California Nurses’ Strike and the Loss of Judith Ming

Last weekend, ovarian cancer patient Judith Ming, 66, died as a result of a tragic hospital error at Oakland’s Alta Bates Summit Medical Center. While medical errors are not uncommon, Ming’s death has drawn widespread attention because of its unusual circumstances, as well as pressing questions about how it could have been avoided.

The error in question was committed by a replacement nurse, one of 500 hired by the hospital during a California nurse’s strike. Though hospital officials have yet to confirm, anonymous sources have indicated that the nurse on duty gave Ming a nutritional supplement intravenously that was meant to go in her feeding tube.

Ming’s loved ones have described her as a kind, sweet person, a member and volunteer at St. Cuthbert’s Episcopal Church in Oakland, and a loving wife.  She and husband Jim had been together for over 30 years, and family friends note that he was devastated by her death.  “When you don’t have kids and you lose your partner you’ve had your whole life, I think it’s a very difficult time for him,” C. Cheryl Archer, a friend and neighbor of the Mings, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The nurses at Alta Bates, who returned to work on Tuesday, note a mixture of sadness and anger over Ming’s death and a determination to improve patient care in the future.  A veteran Alta Bates nurse told the San Jose Mercury News that she and her colleagues found the replacement staffers to be inexperienced.  Many feel the hospital and staffing agency are to blame for not thoroughly screening and prepping replacements.  Others note that regardless of their training, the replacement nurses would not be as familiar with the hospital and its equipment, which increased the likelihood of medical errors.

Regardless, Ming’s death is an unfortunate event, one that all parties involved should strive to avoid repeating. Hospital spokeswoman Carolyn Kemp notes that the loss of Ming was “a tragic mistake”; it undoubtedly underscores the importance of proper training for caregivers, permanent or temporary, and the necessity for hospitals and hospital workers to work together to provide the best care for patients. In the meantime, Judith Ming—Tuskegee University alum, former employee at Friends of Oakland Parks and Recreation, regular worshipper at St. Cuthbert’s Episcopal Church, and wife of Jim Ming—will be remembered as a woman who was taken from her loved ones too soon.