Christine Johnson

My name is Christine Johnson. I am a pediatric nurse and mother of three boys. I had my third child by elective C-section on December 26, 2000 at a military teaching hospital. The intern who sewed me up after the operation did not do so correctly – while I was in the recovery room I vomited and the stitches came apart. (Sepsis and Pregnancy & Childbirth)

The intern and resident sewed me back up in the recovery area without sterile technique. I was discharged home after two days without incident. However, the evening of my discharge I began to develop severe pain. My incision area became very reddened and hot to the touch. My temperature was 96 F. Although I am a nurse, I did not recognize the symptoms of sepsis because I was also confused and mentally affected by the condition.

By the next morning, my condition was so severe that my husband carried me out of the house and took me to the ER. Within 5 minutes, there were 5 doctors at my bedside. The incision was opened and a huge amount of pus came out. My BP was 90/50 and my temp was 95 F. I was in the beginning stages of shock.

I was admitted to the hospital and spent 7 days undergoing treatment, including debridement of the surgical wound four times a day. I had also developed severe endometriosis from the infection. I did not get to see my newborn son for 6 days. After 7 days I was discharged and placed on IV naficillin for more weeks via a PICC line. I have since discovered that the infection left me sterile.

I still have nightmares about going back to the doctor as an outpatient and having the incision sewn up while I was awake. I saw the intern 6 years later at a grocery store and he remembered me. He told me if I had waited until the next day to come back I would have been died. He apologized for his role in the infection.