Surgeon Says Lindsay Clancy Needed 'A Higher Level Of Care' After Window Jump

Christina Carpio is a surgeon who worked at South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, Massachusetts, when Lindsay Clancy was taken there after killing her children and jumping out a window in her Duxbury home on Jan. 24, 2023. Carpio testified in Clancy's murder trial in Plymouth County Superior Court today (Tuesday, August 4, day 6). 01:37 "I'm going to draw your attention to January 24th of 2023. Were you working at the South Shore Hospital that day?" "Yes." "And what was your role that day?" "I was the on-call surgeon. I was physically in the hospital working." 03:20 "It was already activated as a level one. That's the highest mechanism when there is concern for a height from a certain fall from a height of a certain level, and with possible neurological injury." 03:41 "As far as your assessment, did you go and physically physically see the patient, make observations?" "Yes." "And did you observe her in the emergency department to be intubated?" "Shortly after arrival, she was intubated." 04:32 "As far as your physical observations of the patient, did you observe any obvious injuries to her head area, like abrasions, contusions, fractures?" "There were lacerations to her neck." 05:33 "The head CT with contrast was a what we call an angiogram head and neck, so it's ordered in two parts and has two reports. At the time of the note of the documentation that was performed, we had the report back on the head section, but the neck was not completed at that time." 06:49 "Do you recall making note that while in the emergency department, the patient became hypertensive, and that she was identified as being hypothermic to 82.1 degrees." "I remember that she was hypothermic..." 08:06 "And do you also have available to you at the South Shore Hospital what's called a bear hugger or some sort of blanket or wrappings that you can wrap around an individual to try to get their body temperature up?" "Yes, we have that." "And at some point, that her body temperature did come up to 95.2 degrees. Correct?" "Yes." 08:45 "What was the ultimate recommendation for the the care of this patient?" "She had complex fractures in her spine at the thoracic level. We conferred with our neurosurgery colleague who was on call, who recommended transfer to a tertiary hospital?" 09:28 "Are you able to do surgical intervention for these particular injuries that you observed on this patient at South Shore Hospital?" "The spinal injuries require input from our neurosurgical team." 10:09 "The complex level spinal injuries was deemed necessary for transfer by our neurosurgery colleague." 10:22 cross-exam by defense attorney Kevin Reddington 11:03 "Do you have an idea as to how long she was at your hospital?" "Likely several hours, but again, I would have to see the specifics in the charts of there. There is documentation with EMS for arrival and for when transfer occurred to Brigham." 12:09 "And you reached the end of your rope. She had to be transferred because she needed immediate, high-level medical care, right?" "She needed higher level of care." 12:39 "And did you use IV fluids?" "I would have to check the record, but that is a common intervention." "So, your memory would be that you believe that you used IV fluids, but you'd have to have me get out of the box and check the record to ask that question, right?" "Yes, correct." 13:18 "Did you know that your patient had coded shortly after being brought to Brigham and Women's Hospital?" "No." 14:37 "Did anyone tell you that at the scene where she was being treated after coming out of the window, and striking the ground, that there was blood in the snow and on the leaves and in the grass?" "I cannot recall if they commented on that." 15:28 "Do you know what caused the blood pressure to drop?" "There were several factors at play, as we discovered from her CAT scan. She had an injury to her spinal cord in the thoracic region that very commonly causes issues with maintaining your blood pressure." 17:28 "As far as the injury to her spine, what kind of injury was it? Do you remember it?" "It was at thoracic level t5, t6. 18:50 "You don't know whether or not the thyroid was destroyed or or anything, do you?" "Correct." 19:46 "who decides whether or not somebody's getting med flighted out of South Shore Hospital?" "It's collaborative between what resources are available for us to transport the patient. The decision to transfer the patient is made between the emergency room team and the trauma team." 20:45 re-direct "Just very briefly, doctor. It was very clear to you that this patient was suffering from multiple injuries?" "Yes."