To the Editor:

I took my 13-year-old daughter to Morgan Memorial yesterday, 2/22/13, at 4:10 p.m. She had come home in severe pain in the ear, neck and head. She was taken back, but no weight was taken, just BP and oxygen levels. The "doctor" came in the room, looked in her ear and wrote a script, as well as telling me to give her four to six ibuprofen every four to six hours. My daughter was in visible pain, crying, on the verge of screaming. Nothing else was done. No pain meds were given, no comfort by the staff, NOTHING. As a mother it infuriated me that this "doctor" didn't care that she was hurting. A CHILD WAS HURTING. The prescription that was given was given on a guess for weight. This in itself is dangerous along with the ibuprofen which, had I not known better, would have caused her liver damage. Why is the care at a hospital we are supposed to trust and our tax dollars support so bad? I took my daughter to her primary care physician today who was appalled and furious at how my daughter was treated. He fixed the prescription and, with a shot of penicillin, she should be better soon. I am sure I am not the only parent who has gone through this at this hospital and won't be the last.

Miriam Goodman
Madison
Via e-mail

Printed in the February 28, 2013