A pregnant Texas teen died an agonizing death from sepsis after doctors refused to abort her fetus even after she miscarried.
Navaeh Crain, 18, visited the emergency room three times and had to wait 20 hours before being admitted.
The expectant mother had woken up on the day of her baby shower with nausea and vomiting, which turned out to be a fatal infection.
But she had to beg for medical help as doctors waited to perform two ultrasound scans to confirm her fetus had no heartbeat before intervening.
She is one of at least two pregnant women who died after doctors delayed treating miscarriages due to Texas’ strict abortion laws, according to a report by ProPublica.
Navaeh Crain, 18, (pictured with her boyfriend Randall Broussard) died an agonizing death from sepsis after doctors refused to abort her fetus even after she miscarried
Experts told the publication that there was “no medical reason” to make Crain wait two ultrasounds before taking action to save her.
They identified several missed opportunities, which started when she arrived at the first hospital and was misdiagnosed with strep.
When she went to another hospital, she tested positive for sepsis, but because her fetus still had a heartbeat, she was discharged.
The experts said that if the sepsis was in Crain’s uterus, it was likely she would need an abortion to prevent it from spreading.
Instead, she returned to the home she shared with her mother in Vidor, despite being so weak she could not walk.
But hours later, Crain panicked when she went to the bathroom and found her underwear covered in blood.
She and her mother ran back to Christus Southeast Texas St. Elizabeth Hospital, along with the father of her boyfriend and fetus, Randall Broussard.
At that moment, Crain was weak and her lips were drained of all color. An ultrasound from the midwife on duty Dr. Marcelo Totorica confirmed Crain’s worst fears: her fetus had no heart.
Crain visited the ER three times and had to wait 20 hours before she was admitted. By then, her infection was past the point of no return
Crain died in pain, covered in blood and too weak to even sign the forms authorizing doctors to operate if necessary
Although standard protocol would be to prepare for delivery, nurses were instructed not to move Crain, medical notes show.
Totorica ordered a second ultrasound which again confirmed the absence of a fetal heartbeat.
“She was bleeding,” said Crain’s heartbroken mother Candace Fails. “Why didn’t they do anything to help it, instead of waiting for another ultrasound to confirm the baby is dead?”
At the time, Crain was too weak to sign her own release form and Fails had to fill out the paperwork that allowed doctors to perform abortions.
The move came nearly two and a half hours after her daughter was admitted and more than two decades since she first sought help.
But tragically it was too late and doctors deemed it too risky to operate. Crain died in “extreme pain” with black blood pouring from her nostrils and mouth.
Fails faced the pain of losing not only her daughter, but also her future granddaughter, who the couple had named Lillian.
“I know it sounds selfish, and God knows I would rather have both, but if I had to choose, I would have chosen my daughter,” Fails said.
She is one of at least two pregnant women who died after doctors delayed treating miscarriages because of Texas’ strict abortion laws
Crain had chosen the name Lillian along with her mother and long-term boyfriend Broussard
She has tried to have her daughter’s case handled by medical negligence lawyers, even though Totorica was previously disciplined for missing infections in other patients.
Texas abortion law prohibits doctors from performing abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected unless the mother’s life is in danger.
But the murky wording surrounding the legislation has led some doctors to delay care for fear of being prosecuted, fined or having their license revoked, both very real consequences for violators of the law.
Women’s rights activists point to the deaths of women like Crain as evidence that the law harms mothers.
It comes after it emerged that a pregnant Texas mother, Josseli Barnica, died in 2021 after doctors failed to provide her with proper care during her miscarriage at 17 weeks.
Medics were reluctant to deliver her fetus, which led to her contracting a fatal infection in her cervix.
“CHRIST St. Elizabeth believes that the care provided to this patient was appropriate and compassionate at all times,” a spokeswoman said.
“However, due to HIPAA and privacy, we cannot comment further. Christ Southeast Texas St. Elizabeth Hospital for comment.”