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| Doctors fault treatment in deaths at Chowchilla prison |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 02/05/2001 |
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Prompt care might have saved two of the three inmates who died at a women's prison in Chowchilla last month, according to doctors whose reviews of the incidents were released recently. Those reviews also conclude that the deaths were not related. Officials at the Central California Women's Facility had worried the deaths might have resulted from improper sharing of prescription drugs or some other common cause. But Dr. Kathleen A. Clanon, a UC San Francisco professor, wrote she could find no 'single 'smoking gun' explanation linking these three deaths.' Barring a drug found during still-pending toxicology tests, 'it is most likely that these tragic and frightening sudden deaths were medically unrelated to one another.' A separate review of the inmates' medical records by four UC Davis doctors also found no link between the deaths. Clanon reached her conclusions after reviewing medical reports from the incidents. She submitted her comments to a state Legislature committee that held a hearing on the deaths last week. Relatives and advocacy groups have said the deaths could have been prevented if inmates received better care. Department of Corrections spokeswoman Margot Bach said she had not seen the reports and no one from the department's medical staff was available for comment. Seventeen women died last year at the prison, though most were terminally ill and receiving medical care. Three of the deaths were unexpected and, Clanon concluded, might have been prevented. Pamela Coffey, 46, of Los Angeles, died Dec. 2, becoming the first of the three dead inmates in question. An autopsy found she died of heart problems, but Clanon concluded that, 'there were significant problems with Ms. Coffey's medical care that might have contributed to her death.' A medical technical assistant (MTA) who examined Coffey two hours before she died should have sought additional help, Clanon wrote in her review. Advocacy groups have been particularly critical of the health screening provided by MTAs -- guards with medical training -- and state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, said she will introduce legislation this year to eliminate the position. The UC Davis doctor who reviewed Coffey's file also said her low blood count should have been investigated, but did not fault the MTA's treatment the night of her death. Stephanie Hardie, 34, of Pomona, who died Dec. 9, should have received better treatment for her previous complaints of chest pain and shortness of breath, Clanon said. Better treatment might also have saved Eva Vallario, 33, of San Diego, who apparently died after choking on vomit Dec. 15, Clanon said. Prison employees repeatedly tried to clear her airway but were unsuccessful, and the UC Davis doctor who reviewed Vallario's file was not critical of their efforts. However, the UC Davis doctors questioned whether two other terminally ill inmates received proper care once they were transferred to outside hospitals. They said they could draw no firm conclusions, however, because they lacked the inmates' complete medical records. |
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