AP: Documents show MU officials didn’t follow policies in O’Neal case
This just in from the Associated Press:
Legal documents obtained by The Associated Press show University of Missouri officials failed to follow policies for medical emergencies when freshman linebacker Aaron O’Neal collapsed and later died during a 2005 summer workout.
The university agreed in March to pay $2 million to O’Neal’s parents to settle a lawsuit. But the sworn testimony of several key university employees who supervised the workout show a series of missteps.
Athletic department employees also showed an unfamiliarity with potential exercise-induced complications caused by sickle cell trait. O’Neal carried the inherited blood disorder that affects an estimated 8 to 10 percent of African-Americans.
Mike Alden is meeting the media today to discuss Mike Anderson’s contract. If he has any comment on this report, we’ll add that.
Is it unreasonable to punish a team physician for not being able to recognize a potential complication for a condition that he may or may not have known he had?
If not, then all team doctors, including those associated with high schools should need to know all possible complications that can be contributed to exercise and all known medical conditions.
If this is the case, expect medical malpractice and liability insurance to increase the cost of a team doc even higher than they already are.