University of Iowa Health Care has agreed to pay $4.2 million to Conrad Colombo — specifically through his mother and legal guardian, Victoria Villarreal — after a hospital restraint during a psychotic break triggered a heart attack that left him with “catastrophic and permanent brain injuries” according to the lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit, filed April 9, 2024, Colombo admitted himself to the UI Emergency Department on April 10, 2022. Colombo reportedly told staff he was experiencing safety concerns and had a history of bipolar and schizophrenic disorders.
UIHC Emergency Department records reveal Colombo displayed poor insight, psychosis, paranoid delusions, as well as auditory and visual hallucinations. The plan of care was to admit Colombo into UIHC psychiatry, to which Colombo agreed.
At the time, there were no psychiatry beds available, and Colombo was placed in a hospital bed around 7:30 p.m., waiting 14 hours for a psychiatric bed.
At 8:31 a.m., nurse Alyssa Schmuecker noted Colombo was yelling and threatening staff members while sitting in his hospital bed. Schmuecker noted Colombo was telling staff, “I will destroy you.” However, according to the lawsuit, no action was taken.
RELATED: No court date set in lawsuit between former UIHC physician and UIPD detective
At approximately 8:40 p.m., Dr. Peter Georgakako reportedly observed Colombo get out of bed and begin shadow boxing, watching passersby more closely, and spontaneously yelling “nonsensical” statements.
At 9:40 a.m., observers saw Colombo screaming. At this time, UIHC police approached Colombo. UIHC police told Colombo to keep his voice down with Colombo telling the officer to back up.
Colombo struck the officer, and eventually Colombo was tackled to the ground after several UIHC employees restrained Colombo, forcing him face down.
Several doctors then ordered Colombo to be injected with two doses of droperidol — a sedative often used for severe agitation and nausea control — and a single dose of midazolam —a sedative used to reduce anxiety and control seizures.
According to the lawsuit, during Colombo’s restraint, none of the UIHC employees advocated or insisted he be turned face up to monitor his vital signs, his breathing, and his heart rate.
Over the next several minutes, UIHC staff continued to restrain Colombo to the ground while others prepared to restrain Colombo in his bed. UIHC staff eventually rolled Colombo over, off his stomach, to transfer him to his bed. UIHC staff noticed that Colombo’s lips were blue and determined that he was not breathing and had fallen into cardiac arrest.
The plaintiff, Villarreal, found that the prolonged restraint, medication given to Colombo, and the failure to monitor his pulse were all proximate causes of cardiac arrest.