An Arizona imaging center is under fire after a lawsuit alleged that a woman was given a life-threatening overdose of sedative instead of contrast media during an MRI scan, ABC15 reported. SimonMed Imaging is accused of administering 50 mg of Diazepam, as opposed to the recommended and far less hazardous amount, this error left the patient unconscious and necessitated antiseizure medication, in addition to disrupting her IVF treatments. The patient's attorney Rachel Fitzpatrick described the dosage as "such an excessive dose that no one should ever receive that under any circumstances in one go" and marked it as "extraordinary negligence."
In a separate incident at a SimonMed location in Avondale, a terrifying blunder resulted in an inmate and a prison guard being magnetically pinned to an MRI due to metal shackles and the guard's gun, and according to ABC15, SimonMed had an exemption that put them beyond the reach of state health department's regulation and oversight, which has prompted concerns regarding patient safety standards. Tawny Sonn, the inmate's sister revealed in an interview with ABC15, that her sister is seriously traumatized from the incident that caused substantial physical harm.
These incidents cast a spotlight on the alleged operational failures at SimonMed, one of the most extensive medical imaging providers in the Valley, with a litany of errors questioning both their training protocols and adherence to safety procedures. The patient from the overdose incident is now suing SimonMed for the ordeal that "changed my client’s life in extraordinary ways," explained Fitzpatrick. While SimonMed acknowledged the Diazepam administration error in court documents, they denied other allegations in the lawsuit.
Amidst these allegations, SimonMed maintains their dedication to healthcare service provision and patient safety, as stated in their response to the cases they have iterated a commitment "to the provision of exceptional healthcare services to all patients and to our adherence to all applicable regulatory requirements and guidelines, including all reporting obligations," but due to privacy laws and regulations such as HIPAA, the company declined to discuss specifics of the recent incidents.
