A 59-year-old woman who was a patient at Weiss Memorial Hospital filed a lawsuit claiming that 49-year-old nurse James Whittington injected her with morphine and sexually assaulted her, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Neither the plaintiff nor her Illinois injury attorney were named or quoted in the article.
The woman was admitted to the hospital for chest pains in February 2009; she was examined and admitted for further testing. But the nurse allegedly took advantage of her in the secluded room where she was admitted.
The only quote cited from the complaint details the alleged abuse:
"[He sexually assaulted her by] inappropriately touching her breasts, and then placing plaintiff's hand upon his penis."
Not what you would ordinarily expect from a health care professional.
The lawsuit goes on to say that the plaintiff briefly became conscious of the abuse and tried to resist but was unable to, according to reporters. If the allegations are true, it raises the question of whether or not the defendant has carried out similar acts of sexual assault in the past.
Speaking of which, the plaintiff's complaint claims that the employer (Weiss) did not contact James Whittington's former employers to determine whether or not he had a record of assault. And she claims they failed to conduct a screening required by the Illinois Health Worker Background Check Act.
However, she claims he did in fact engage in similar acts of sexual assault in the past (although it's not clear how she obtained this information). He was charged last October with criminal sexual abuse and was suspended from the hospital after his arrest; the criminal case is ongoing.
Patients must be able to trust their health care providers. If you believe you were improperly touched by a health care worker, you owe it to yourself to explore your legal options by contacting a Chicago injury attorney.
Related Resources:
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Sexual Assault (FindLaw)
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Sexual Assault Charges Against David Copperfield Dropped (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice Blog)
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Browse Chicago Injury Lawyers (FindLaw)
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