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A person consulted a nurse after injecting his
mother with insulin and seeing that she did not
feel well
A PATIENT WITH HIGH 5
BLOOD PRESSURE AND 1 Question
#
ASTHMA WHO DIED A man injected insulin into his mother, who suffers from chronic
40 DURING A DENTAL diabetes. After the injection, his mother felt dizzy and broke out in a
PROCEDURE sweat. Instead of calling a physician, the son called on his neighbor,
an accredited nurse in a well-known hospital. She advised him to
immediately give her a drink of sugar solution. When her condition
did not improve, she was taken to the hospital and died there. The
physician who pronounced her dead diagnosed a heart attack, whose
1 Question earliest symptoms were the unusual dizziness and sweating which the
nurse had misinterpreted.
A patient came for routine dental treatment during which the dentist
was to pull three teeth. The patient died during the treatment. The Does the son require atonement for not seeking the advice of a
dentist, who is experienced (he has been practicing dentistry for 43 physician immediately?
years), claimed that he had never had such a case and was unaware
that the patient suffered from several problems, including high blood 1 AnsweR
pressure and asthma. The dentist applied local anesthesia and began
extracting two teeth. In the middle of the procedure, the patient said Pischei Teshuvah (Yoreh Deah #99:5, in the name of Responsa Tzemach
he didn’t feel well and he was going to die. Immediately thereafter, he Tzedek #40) writes: If a person is in doubt whether or not to nullify a
lost consciousness. The staff began to apply resuscitative measures prohibited substance, and decides to do so on the (mistaken) advice of
and they called for help from the Magen David Adom ambulance Torah scholars living in the city, then if he has nullified the prohibited
service. After a short time, he was pronounced dead. substance in error his act is considered intentional, because he did not
The dentist burst out crying and said, “It would have been better if consult with renowned rabbinic decisors. (He also brings the words
this had happened to me. Never has such a thing happened to me and of the Beis Yaakov #85 on this matter.) We can learn a kal vachomer
the patient did not tell me he was sick!” from these words: if one has a situation of possible danger to life, one
A suspicion was raised that the patient died due to negligence. The should seek a licensed physician and not a nurse.
family claims that the dentist should have done preliminary testing to
determine what treatment to give to the patient in view of his high Until now, we have explained the difference between a physician who
blood pressure and asthma. caused death and an ambulance driver who ran over someone accord-
My questions are: ing to the questioner’s reasoning that the ambulance driver is viewed
If it becomes clear that the dentist indeed neglected to do the pre- more stringently than the doctor. Nonetheless there is reason to view
154 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein Do they require exile? 2 123
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