BELLEVILLE - The husband of a woman who died following a hospital stay is suing the facility and an individual doctor, alleging wrongful death and medical malpractice.
Wesley Hunter, as representative of the estate of his wife Melody Hunter, filed the wrongful death suit Sept. 23 in St. Clair County Circuit Court against Jersey Community Hospital and Dr. Christy Elving-Dial, alleging violation of the Wrongful Death Act.
The complaint accuses the hospital and the doctor of negligence and carelessness during the time the deceased was under their care between April and November 2018.
According to the complaint, it was the "duty of the defendants to use reasonable and ordinary care of physician and healthcare facility in their care and treatment of plaintiffs' decedent."
The hospital did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the allegations from the Record.
There was a failure in the duty of care, the widowed father of one argued, alleging his wife's acute gastrointestinal bleeding was not treated in a timely manner, which rises to the level of negligence and carelessness.
Specifically, the complaint states, Melody Hunter continued to be given the drug Motrin while at the same was on aspirin and Xarelto.
"As a direct and proximate result ... [the] descendant was caused to suffer injuries resulting in her death on Nov. 28, 2018," the suit states.
Next of kin, Wesley Sr. and son Wesley II, have been "deprived of the reasonable value of her services, companionship, comfort, instruction, guidance, counsel, training, love, affection and support of wife and mother." They have also sustained monetary loss, the suit alleges.
Wesley Hunter seeks judgment in excess of $50,000 plus court costs. He is represented by attorney Grey Chatham Jr. of Chatham & Baricevic in Belleville.
St. Clair County Circuit Court Case number 2019-L-681.