Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach is part of the MemorialCare hospital group. It has been named one of the top children’s hospitals in the country by Leapfrog, a hospital rating organization.
State health investigators are looking into whether the hospital permitted unauthorized research studies to be performed on children with respiratory problems. The studies involve "bronching" of children (placing flexible tubes into the bronchi with attached camera through the mouth and trachea). A hospital board member, Dr. J. Carlos Maggi, is one of the lead physicians conducting the study. Families of patients have complained that they were misled when told that the children needed the procedure.
I’ve contacted (through email and letter) Dr. Maggi and Miller’s Childrens Hospital of Long Beach for comment. Neither has yet responded.
Other news media outlets have known about this story for months.
Mary (not her real name) has a teenage daughter (Jane, not her real name).
A few years ago, Jane was rushed to the hospital for asthma.
Jane is on Medi-Cal.
Dr. J. Carlos Maggi was her doctor in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Miller’s.
Dr. Maggi told Mary that Jane had a lot of fluid on the lungs and other stuff in the lungs.He said that she needed a Flexible Bronchoscopy to save her life. She has since learned that this was a lie. The procedure was not necessary and only made her daughter sicker.
Dr. Maggi told her to leave the room. Mary was very upset because her daughter was in critical condition and he was making her sicker, putting her more at risk by doing this unnecessary procedure.
Dr. Maggi never told her he was doing a big research study on Flexible Bronchoscopy or that her daughter was part of a study.
He never asked her to sign a consent to be part of his research. He did not mention that he was doing anything unusual, even though she has since learned that this procedure was experimental.
Mary is upset that this doctor took advantage of her daughter for his own purposes. She has filed a complaint against Dr. Maggi with the Medical Board.
Numerous other children were experimented on without their permission, including at least one who died. One was brain dead. Dr. Maggi still did the procedure.
Most if not all of the people experimented on live in the ghetto.
The reason to use this procedure on kids is if you are suspicious there’s a foreign body in their lungs. It’s used late in the medical game because it is so invasive. It’s not supposed to be used on asthmatics and those with pending respiratory failure.
Dr. Maggi gets paid about $1,000 for each Flexible Bronchoscopy (by Medi-Cal, he gets more from private insurance).
I interview "Mary" Oct. 16 by telephone.
Mary: "My baby was at the hospital. She had asthma bad. Took her to Long Beach Memorial. They put her in the ICU. Then this doctor came by. He said he had to do a surgery on her and go in her lungs with some kind of tube…
"The part I’m mad about is that my baby is a minor and he made me leave the room while he did the procedure. I feel like I should’ve been in there while he was doing this to my young baby.
"They kept her in the ICU for five days. She was in the hospital for two weeks.
"From what I understand, he didn’t have to do that surgery, but he was saying it was a matter of life and death."
Luke: "Did he ever tell you he was doing this big research study and she was part of his study?"
Mary: "No."
Luke: "You feel the doctor took advantage of your daugher and experimented on her?"
Mary: "Yeah."
Luke: "Did you have to sign a consent form to be a part of his research?"
Mary: "No."
Luke: "Did she sustain any permanent injuries from this?"
Mary: "No. Well, my baby complains about chest pains a lot. Around her lungs. Yeah, I wonder if that is from that procedure he did."
Luke: "How did you find out he was experimenting on your daughter?"
Mary: "He had done it to some more kids at the hospital. They got together and contacted me."
Luke: "I may call you back as I learn more about this story."
Mary: "Feel free. We don’t want it to happen to nobody else and get injured if this is not necessary."
