Local News in Brief : Use of Hospital Room Under Investigation
Authorities are investigating whether a Los Angeles hospital where a premature baby was fatally burned was violating an order to stop housing newborns where the fire occurred, according to a published report.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center was directed during an April, 1986, inspection by the Department of Health Services to stop using Room 4225 as a neonatal nursery or a newborn intensive care facility because it had not met department standards, the Los Angeles Herald Examiner reported.
It was there that doctors were performing open-heart surgery on the 2-week-old infant known as Baby DeJesus when a spark ignited oxygen-soaked gauze pads on the infant’s body Oct. 6.
Hospital spokesman Ron Wise said the baby was to be in the room only during the operation, then moved to intensive care after a 30-minute procedure. “This room was not being used to keep children in. . . . They denied us that, and we complied,” Wise said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
