Infant’s death at Sunrise Children’s Hospital ruled homicide

By Jackie Valley

Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2010 | 11:10 a.m.

The death of a 2-month-old boy whose catheter line was disrupted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Sunrise Children's Hospital has been ruled a homicide, according to the Clark County Coroner's Office.

Miowne Obote's death resulted from a hypotensive-hypoxic brain injury, meaning low blood pressure and lack of oxygen in the blood, and exsanguination, or bleeding to death, according to the coroner. The coroner ruled that Obote's extremely premature birth also played a role in his death.

The coroner's homicide ruling means that one person's actions caused another's death, but it doesn't necessarily mean criminal intent was involved.

In July, Sunrise Hospital officials said another infant whose catheter line was disrupted was doing well and had been discharged from the hospital.

Two nurses whose licenses were suspended by the State Board of Nursing while police investigated allegations that a patient was potentially harmed no longer work for Sunrise Hospital. Their discharge in July resulted from their licenses being suspended for more than 14 days, in accordance with Sunrise policy.

The board said it received notice from Metro Police on June 10 that one patient was harmed as the result of intentional acts and other patients were exposed to the potential for physical harm.

The notice listed each of the two women as a “person of interest” in an ongoing criminal investigation.

Metro Police said the investigation is ongoing but could not comment further. No arrests have been made.

In February, Sunrise officials identified an issue with disrupted catheters in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

As a result, the hospital changed some of its products and conducted staff education, officials said. For several weeks after that, there were no catheter line disruptions, the hospital said.

But following a subsequent disruption in a different type of catheter with a low failure rate, the hospital took steps that included increasing security and installing cameras, officials said. The hospital also contacted Metro Police, which opened an investigation.

The hospital reported 14 disrupted lines.