Del Sol Medical Center facing wrongful death lawsuit

Del Sol Medical Center is facing a wrongful death lawsuit, accused of causing the death of a woman who had given birth in the hospital.

Natalia Silva, 23, died in September 2013.

The lawsuit, which was filed in the 34th District Court on April 20, 2015, lays out Natalia’s final months, starting with when she gave birth to her second child at Del Sol in November 2012.

ABC-7 recently met with Stephanie Hall, Natalia’s older sister and a plaintiff in the civil lawsuit, and Crystal Silva, another of Natalia’s siblings, in the office of Stephanie’s attorney.

“She was excited,” her sister, Stephanie Hall, told ABC-7, when asked about how Natalia felt after delivering a baby boy.

Crystal chimed in. “She was very loving and affectionate.”

Natalia’s happiness was interrupted days later when she had to return to Del Sol for treatment of an infection to her C-section incision.

“She was in the hospital right after she had (her son) for about two weeks,” said Stephanie.

It was during that stay that Natalia’s sisters say she was diagnosed with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a staph infection known as MRSA. The drug-resistant bacteria is often contracted in hospital settings. The infection shows up as skin boils or abscesses.

Crystal said Natalia was able to control the symptoms until June 2013, about seven months after giving birth.

“She went in (to Del Sol) for a pain in her neck that ended up being an abscess,” Crystal explained. “When they went in to remove it, she came out paralyzed. She came out a quadraplegic.”

The lawsuit states the surgery on her spine was performed by a physician trained as an ear, nose and throat specialist. It goes on to state that the physician “negligently compromised the medulla oblongata pons, which resulted in Natalia becoming a quadriplegic.”

The sisters told ABC-7 they are haunted by the look they saw on Natalia’s face when they visited her shortly after she emerged from surgery.

“Her eyes: she looked scared,” said Stephanie. “She knew something was wrong.”

Natalia was able to leave the hospital, but the lawsuit states she was readmitted shortly thereafter for continued treatment of MRSA.

According to the lawsuit, the medication Natalia was given rendered her unable to keep down any food, and “she received no treatment for her inability to sustain nourishment,” losing weight and becoming dehydrated.

In the lawsuit, the sisters allege that Natalia’s quadriplegic state wasn’t handled with adequate turning and physical therapy, resulting in blood clots in her lungs.

Natalia died Sept. 30, 2013 — ten months after delivering her son.

“She spent the last four months of her life in the hospital,” said Crystal.

Natalia’s death was due to a pulmonary embolism, according to an independent autopsy requested by her sisters. The lawsuit states the embolism was brought on by the blood clots.

“She should be here. She should be here with her children. She should have known her son,” said Crystal.

When asked if Natalia’s two young children were allowed to see their mother in the hospital’s ICU, Crystal replied, “We showed her lots of videos and pictures on our phones.

“Sometimes the staff would help us out and roll Natalia to a window so they could see each other,” she added.

ABC-7 reached out to Del Sol Medical Center, but was told the hospital is unable to comment on pending legal matters.

According to the hospital’s answer to the lawsuit, filed a week later on April 28, Del Sol “generally denies” the allegations and “demands strict proof” of the sisters’ claims.

Meantime, Stephanie is raising her sister’s children. Natalia’s daughter is now 9, old enough to remember her mother; Natalia’s son was not yet a year old when his mother died.

“We talk about her all the time. He sees pictures and he knows that’s his mom. We just keep her memory alive,” said Stephanie.

“I always want the kids to know that she may not be able to be here, but she’ll never leave them. She’ll always be with them.”

“We miss her,” said Crystal. “We miss her for ourselves, we miss her for the kids. It’s the hardest part of everything.”

The hospital stated in its answer to the lawsuit that it is requesting a trial by jury, and that the sisters “take nothing by this lawsuit and that (Del Sol) recover(s) its costs.”

Stephanie and Crystal insist they will push for their sister’s story to be heard.

“We want to create awareness,” said Crystal. “We want to prevent this from happening to someone else.”