After a undergoing a routine hysterectomy, Trisha Stevens was eager to return to normal. <\/p>\n
But just weeks later, the Oregon mother of six would battle a debilitating infection \u2014\u00a0leading her to lose both both of her legs, one of her hands, and face other life-changing complications.<\/p>\n
Now, Trisha and her husband Brian are suing multiple Portland-area doctors and regional healthcare giant Legacy Health, seeking $68.5 million in damages, KGW<\/a> reports.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the California Morning Report newsletter\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Trisha Stevens of Oregon lost both of her legs and one of her hands following an infection after undergoing a hysterectomy. Facebook\/@christy.joy.10297<\/p>\n \u201cI came home having lost both of my legs and my right hand,\u201d Trisha told KGW. \u201cMy left hand was left unusable after the necrosis. I lost parts of my lips and tongue, and I live with paralysis in a body that no longer responds the way it once did.\u201d<\/p>\n Trisha\u2019s nightmare reportedly began with a hysterectomy \u2014\u00a0performed by Dr. Alvin Nakamura on October 4. 2024 at Adventist Health in Portland.<\/p>\n Four days after her surgery, pathology results showed inflammation. But there is no record Dr. Nakamura ever reviewed the results, informed Trisha, or took any steps to address the inflammation, according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n The mother of six and her husband Brian Stevens are now suing multiple doctors at Oregon and Legacy Health for $68.5 million. <\/p>\n Around two weeks after the surgery, Trisha experience a sharp pain in her abdomen followed by vaginal bleeding while walking down the bleachers at her son\u2019s softball game<\/p>\n She called Dr. Nakamura\u2019s clinic, Bridgetown Medical Group, and reported continued bleeding, a blood clot \u201cthe size of a baseball,\u201d a low-grade fever, diarrhea and stomach cramping.<\/p>\n Through a nurse, Nakamura told Trisha to monitor her bleeding at home and come into the office if she passed another clot, but her condition quickly worsened. <\/p>\n Trisha began to feel sharp pain in her abdomen and experience vaginal bleeding two weeks after her hysterectomy. Courtesy of Trisha Stevens<\/p>\n Later that night, when Trisha arrived to the emergency room at Legacy Mount Hood, her heart was racing, her blood pressure, low and she was breathing quickly. According to the lawsuit, she was \u201csaturating vaginal pads with blood at a rate of three per hour.\u201d<\/p>\n Hospital staff diagnosed Trisha with peritonitis, an inflammation of the abdominal lining; lactic acidosis, a buildup of acid in the blood; and acute kidney injury.\u00a0Later, she was diagnosed with bacteria in the bloodstream and septic shock.<\/p>\n The hospital\u2019s on-call OB\/GYN Dr. Gregory Eilers then noted that the edges of Trisha\u2019s surgical closure were separated and looked raw, diagnosing her with an infection at the site. Despite this, the doctor did not recommend surgery or test for infection inside the abdomen, according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n When Trisha was admitted to the hospital, she was diagnosed with peritonitis, an inflammation of the abdominal lining. Facebook\/@jay.amadio<\/p>\n The suit also claims that once Trisha was admitted to the hospital, the infection continued to spread, leading to multiple organ failure. <\/p>\n Over the next several weeks, both of Trisha\u2019s legs were amputated above the knee, and her right hand was amputated at the wrist. Her left thumb and portions of her left finger also needed to be removed. <\/p>\n Due to tissue necrosis, Trisha also lost portions of her lips and tongue, much of her hair, and suffered spinal cord damage, leaving her paraplegic.<\/p>\n Tissue necrosis caused Trisha to lose portions of her lips and tongue, much of her hair, and suffer spinal cord damage, leaving her paraplegic. Facebook\/@kerilynndavis<\/p>\n \u201cThere are days I still do not know which was harder: almost dying or waking up and realizing everything that was taken from me,\u201d Trisha told KGW. <\/p>\n \u201cI was a wife who could reach for Brian\u2019s hand without thinking and a mother who could walk down the hallway when one of my children called my name,\u201d she continued. <\/p>\n \u201cI could climb into bed beside them after a nightmare, wrap both arms around them when they cried, and make them feel safe simply by being there. I could drive, cook, clean, care for my family and carry my share of our life. I never knew those ordinary things were freedoms until they were gone.\u201d<\/p>\n Now, Trisha\u2019s husband Brian acts as her caretaker. <\/p>\n Trisha\u2019s husband Brian Stevens now acts as her caretaker. <\/p>\n The complications have led to a profound change in Trisha\u2019s daily life. The mom told KGW she can no longer play with her children or navigate her home with ease, as it is not built to accommodate a wheelchair. <\/p>\n \u201cEven the gravel driveway I crossed thousands of times without a second thought can stop my wheelchair from following my family outside,\u201d Trisha said.<\/p>\n \u201cI fought so hard to survive because I wanted to come home to them. I never imagined that I could make it home and still sometimes feel as though I am living on the edge of the very life I fought so hard to return to.\u201d<\/p>\n Trisha says her condition has left her unable to play with her children or move around her home independently. Facebook\/@jay.amadio<\/p>\n In the lawsuit, Trisha claims Legacy Health staff were negligent in delaying treatment of the abdominal infection and in managing her blood pressure. <\/p>\n It also claims Nakamura and Bridgetown Medical were negligent in not evaluating her or sending her to emergency care after she reported her symptoms following her hysterectomy.<\/p>\n The mom told KGW that of the most difficult parts of her complications is losing her independance. <\/p>\n \u201cI did not fight this hard simply to remain alive while life happens around me,\u201d Stevens said. \u201cI survived because I desperately want to live it and God saved me!\u201d<\/p>\n Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters <\/p>\n California Post News: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a> \t\t\t\t\t\t
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