Mrs. Barbara White was admitted to Richmond Medical Center for hip replacement surgery. Pre-operatively she was administered a prophylactic medication to reduce postoperative gastrointestinal complications as part of surgeon Dr. Gilchrist’s, standing orders. Unfortunately, Mrs. White had an allergy to the medication, which was listed in her medical record but went unnoticed by staff. Once the error was recognized, Benadryl was given to counteract the original medication but that caused a steep drop in her blood pressure which led to a stroke. Mrs. White suffered dysphasia and hemiplegia, which continue to this day.
Mrs. White sued Dr. Gilchrist and the nursing staff for damages as a result of the injuries she sustained. Her attorney, Monique LeClair, recognized the need to move quickly to preserve the documentation related to the case. (Competency V.1 level 3).
1. Based on that necessity, the attorney’s first step should be to ask the court for what?