Tragic Incident at Florida Hospital Leads to Lawsuit
A two-year-old boy lost his life in a Florida hospital after a doctor mistakenly altered a prescription, reportedly causing the child to receive ten times the intended dose of medication, as claimed in a recent lawsuit.
DeMarcus Page experienced severe brain damage due to a “tragic potassium overdose” on March 3, 2024. He endured a two-week battle on a ventilator during what his mother described as a “horrific and prolonged hospital stay” before being taken off life support, according to the legal complaint submitted last week.
In a suit filed in Alachua County Circuit Court, the mother, Dominick Page, is seeking accountability from Florida Health University, its Shands Teaching Hospital and Clinic, as well as medical personnel who allegedly “failed” her son. Among the accusations is that medical staff took too long—20 minutes, in fact—to intubate him when he went into cardiac arrest.
DeMarcus, who had “possible levels of autism” and was known to be a picky eater, was initially admitted to AdventHealth Ocala Hospital on March 1, 2024, due to a virus and critically low potassium levels.
He received IV fluids to restore his electrolyte balance and was transferred the following day to Shands Teaching Hospital for a higher level of care, as per the lawsuit.
Once at Shands, staff discovered that DeMarcus weighed only 21 pounds, which is in the 30th percentile for that demographic, and his potassium levels remained low.
To address this, he was given “electrolyte replacement therapy.” However, the next day, Dr. Jiabi Chen allegedly ordered a dose ten times higher than what had been prescribed previously, due to a miscalculation involving the removal of an essential decimal point. The doctor ordered a daily supplement of 15 mmol instead of the correct 1.5 mmol, which, according to the complaint, drastically raised the overdose risk.
Additionally, DeMarcus was already receiving other potassium sources via IV and Pedialyte. Despite a red flag appearing in the hospital’s pharmacy system, neither the medical team nor the pharmacist caught the mistake.
This unfortunate error led to two overdoses, with the final dose given on March 3 at 8:28 p.m. By 9:02 p.m., he had a cardiac arrest episode due to the overdose, as stated in court documents.
The response from the staff was inadequate, as they made two or three failed attempts to intubate him, with about 20 critical minutes passing before they succeeded. During this crucial period, DeMarcus was deprived of the oxygen necessary for survival.
Although his heart eventually stabilized, the damage from prolonged oxygen deprivation resulted in devastating consequences for his brain and vital organs, according to the lawsuit.
Tests indicated elevated potassium and phosphate levels in his blood. Over the next two weeks, DeMarcus faced various complications related to his ICU stay before he was taken off life support on March 18, 2024.
Dominique, who resides in Marion County, Florida, is pursuing at least $50,000 in damages for wrongful death and related claims, emphasizing the suffering her son endured and the emotional pain of losing her child.
Jordan Dulce, the attorney representing the Page family, described the hospital and doctors’ actions as “grossly negligent,” noting they failed to meet basic medical care standards. He stated, “No parent should have to lose a child like this,” emphasizing that the family’s ordeal was preventable.
Dulce intends to bring the case to court to prevent other families from experiencing a similar tragedy.
The hospital has refrained from commenting on the case but stated, “UF Health is committed to protecting the privacy of all patients and follows all state and federal HIPAA regulations.” They cannot disclose patient information without consent.
Dr. Chen has not yet provided a response to requests for comment.
