KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — An investigation is underway at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center after Lisa Edwards died following a stay at the hospital.
Reports show the 60-year-old went in for help at Fort Sanders on Feb. 4 and was discharged the next morning. After refusing to leave the hospital, authorities called the police.
She was arrested by Knoxville Police and lost consciousness in the back of a police car. She later died of a stroke under hospital care.
Body cam footage captured the moments Edwards fell unconscious in custody.
Dennis Francis is an attorney who represents police officers and said these cases raise a lot of questions and that these types of scenarios are not unusual.
Questions like "What is the proper police response?" and "What happens when a hospital discharges someone but they don't want to leave?".
Francis said when a hospital discharges a patient and that patient faces health troubles hours after, the hospital may have some responsibility. He said it all comes down to if they followed all the right steps.
"It depends, did they follow well-established medical protocols? Did they do what they were supposed to have done? Or did they just say, you know, rub some dirt on it, take two aspirins and hit the door," he said.
In the body cam video, Edwards tells police that she can't breathe and needs help. They respond by wondering if she's faking it.
In a statement, Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center said:
"The hospital has been in contact with Ms. Edwards’ family and expressed our sorrow soon after their loss. Although we cannot comment on specific details, patients are not discharged from the emergency room unless they are stable. We have just seen the Knoxville Police Department’s body cam footage and are continuing our investigation."
Before Edwards' stroke on Feb. 5, this is what happened beforehand.
Edwards flew to Knoxville from Rhode Island on Feb. 4. After feeling ill, she went to Blount Memorial Hospital and was released after brief treatment.
Later that same day, she went in for additional help at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center.
That next morning the hospital discharged her and after refusing to leave the hospital, officers arrived to confront her.
As for the police officers, Francis said knowing what to do and how to respond is crucial.
He said the way officers respond to a situation depends on how they are trained and because they are not medical professionals, that can make a difference.
"To put the liability on the city of Knoxville for this lady's death is going to be a bit of a stretch because police officers are not trained to be EMTs," Francis said.