An Indiana hospital fired a doctor and a nurse after the hospital discharged a pregnant woman who minutes later gave birth in her car, the hospital’s president and CEO confirmed.
A video of the incident on social media shows Mercedes Wells, who is from Dolton, being wheeled out of the hospital. Family members said hospital staff told the woman to come back later, even though she was in active labor.
Wells’ family said on social media she gave birth to her daughter in the car on the side of the road, eight minutes after leaving the hospital. The family drove to another hospital and received care there.
Raymond Grady, the president and CEO of the hospital, Franciscan Health Crown Point, apologized to Wells and her family in a statement Friday. He said the doctor and nurse who were directly involved with the woman’s care are no longer employed at the hospital.
Grady added the hospital has mandated additional training for its staff and will now have a physician examine every pregnant patient before they leave the labor and delivery unit.
“Compassionate concern is absent when a caregiver fails to listen to a patient who is clearly in pain and vulnerable. The video was difficult to watch,” Grady said. “We must fix what failed in our hospital so that no one experiences what happened to Mercedes Wells.”