A situation occurred in a facility outside New York that has led to a court battle. The matter concerns a 24-year-old psychiatric patient and the hospital where she was admitted. Another patient is also involved in the medical malpractice case.
The young woman was first admitted to the hospital after suffering an alleged psychotic episode where she jumped out of her boyfriend’s moving vehicle. It was later determined she believed the end of the world had come and she was being left behind. She was admitted to a psychiatric ward under strict supervision.
While in the hospital, the reportedly mentally ill woman saw another patient wrapped in a bed sheet. For some reason, she believed he was Jesus Christ. At some point, she is said to have thrown ice water on a staff member who was helping that particular patient but whom she thought was trying to harm him.
Staff members were reportedly made aware that the woman was suicidal and psychotic and was not to be left unsupervised for any reason. However, at some point, she was allegedly lured into the man’s room and coerced into having sexual relations with him. A personal injury lawsuit has since been filed against the hospital stating that staff negligence caused the woman to suffer sexual assault.
It has been suggested the encounter between the two patients was consensual. It is being debated whether any person diagnosed with psychosis and taking the medications the woman was taking at the time could be capable of such consent. The outcome of the medical malpractice claim remains to be seen. Often, successful litigation in similar New York cases has hinged upon experienced and aggressive representation in court.
Source: southbendtribune.com, “Is Elkhart General Hospital liable in sex assault?“, Accessed on Nov. 16, 2016
