Inset: George Lubrano (Midwest Cremation and Funeral Services). Background: The Missouri hospital accused of downplaying George Lubrano’s deadly diabetic ketoacidosis symptoms as “simply hyperventilating” (Google Maps).
A Missouri hospital is facing a lawsuit after ignoring the pleas of a diabetic man who insisted he “could not breathe” and felt extremely weak, dismissing his distress as mere “hyperventilation.” Tragically, he passed away hours later due to complications from diabetic ketoacidosis, the suit claims.
George Lubrano, aged 24, was brought to Mercy Hospital in Springfield. His parents are now suing the facility, alleging that he was denied “proper” and “timely” medical attention. Lubrano had arrived at the emergency room with symptoms of vomiting, severe back spasms, and a critically high blood sugar level exceeding 500, according to the lawsuit filed in Greene County last week.
Arriving at the emergency room around 1:30 p.m. on December 16, 2024, Lubrano died at 6:01 p.m. from what was identified as “clear symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis.” The Mayo Clinic classifies this condition as a severe and potentially life-threatening complication of diabetes, where acids accumulate in the blood due to insufficient insulin production.
The lawsuit contends that diabetic ketoacidosis can be managed with “prompt attention” using “fairly non-invasive measures,” potentially reversing the condition within hours. Symptoms often include shortness of breath, weakness, and fatigue.
According to the lawsuit, by 2:43 p.m., Lubrano was still waiting to be seen by a doctor when he alerted nurses that he was struggling to breathe. His lung sounds were reportedly clear upon assessment by a nurse, who attributed his difficulty to hyperventilation, the suit claims.
Nearly an hour later, Lubrano remained in the waiting area without having been examined or moved to a treatment room. At approximately 3:30 p.m., he again experienced difficulty breathing, but this episode was also dismissed as hyperventilation, according to the lawsuit.
“At approximately 4:30 p.m., [Lubrano] was still in the waiting room and had not been examined by a doctor or moved to a room when he told nursing staff he was feeling weak, and his blood sugar monitor was beeping and not working properly,” the petition explains. “At approximately 4:40 p.m., [Lubrano] was still in the waiting room and had not been examined by a doctor or moved to a room when he reported that his insulin pump had not been working for more than 45 minutes. At this point, [Lubrano] was breathing rapidly, his mouth was dry, and he was having difficulty talking to nursing staff.”
Hospital records obtained by Lubrano’s lawyer allegedly indicated that his blood sugar was “over high” per glucose parameters and documented that he needed to “go back to a room as soon as possible.” Around 5:30 p.m., the young man began struggling with his breathing again and complained of a “very dry mouth,” per the legal petition.
“At approximately 5:35 p.m., [Lubrano] was still unexamined by a doctor but was brought to a treatment room,” the petition says. “[Lubrano’s] condition continued to deteriorate; he started making gurgling sounds, lost his pulse, became unresponsive, went into cardiac arrest, and the nursing staff called a code.”
A doctor “ran the code” and attempted to resuscitate Lubrano “by way of CPR, multiple rounds of IV epinephrine, and an airway intubation that was initially erroneously placed in [Lubrano’s] esophagus rather than his nasopharyngeal airway,” according to his parents.
Lubrano died from “complications” related to diabetic ketoacidosis at 6:01 p.m., his parents’ petition says.
“The standard of care required at the classic clinical signs of advanced diabetic ketoacidosis, including Kussmaul breathing (not hyperventilation), dry mouth (dehydration), and dangerously high blood sugar levels, was for [Lubrano] to be placed on a cardiac monitor immediately and have intravenous access established for fluid resuscitation,” the petition concludes. “Instead, [Lubrano] waited untreated in the waiting room for nearly five hours, despite displaying clear symptoms.”
Lubrano’s parents allege that if “good, safe, and timely medical choices” had been made by Mercy Hospital staff, he would not have suffered the events that led to his death. They have named the hospital and two staffers, a doctor and nurse practitioner who treated Lubrano, as defendants in their lawsuit.
In addition to their legal petition, Lubrano’s parents also filed a letter of merit from a doctor last week who reviewed Lubrano’s medical records in connection with the care he received in the emergency department at Mercy Hospital.
“It is my opinion that Mercy Hospital, through their physicians, assistants, nurses, technicians, and other care providers, failed to use such care as a reasonably prudent and careful health provider would have used under similar circumstances,” the letter says. “Such failure to use such reasonable care directly caused or directly contributed to cause harm and the subsequent death of George Lubrano.”
Mercy Hospital could not be reached for comment Sunday by Law&Crime. A spokesperson provided a statement to the Springfield Daily Citizen on Friday saying, “We extend our heartfelt prayers and condolences for this family’s devastating loss. We have and will continue to work with the family and their counsel to work toward a resolution.”
