While every case is different, Summerville residents frequently come to us after ER incidents that involve:
- Delayed evaluation during peak volume: symptoms that should trigger faster assessment—especially when the patient is waiting longer than expected.
- Missed “return precautions” or confusing discharge instructions: when a patient is sent home without clear warning signs or with instructions that aren’t consistent with the condition observed.
- Diagnostic gaps after imaging or lab results: where a result may be abnormal but the next step—review, escalation, or communication—didn’t happen in time.
- Medication and allergy issues: including dosage problems, incomplete allergy review, or failure to account for medications common in the local population.
- Triage mismatches: when the initial category assigned at triage doesn’t align with the severity suggested by vitals, symptoms, or risk factors.
These issues aren’t about blaming staff for having a hard job. The question is whether the ER team’s decisions met the standard of care for the circumstances—and whether that breach contributed to the harm.


