Amendment
Bill No. 0032

Amendment No. 180921

CHAMBER ACTION
Senate		House
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1	Representative(s) Seiler offered the following:
2
3	Amendment (with title amendment)
4	Remove everything after the enacting clause and insert:
5
6	Section 1.  The facts stated in the preamble to this act
7	are found and declared to be true.
8	Section 2.  The South Broward Hospital District is
9	authorized and directed to appropriate from funds of the
10	district not otherwise appropriated and to draw a warrant in the
11	sum of $500,000 payable to Sharon Jurgrau, wife of Mark Jurgrau,
12	deceased, as compensation for the death of Mark Jurgrau as a
13	result of the negligence of the South Broward Hospital District.
14	After payment of fees, costs, and authorized expenses, 75
15	percent of the proceeds recovered through the passage of this
16	act shall be apportioned to Sharon Jurgrau, wife of Mark
17	Jurgrau, and 25 percent of the proceeds recovered through the
18	passage of this act shall be deposited into the guardianship
19	account of Megan Jurgrau, minor child of Mark and Sharon
20	Jurgrau, for the exclusive use and benefit of Megan Jurgrau.
21	Section 3.  Payment for attorney's fees and costs incurred
22	by the claimant's attorneys shall not exceed $77,781. Payment
23	for the professional services and costs of lobbyists advocating
24	for passage of this claim shall not exceed $5,000.
25	Section 4.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.
26
27
28	======= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ==========
29	On page 1, line 1 through page 5, line 11, remove all of
30	said lines, and insert:
31
32	A bill to be entitled
33	An act for the relief of Sharon Jurgrau, wife of Mark
34	Jurgrau, deceased, and Megan Jurgrau, minor child of Mark
35	and Sharon Jurgrau, by the South Broward Hospital
36	District; providing for an appropriation to compensate
37	them for the death of Mark Jurgrau as a result of the
38	negligence of the South Broward Hospital District;
39	providing for attorney's fees, lobbyist's fees, and costs;
40	providing an effective date.
41
42	WHEREAS, in the summer of 1999, Mark Jurgrau, an architect,
43	38 years of age and a resident of Broward County, underwent
44	medical tests after exhibiting weakness and shortness of breath
45	while engaging in athletic activity, and
46	WHEREAS, the tests revealed that Mark Jurgrau had a problem
47	with the aortic valve of the heart, and as a result of the
48	diagnosis, he was advised to have surgery to replace the aortic
49	valve, and
50	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau's doctors recommended a surgical
51	procedure known as the "Ross procedure" in which the patient's
52	own pulmonic valve is used to replace the aortic valve, and
53	WHEREAS, the procedure, commonly used in younger patients,
54	was chosen due to the fact that it is effective for a very long
55	period of time and does not require the patient to take
56	medications subsequent to surgery, and
57	WHEREAS, the Ross procedure was performed on Mark Jurgrau
58	on September 2, 1999, at Memorial Hospital, part of the South
59	Broward Hospital District, and
60	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau tolerated the procedure well and
61	appeared to be doing fine, and
62	WHEREAS, the decision to replace Mark Jurgrau's aortic
63	valve was a good decision, the choice of the Ross procedure was
64	a sound choice, and the operation was performed ably and
65	correctly, and
66	WHEREAS, however, one of the risks of this procedure is the
67	possible occurrence of internal bleeding at the location of the
68	operation, and
69	WHEREAS, internal bleeding following this procedure does
70	occur from time to time, is easily recognizable and readily
71	treatable, and is not an indication of negligence per se, and
72	WHEREAS, one of the primary reasons patients are kept in
73	the hospital following this type of surgery is so they can be
74	observed for complications, and
75	WHEREAS, the negligence in this case occurred in the
76	failure of the employees of Memorial Hospital to provide Mark
77	Jurgrau with appropriate postoperative care, and
78	WHEREAS, following his operation, the management of Mark
79	Jurgrau's care was entrusted to a nurse, Kathy Kater, ARNP, and
80	WHEREAS, the surgeon who operated on Mark Jurgrau never saw
81	him again, and Kathy Kater and the other hospital nurses became
82	Mark Jurgrau's health care team, and
83	WHEREAS, from the time of Mark Jurgrau's operation on
84	September 2, 1999, to the time of his death on September 6,
85	1999, Mark Jurgrau exhibited signs and symptoms of internal
86	bleeding, and
87	WHEREAS, in order to monitor for internal bleeding, blood
88	is drawn from a patient daily, and
89	WHEREAS, when a person is losing blood, laboratory values
90	drop as blood contents are used up, and
91	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau's hematocrit, hemoglobin, and
92	platelets were all dropping, each day registering much lower
93	than the day before, and
94	WHEREAS, in the 5 days he was in Memorial Hospital, Mark
95	Jurgrau's blood values fell to less than 30 percent of normal,
96	and
97	WHEREAS, also, in order to determine if blood is
98	accumulating in a patient's chest, X-rays are taken daily and
99	the patient's breathing is monitored daily, and
100	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau's X-rays showed his lungs filling
101	with blood, more each day than the day before, and
102	WHEREAS, his breathing decreased each day as the portions
103	of his lungs which were full of blood could no longer transfer
104	oxygen, and
105	WHEREAS, as Mark Jurgrau's blood became depleted and his
106	lungs filled with blood, he became deprived of oxygen, which
107	made him weak, dizzy, and disoriented, as evidenced by the fact
108	that his oxygen saturation fell precipitously, and
109	WHEREAS, despite the fact that all appropriate tests were
110	administered and all the results of those tests indicated
111	problems, no intervention was ordered based upon Mark Jurgrau's
112	test results, and
113	WHEREAS, by September 5, 1999, Mark Jurgrau was dying,
114	slowly bleeding to death and drowning in his own blood, and
115	WHEREAS, as he became disoriented from lack of oxygen, the
116	hospital nurses called Nurse Kater, and
117	WHEREAS, without coming in to the hospital to observe Mark
118	Jurgrau, Nurse Kater diagnosed him as having a panic attack and,
119	over the telephone, ordered Xanax to be administered to Mr.
120	Jurgrau, and
121	WHEREAS, on September 6, 1999, Mark Jurgrau's condition
122	became critical, and
123	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau was gasping for air, turning pale and
124	cold, and writhing in pain, and
125	WHEREAS, Nurse Kater was again contacted, and again, via
126	telephone, Nurse Kater diagnosed Mark Jurgrau as having a panic
127	attack, and
128	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau arrested and a code blue was called,
129	but it was too late, and
130	WHEREAS, Mark Jurgrau died at the age of 38, leaving his
131	wife of 8 years, Sharon Jurgrau, and a 4-year-old daughter,
132	Megan Jurgrau, and
133	WHEREAS, upon performing an autopsy, the medical examiner
134	confirmed that Mark Jurgrau died from undiagnosed internal
135	bleeding, and
136	WHEREAS, the case was also reviewed by a recognized
137	authority in cardiac surgery, Dr. Dudley Johnson, regarded as
138	the father of cardiac surgery and, along with Dr. Michael
139	DeBakey, the co-inventor of the modern coronary bypass
140	operation, and
141	WHEREAS, Dr. Johnson confirmed that Mark Jurgrau's death
142	was unnecessary and unreasonable, and
143	WHEREAS, at the time of his death, Mark Jurgrau was in the
144	beginning stages of a very successful career as an architect,
145	and
146	WHEREAS, based on his age and proven earning potential,
147	economic damages alone were over $10 million, and
148	WHEREAS, Mark and Sharon Jurgrau's daughter, Megan Jurgrau,
149	now 11 years of age, has experienced emotional distress as a
150	result of the death of her father, and
151	WHEREAS, recognizing this as a case involving malpractice
152	and catastrophic damages, the South Broward Hospital District
153	settled the matter, tendering $200,000 pursuant to the limits of
154	liability established pursuant to section 768.28, Florida
155	Statutes, and agreeing to support a claim bill in the amount of
156	$500,000, NOW, THEREFORE,

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.