The Karmanos Cancer Institute and Outpatient Care Centers, at McLaren Health Campus in East Lansing on Feb. 27, 2022, prepare to open their doors to the public with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
An Eaton County judge is suing Lansing hospitals and medical workers affiliated with Michigan State University, claiming she received “negligent care” during the birth of her daughter in 2014.
Kelly Morton, who was appointed to the 56th circuit court earlier this month, said her daughter, Audrey, suffers permanent brain damage because of her treatment at McLaren Greater Lansing and Sparrow Hospital, now named University of Michigan Health – Sparrow Lansing.
The two Lansing-area hospitals and their corporate owners are named as defendants in the suit, along with obstetrician and gynecological physicians Grace Gibbs, Elizabeth Ferik, Sarah McKenzie, Jason Coletta, Kerry Lee, Marissa Hill and Jacqueline Witters; neonatal-perinatal medicine physicians Sowmya Angusamy and Mark Kadrofske; and pediatrics physician Abdalla Abdalla-Ali.
The suit was released to The State News in response to a public records request seeking legal claims received and settlements reached by MSU.
While the university isn’t specifically named in the suit, one of the defendants— Kadrofske, the neonatal-perinatal medicine physician— was a professor in MSU’s department of pediatrics and human development at the time.
McLaren Greater Lansing is also affiliated with MSU, offering residency programs and fellowships to college of osteopathic medicine and college of human medicine students.
MSU spokesperson Mark Bullion declined to comment further on MSU’s involvement in the suit.
Spokespeople for University of Michigan - Sparrow Lansing and McLaren Health Care declined to comment since it is a pending legal matter. Morton’s attorneys did not respond to requests for comment.
Morton argues that medical staff should have been more prepared to handle a complicated pregnancy and should have made better decisions during her pregnancy.
Morton was admitted to McLaren Greater Lansing on May 22, 2014, two weeks before her due date, according to the suit.
She had gestational diabetes and doctors suspected the baby would be much larger than average, so they induced labor early. Medical staff proceeded with a vaginal birth without discussing the risks involved, according to the suit.
Doctors should have recommended a C-section “given the combination of gestational diabetes and suspected macrosomia,” according to the suit.
During delivery the following evening, the newborn’s shoulder got caught on Morton’s pubic bone and doctors had to perform “multiple maneuvers,” including an episiotomy, to complete the birth, according to the suit.
Medical staff should have told Morton “to stop pushing and refrain from telling her to push until the impacted shoulder has been released,” according to the suit.
They also should have been trained not to pull on the infant's arms, head, and neck to dislodge her shoulder, according to the suit.
The baby ended up with “facial bruising with lacerations on her forehead and neck” and had low blood oxygen and blood sugar levels, according to the suit. Her left humerus and right clavicle were fractured.
Audrey weighed 10.3 pounds after birth. Her Apgar scores — tests of a newborn’s health, taken minutes after delivery — were initially low. Medical staff performed resuscitative efforts, according to the suit.
Audrey was transported to Sparrow Hospital, where she was treated further by Angusamy and Kadrofske.
Medical staff assessed that there was evidence of brain damage and paralysis of parts of the baby’s arm.
They planned to take steps to lower Audrey’s body temperature, but “that was never done,” according to the suit.
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An MRI scan showed signs of brain damage a week later, according to the suit.
Morton and her newborn daughter were discharged on June 23, 2014.
Audrey suffers “severe cognitive impairment and developmental delay” and requires continued medical care due to the lack of oxygen in her brain at birth, according to the suit.
The suit includes affidavits from four obstetrician and gynecological physicians, who testified that medical staff should have recommended a C-section to Morton, continually checked Audrey’s blood sugar and taken more steps to rehabilitate the infant.
Her injuries “will deprive Audrey Morton of a normal childhood and adult life,” according to the suit. Morton is seeking upwards of $25,000.
