Madison County board member Heather Mueller Jones is suing Anderson Hospital and one of its physicians following the death of her husband and former board member Clint Jones.
Belleville attorney Thomas Keefe Jr. filed the four-count complaint on behalf of Mueller Jones in the Madison County Circuit Court on July 1. The lawsuit was filed against Dr. Elsayed Abo-Salem, MD, and Southwestern Illinois Health Facilities Inc., doing business as Anderson Hospital.
According to the complaint, Jones, 44, went to Anderson Hospital on June 25, 2020, for medical care and treatment by Abo-Salem, a cardiologist. Jones was diagnosed with myocardial infarction and underwent a diagnostic and therapeutic cardiac catheterization by Abo-Salem. The suit states that Jones’ circumflex showed proximal 70 percent stenosis of the OM2 and 90 percent stenosis of the OM3. Abo-Salem performed angioplasty and stenting of Jones’ OM3. However, he failed to perform the angioplasty and stenting of Jones’ OM2.
As a result of the defendants’ negligence, “plaintiff’s arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease went untreated, and he subsequently suffered from cardiac arrest and incurred medical bills up until the time of his death.”
Jones died on July 3, 2020. As a result, Keefe wrote in the complaint that his family has been permanently deprived of his love, companionship, society and support.
Prior to his death, Jones (R) represented District 27 in Madison County, which includes Collinsville, Maryville and unincorporated Collinsville Township. He was elected to the board in 2016. He served as the chairman of the Facilities Management and Sewer Facilities committees. He was also a member of the Executive, Grants and Transportation committees.
Jones was remembered by his colleagues as a dedicated friend who spent his time on the Madison County board helping others and representing his district well.
“My deepest sympathy goes out to Clint’s young family,” Board Chairman Kurt Prenzler said following his death. “It’s hard to imagine the shock and loss they are experiencing. Clint was called to public service and understand its importance. His experience with the Maryville street department prepared him well for the county board, and that was one reason he was the only county board member to chair two committees, the facilities and sewer committees. I could go into a lot of detail about Clint’s knowledge of county operations, but it would take too much time. Let me just say that not only do we miss Clint as a person, but we will miss his talents.”
Mueller-Jones was appointed to fill the remainder of her husband’s term after Prenzler nominated her for the position. She was elected to the seat in the November 2020 General Election.
Madison County Circuit Court case number 21-L-765