U.S. Naval Hospital Guam is pictured on Dec. 8, 2022. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes)
A Guam couple is suing the federal government, alleging a U.S. military hospital on the island failed to provide proper medical care over nine days in 2021.
Sandra Leipheimer and John Leipheimer filed suit on Dec. 22 for negligence, medical malpractice, emotional distress and disruption of their relationship, according to their complaint in the District Court of Guam.
Sandra Leipheimer sought treatment at Naval Hospital Guam for an abscess in her jaw in April 2021, according to their complaint.
The couple alleged that, because of the hospital’s actions, she was left with unresolved medical issues, health complications and “permanent scarring and disfigurement,” the document said.
The couple is seeking court costs and damages to be determined at trial. The federal government has not yet filed a response to the complaint, according to court records.
Naval Hospital Guam first admitted Sandra Leipheimer on April 3, 2021, for a suspected abscess in her jaw, according to the suit. A physician at the hospital, Dr. Carter Schmidt, assessed her situation and performed surgery, and Leipheimer was discharged less than two days later, according to the complaint.
However, the couple alleged that her symptoms worsened, and she returned to the hospital on April 6. She complained of symptoms that included “extreme pain and fever.”
The complaint alleges Schmidt advised Leipheimer to get blood work and a CT scan, but the hospital’s emergency room informed her that its scanner was broken; the hospital sent her home after taking her blood work, according to the suit.
Leipheimer returned on April 8 and complained of similar symptoms as well as numbness in her jaw and neck and the inability to open her jaw or move the left side of her mouth; Schmidt allegedly did not order any change to Leipheimer’s treatment.
Leipheimer returned to the hospital on April 12 and complained of worsening pain and “feelings of toxicity,” but was told the hospital’s CT scanner still was not working, according to the complaint.
The couple alleged that, throughout the ordeal, Schmidt “failed to provide care, sent her out of the clinic, failed to refer her to other providers, and failed to otherwise arrange for alternative care.”
They also alleged the hospital prematurely discharged Leipheimer from the hospital and failed to provide follow-up treatment or prevent complications.
As a result, Leipheimer’s medical condition “continued unresolved, deteriorated, and worsened” and she required further surgeries and medical treatment, according to the suit.
The couple’s attorney, Peter Perez, of Hagatna, did not respond to phone and email requests for comment on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the hospital did not respond to multiple phone calls and email requests for comments on Tuesday and Wednesday.
