James Woods Takes Hospital to Court in Brother's Death

By PopEater / Wire Services Posted Nov 10th 2009 06:19AM

A hospital did not do enough to care for the brother of James Woods when he went to the emergency room complaining of a sore throat and vomiting in 2006, a lawyer for the actor told jurors Monday at the trial of a wrongful death lawsuit. Michael Woods died from heart disease at Kent Hospital in Warwick on July 26, 2006, after going into cardiac arrest on a gurney. He was 49.

Attorney Mark Decof said in opening statements that the actor's brother wasn't seen by a doctor until an hour after he arrived and was initially treated in a section of the emergency room generally reserved for less-urgent cases.

Even after an EKG came back abnormal, he was not given oxygen, aspirin or hooked up to heart monitoring to track further deterioration - all part of the standard of care in treating someone in Woods' condition, Decof said.

Instead, he was taken for additional X-rays and afterward left on a gurney in a hallway near a nurse's station because no room was available. He went into cardiac arrest and died nearly three hours after his arrival at the hospital.

Lawyers for the hospital said Woods' symptoms were inconsistent with someone having a heart attack. They said he denied to the nurse that he was having more typical symptoms, like chest pain, and even tried to downplay his illness by assuring her that he was fine and didn't need so much attention. They said he had complained previously within the last year of a sore throat.

Woods was overweight, had high blood pressure, an artery severely narrowed by plaque, and also suffered from myocardial ischemia, a condition caused by lack of blood flow to the heart.

Decof said the death could have been prevented had hospital staff recognized Woods' condition early enough, but lawyers for the hospital say his heart and arteries were already so diseased that there was no way to save him and that he died before any potentially lifesaving measures could even have been taken.

"Only a psychic could have known what was actually wrong with him," said defense lawyer Jason Preciphs.

The tests that were ordered, he added, "didn't rule anything in and it didn't rule anything out."

James Woods earned Oscar nominations for his roles in "Ghosts of Mississippi" and "Salvador." Other credits include "Nixon," "Casino," "Any Given Sunday" and the CBS legal drama "Shark." He is suing along with his nephew Peyton, Michael's teenage son.

Testimony begins Tuesday in Kent County Superior Court. The trial is expected to last about a month.

Michael Woods, a businessman who lived in Warwick, was also an actor who appeared in several of his brother's movies and ran twice unsuccessfully for mayor of the city, which is several miles south of Providence.

Tags: james woods, JamesWoods

Comments

(296)

Tuesday 10 November

By Tina

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You know. I believe that the hospitals never truly give the attention to patients that need it or they dismiss things due to age, family history, social habits..etc. I've been in almost 5 emergency rooms this year (never being in one before) within 2 months. I am 26 years old who started have heart palpitations, dizziness and chest pain. I was in and out of the emergency room and they kept making me go home saying I was in panic and I knew I wasn't, which actually did make the anxiety level high. Sent me to psych to ask me how things in my family life were and how school was going. Bunch of crap. Nope kids, my blood was clotting that was actually discovered by my family physican through a blood test to check my d-dimer levels that could have been check out and determined in 15 minutes in the ER...on ALL occasions...it's pathetic healthcare these days...this man probably did not get the service he needed and the hospital is now trying to cover their butts for it!

By sophie

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we will have worse health care if obama's health care makes it !!!!!!!!!!!!! he wouldn't have even made to the gurney and in front of the nurse's station. he would have died in the waiting room.

By c

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You know, I think this is all garbage. I work in an ER and work my butt off trying to make sure everyone is taken care of above the standard of care. I run from the time I start my shift and stay over to make sure care is done properly. I dont know what happened at this hospital where Mr Wood died and it sounds very unfortunate but to blame every hospital is wrong and predjudice. I have had people complain because they were sick and insisted I stop taking care of one person to attend to them even though the person I was caring for wasnt breathing and was getting ready to be intubated. Stop judging things you dont understand. I cant speak for anyone else but I do care and want the best for the people I care for.

By sandra

c, i am glad that you do these things at the hospital that you work at and i hope that everyone that you work with does the same. but it is not this way everywhere alot of hospitals give substandard care, alot of them will send you out the door if you do not have insurance. and example a few years ago a very good friend of my took her 3 year old child to the hospital he was running a fever that would not break no matter what was givin to the child even gave that baby a luke warm bath to try to bring down the fever. the hospital sent the baby home with a 103.5 temp he went in at 104.5 2 hours later he had a seisure and he did not servive. i believe the ER in this case was totally at fault. some say she should have taken the baby to a dif hospital it was not possible we live in a small town. she asked them to take her to nashville to have her son seen and they took her to the one here. on another occation a friend of mine went to the same hospital complaining of abdominal pain. they sent him home saying it was nothing. his appendix ruptured in the middle of the night. his wife drove him to nashville, luckily this father of three servived.

By superorth

There are always 2 sides to every story, people are to quick to judge, before hearing both sides.
People are quick to sue for an easy life, and you wonder why medical exspences are high, Suing dose not solve the problem... Most of you have no medical Knowledge, but yet you know it all? You should try working in an E.R., and the fact that people look for fault, instead of thanking you...

By bonnie morrison

James Woods and his brother's family has by condolences....loss of a beloved family member is never easy to take...I lost three in less than four months...and when they are in the hospital, it is even easier to blame the hospital, mainly because they are the easiest target to blame...in some cases, this IS true (and in this one, it DOES sound like you possibly do have a very strong case for suing)....I have been very lucky in that the hospitals that my relatives were in were excellent and were through and took every precaution and time to explain what they were doing and why..also, they explained options towards they end of the loved ones life and how we could make it as easy and painless as possible...that is always the biggest fear...not of the dying...but of the pain that can be there before it happens...My prayers are with James Woods and his relatives in this painful time....

By Barbara

Managed care was supposed to keep people healthy..it has failed miserably because they deny essential tests while filling their executives' pockets...add to that atrocity the downsizing of hospital beds and staff nationwide and one has to wonder, who the hell gives a damn about the health of this nation?

By Meg

Heartbreakingly sad... and oh so young... I pray for the entire Wood's family... and just a note... If you live w'in a 60 mile radius of Boston, MA - make the trip to the world renowned facilities they have... Honestly... R.I healthcare facility's are merely backwood's building's in an urban setting... I urge anyone w'any ailment seeking treatment- PLEASE do NOT wait- living here we are so fortunate to have them at our convenience..
God Bless Michael and his family... ;(

By lady

I went to the Er after I accidently spilled a boiling pot of beans and ham on me. They left me in the waiting room for an hour. My blood pressure was at stroke stage. I am a diabetic. When I finally was seen they asked me what I wanted them to do for me. And spent time trying to say that my husband threw them on me when he wasnt home when it happened. The next day I had blisters the size of golf balls all up and down my body. I called my family doctor and his nurse put a slave and wrapped up what she could. The hospital charged almost $2000 my doctor not one cent.

By peapers

A doctor can only discern what is wrong with you, quickly, if you are honest and up front about your symptoms. Though I truly feel for the Woods family, Michael Woods is responsible for telling the doctors everything he can about his health history. He is also responsible for taking better care of himself in the first place. A doctor is not God. Doctors do not follow you around, watching every move you make throughout your day. One more thing: If you think this is bad, wait until the government is running the system. The ONLY thing our government is proficient at is killing people. Everything else is a bumble cluster. The terms FUBAR and SNAFU were coined for a darn good reason.

By Kim G

I am very sorry for James Wood's loss of his brother. It is absolutely dispicable how the ER treats ill people. I have seen people come into the hospital in an ambulance only to be shoved onto a gurney and left in the corridor for an hour before anyone bothers to look or speak to them. (unless of course, it is to get their insurance card so the hospital can get paid.) I beleive that the hospital SHOULD be sued.

By Cletus Peckerspin

Maybe James Woods should pry himself off of his latest 20-year old girlfriend, then walk away from the poker table, and enroll himself in med school. He could sacrifice years of his life studying and then sacrifice the rest of his life helping people, instead of getting overpaid for acting like a fast-talking and smirking know-it-all. Oh, and when he becomes "Dr." James Woods, I'm sure he'll never make a single mistake, nor charge a fee for saving lives. Thank you, James Woods. Thank you for being all you can be.

By Jade

The hospital's attorney said it would take a psychic to know what was wrong with Woods...that is a terrible defense for their incompentence...what are doctor's and Emergency Rooms for? a psychic diagnosis? The hospital is responsible for this man's early death.

By Chrissy

I feel for you James, but don't sue the hospital man! That money goes to medicine which helps woman with breast cancer, kids with cancer, and other ugly diases. I really for you James, they did what they can... can you do it better?

By ginger

It IS Rhode Island And Warwick to boot so What can you expect? I live in RI and the state, especially the towns in the north part of the state around Providence, is crooked as a back country road and Dangerous as NYC. The politicians steal from the state, And THAT is FACT. Re: CIANCI. The state is Run by "Goombah's" Don't get me wrong, I love Italians and even have cousins who are such but the fact is the state of RI is being and has been for many years Robbed Blind by the "MOB". Yes,the "MOB" Does exist.

By Hillary

Exactaly, Chrissy!!! I totally agree with you, we yes, we do feel for your loss, but sueing the hospital isn't smart!! Your my hero Chrissy!:)

By lucky stinson-irby

Mr. Woods and your entire family, I'm sorry for your loss of your precious Michael.

Emergency Rooms,are such a joke, it's expected to get less than good treatment when going there. So many times when you experience symptoms that we're taught to get immediate help for, upon arriving at hospital you're put on wait. Not that anyone goes, to hospital to be waited on Before everyone thats already there, but hospital staff should know the signs.

It's common knowledge that a visit to the E R is a long long process that most times is truly dangerous for you the patient, and your family. You can speak to almost everyone you know about treatment at hospitals and get the same account from all. It's a sad sad commentary.

By Sheri

several years ago I was biten by a spider or something and left my kids with a girlfriend and drove myself to the hospital ER around 9PM. After not hearing from me for several hours my friend called the ER and they said I had'nt been there. By this time my boyfriend was home from work so she called him to see if he knew where I was. He also called the ER and was told I wasnt there and had'nt been there. He then drove to my house to see if I was broke down on the road somewhere or something or at home and could'nt find me. again he called the ER and I was'nt there so he went to the Hosp and there was my car right outside the ER on the parking lot. He went in and was again told I was'nt there and he told them he knew I was that my car was outside and that's where I told my friend I was going. By now it is 5 AM and they had changed shifts at 11 PM. so they began looking for me and found me in a room where they had put me and I was sound asleep but for they knew I could have been dead and noone even knew I was there. Apparently there had been a real bad accident right after I got there and somehow they lost me and when they changed shifts the next shift was unaware of me. Lucky for me it was only a spider bite that I had a reaction to but it could have been poisonous.

By Mmnrude95@aol.com

Good luck to all of you who think this is the worst health care because you have seen nothing yet! If you think this is bad (and it isn't) wait until Obamacare is here! Wait until you are suffering with a normal form of pain that used to be taken cared of after an initial exam and waiting for 3 or 4 years. When you are suffering and waiting I'll be there reminding you of this. Shame on all of you.

By Peter

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Hopitals are the most dangerous place to be. 20,000 people die each week due to medical mistakes. I never want to be hospitalized. All the health care workers seem to care about is the buffett in the Nurse's break room. It's sad. Something has to change in the medical field. If 20,000 people died each week in airplane crashes the airlines would be out of business because no one would fly. The medical Field is broken and I'm not even talking abuout health care plans or insurance companies.

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