12.21.92 - 05.01.96

Wilkes-Barre, PA

Three-year-olds are squirmy by nature. In March of 1996, the Walski family took their little worm, Jonathan, to the dentists office for a routine examination during which several cavities were discovered. Because Jonathan had a hard time sitting still, the dentist scheduled an appointment and general anesthesia to complete the procedure. The parents’ concerns were assuaged and they were assured that everything would be fine. As parents, we trust professionals. We believe in their knowledge, their training, and their word.

“Big” – that was Jonathan’s word he said to let his family know he was ready; Jonathan, determined to be a “big boy,” walked into the office and triumphantly sat in the chair. Soon after telling the doctors to take care of her boy, Jonathan’s parents heard the sirens from the waiting room and their hearts knew that it was their son they were coming for.

Jonathan’s dentist arranged for another dentist to administer the anesthesia as he was not covered to do so. Investigation revealed that the pair was not appropriately prepared to care for Jonathan and acted negligently in doing so: The associated risks were not explained to the parents. There was no pulse oximeter, no trach tube, no EKG machine, no crash cart – and an hour after the ambulance arrived, no breathing from Jonathan’s little body.

The alarms are sounding and it is our awareness and action that are being called to the rescue. It is too late for Jonathan; it is our responsibility to speak up now before it’s too late for another child, another family.