, Jesica had no chance for survival. Doctors had been skeptical that a match could be found, because it requires organs with the proper blood type that fit into her chest cavity.

"Those are very rare events. We are just hoping and praying that this will occur," Dr. William Fulkerson, the chief executive officer of Duke University Hospital, told CNN's "Connie Chung Tonight" hours before doctors learned of the match.

"She is critically ill now. She is requiring tremendous advance support to support her. We do not think she will survive without a re-transplant."

Fulkerson said the transplant staff believed it was using matching organs at the time of the operation, but "that was incorrect." The hospital has launched an investigation and has implemented safeguards to prevent such errors in the future.

"I am heartbroken about what happened to Jesica," her surgeon, Dr. James Jaggers said. "My focus has been on providing her with the heart and lungs she needs so she could lead a normal life."

Jaggers reported he performed the transplant on the assumption that the blood type match had been confirmed prior to surgery, Duke University's Web site said.

"Early in the morning of February 7, I received a call from Carolina Donor Services and was informed of available organs," he said. "I assumed that after providing Jesica's name to the organ procurement organization ... that the organs were compatible."

"I informed Jesica's parents immediately after the operation...that this was an incompatible transplant," Jaggers said.

Magdalena Santillan said her daughter is fighting for her life.

"I am very angry at the moment, but the priority right now is for her to get a new transplant because the days are going by and she's losing her life," she said, speaking through an interpreter on "Connie Chung Tonight."

Her mother said her daughter had looked forward to the transplant to "start her life," but shortly before the procedure she expressed apprehension about it.

Family friend Mack Mahoney said he was devastated by the mistaken transplant.

"This child was like my grandkid," Mahoney said. "When she emerged from the operation, she had already started rejecting and she was critical."

Of the hospital staff, he said "They told us there had been a mistake, and there had been a clerical error and Jesica had received type A organs. ... The doctor took full responsibility. He said that it was his mistake, he should've typed the organs but he failed to do so."

Anne Paschke, spokeswoman at United Network for Organ Sharing, said there are critical shortages of organ donors through the United States and finding a donor for a heart-lung procedure is an uphill battle.

UNOS administers the nation's only organ procurement and transplantation network.

Paschke said that according to the latest statistics, in 2001 and 2002 there were only 55 heart-lung transplants nationwide, and as of February 7, there were 197 people on the waiting list for the procedure.

North Carolina (CNN) -- Doctors on Thursday were transplanting a heart and lungs into a critically ill teenager who was clinging to life after receiving another set of organs with the wrong blood type.

The procedure at Duke University Hospital in Durham, North Carolina, began around 6 a.m. EST Thursday.

Jesica Santillan underwent transplant surgery February 7 at Duke, but she was given organs with type A blood that did not match her type O-positive blood. Her body immediately began to reject the organs.

Jesica needed the transplant because of a heart deformity that kept her lungs from getting oxygen into her blood.

The 17-year-old has a 50 percent chance of survival in the second operation, doctors say. She showed signs of recovery on Wednesday, said a spokeswoman for a foundation set up in Jesica's name.

"Yesterday the CAT scan results were clearly insignificant, not showing any brain damage to speak of," Jesica's Hope Chest spokeswoman Renee McCormick said. "She did squint her eyes when her mother asked her ... if she could hear her." A CAT scan, now called CT, uses multiple X-ray images to construct views of organs.

The organs for Thursday's operation had been donated in Jesica's name, the spokeswoman said, although it was not clear exactly how they became available.

Doctors told the family the heart and lungs are "an incredibly good match," McCormick said.

Without the operation, Jesica had no chance for survival. Doctors had been skeptical that a match could be found, because it requires organs with the proper blood type that fit into her chest cavity.

"Those are very rare events. We are just hoping and praying that this will occur," Dr. William Fulkerson, the chief executive officer of Duke University Hospital, told CNN's "Connie Chung Tonight" hours before doctors learned of the match.

"She is critically ill now. She is requiring tremendous advance support to support her. We do not think she will survive without a re-transplant."

Fulkerson said the transplant staff believed it was using matching organs at the time of the operation, but "that was incorrect." The hospital has launched an investigation and has implemented safeguards to prevent such errors in the future.

"I am heartbroken about what happened to Jesica," her surgeon, Dr. James Jaggers said. "My focus has been on providing her with the heart and lungs she needs so she could lead a normal life."

Jaggers reported he performed the transplant on the assumption that the blood type match had been confirmed prior to surgery, Duke University's Web site said.

"Early in the morning of February 7, I received a call from Carolina Donor Services and was informed of available organs," he said. "I assumed that after providing Jesica's name to the organ procurement organization ... that the organs were compatible."

"I informed Jesica's parents immediately after the operation...that this was an incompatible transplant," Jaggers said.

Magdalena Santillan said her daughter is fighting for her life.

"I am very angry at the moment, but the priority right now is for her to get a new transplant because the days are going by and she's losing her life," she said, speaking through an interpreter on "Connie Chung Tonight."

Her mother said her daughter had looked forward to the transplant to "start her life," but shortly before the procedure she expressed apprehension about it.

Family friend Mack Mahoney said he was devastated by the mistaken transplant.

"This child was like my grandkid," Mahoney said. "When she emerged from the operation, she had already started rejecting and she was critical."

Of the hospital staff, he said "They told us there had been a mistake, and there had been a clerical error and Jesica had received type A organs. ... The doctor took full responsibility. He said that it was his mistake, he should've typed the organs but he failed to do so."

Anne Paschke, spokeswoman at United Network for Organ Sharing, said there are critical shortages of organ donors through the United States and finding a donor for a heart-lung procedure is an uphill battle.

UNOS administers the nation's only organ procurement and transplantation network.

Paschke said that according to the latest statistics, in 2001 and 2002 there were only 55 heart-lung transplants nationwide, and as of February 7, there were 197 people on the waiting list for the procedure.

Just a Q frolic, but do you ever post anything original?

What do you mean exactly? Like, do i ever make up stories? What do you mean by Original and what am i doing wrong in your opinion?

You cut and paste too much. Just provide a link and some of your own commentary. That's all.

In an attempt to right their mistake, the hospital located another set of organs with the correct blood type (amazing feet in itself) and replaced the bad set. The first set is now unusable for any other recipient in waiting.

New Organs

Thanks for the article, frolic.

I was thinking the same thing Littlek. It's a shame that these two organs are no longer of any value. That really bugs me!

Yes, thanks Frolic.

Being a little rough on the doughnut there, aren't you cj?

frolic: How many zeros in a gazillion?

I don't know either, but that young girl's personal injury lawyers are going to find out.

No, I don't think so. Cut and pasting is a huge problem IMO.

I just heard on the radio that she died :-( I'm so sad!