A 'dead' patient calls his family, leading to a major malpractice lawsuit

A Vancouver hospital is facing a major malpractice lawsuit after a shocking case of mistaken identity led a family to pull the plug on the wrong man. The incident, first reported by KGW News’ Kyle Iboshi, began when David Wells, 69, was rushed to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center after choking on food. Hospital staff mistakenly identified him as his roommate, Michael Beehler.

In the video, Iboshi describes how Beehler’s family was contacted by the hospital and informed that their loved one was “basically brain dead.”

“They said, 'He’s basically brain dead,'” explained Beehler’s sister, Debbie Danielson. “'Do you want us to keep him on life support or do you want to pull the plug?'”

Believing it was their loved one, the family consented to remove life support. In the following days, funeral arrangements were made, and a death notice was posted. However, the unexpected happened when Beehler himself called his family—alive and well.

The hospital later confirmed that it was Wells, not Beehler, who had died. The Wells family wasn’t notified of the error until 2 years later, when the mix-up was uncovered by local news outlets.^[]

Both the Wells and Beehler families are now suing PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center for negligence and emotional distress. The lawsuit also includes American Medical Response, the ambulance service, and the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office for their roles in the misidentification.^[]

This case raises critical concerns about patient identification and communication in healthcare, reminding physicians of the importance of vigilance in life-or-death decisions.