Drape caught in equipment caused botched heart operation, lawsuit says

A mechanical malfunction caused a heart operation to be aborted, according to a new medical malpractice lawsuit filed on behalf of the patient who later died from related complications.

On July 25, 2022, Francisco Echeverri was admitted to MountainView Hospital for an aortic valve replacement operation. About an hour and a half after Echeverri was intubated, a surgical drape got caught in a piece of equipment, causing it to malfunction, according to a lawsuit filed in District Court late last month.

Echeverri’s attorneys declined to comment.

MountainView Hospital and MountainView Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Associates were listed as defendants.

Jennifer McDonnell, a spokesperson for the hospital, declined to comment, citing pending litigation and the case having to do with patient privacy.

The operation was aborted after the malfunction.

Hours after the valve replacement was aborted, Echeverri suffered a severe stroke that the lawsuit alleged was related to the botched surgery. On Aug. 6, Echeverri died after having a cardiac arrest.

If he had received the valve replacement, the lawsuit alleged, Echeverri’s worsening medical condition and death could have been avoided, the lawsuit maintained.

The lawsuit alleged negligence, medical malpractice and wrongful death.

Medical professionals submitted letters on behalf of the lawsuit providing their expert opinions on Echeverri’s care. One of them, Natalie Mohammed, a registered nurse in New York, said more should have been done by hospital staff during and after the botched procedure.

“Two registered nurses should have checked and verified the manufacturer recommended drapes were properly fixed to the C-arm using appropriate drape clips,” Mohammed’s letter read.

Contact David Wilson at dwilson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @davidwilson_RJ on Twitter.