Usually, when you are not feeling well, you would seek medical attention as soon as possible. You would expect to be in the hands of a professional medical team. A staff that is trained to assess any sort of health problem that may be affecting you. Furthermore, you would likely feel confident in these expectations. Well, David Bell thought the same too. Unfortunately, this father died in a hospital parking lot because he was denied medical attention three times.
Central County Fire & Rescue
More than a decade ago, the deceased David Bell and his now widow Sadie Bell moved to St. Peters, Missouri to race their three children. David was the Board Director of Central County Fire & Rescue (CCFC), where he was appreciated and loved by all members. In his role as a Board Director, his main objective was that everyone in the CCFR community should feel safe and taken care of in the best possible way. David dedicated a lot of his time to this pursuit.
David Bell was also an active member of the Fire District and the Central County Community Outreach program. He was always up for helping and made everyone feel welcome. (1)
A bittersweet January
The beginning of this year carried great news for Mr. Bell. He was invited to rejoin the company Reckitt Benckiser, a place that he worked as a chemical mixer for 13 years. After a leave of two years from the company, David was asked to come back to the same position as before and was overjoyed by the news in January 2021 when the company contacted him. The two year period away from Reckitt Benckiser was difficult for him, and he filled the time with odd jobs. Hard worker that he was, he was a musician, photographer, and Board Director for the Central County Fire and Rescue, to be able to provide for his family.
Three times denied medical attention
Just before he was going back to work, on January 8th David Bell felt acute chest pain. Immediately his wife Sadie went with him to the emergency room of the Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Peters. Here he was dismissed by medical professionals saying it was nothing of concern, he was given some ibuprofen and sent home. Later on, the same day, David and Saddie went back to the same hospital as David’s chest pain persisted. This second time he was dismissed in the same manner by the personnel at the Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
On January 12th, on David’s second day at work, he was rushed one more time to the Barnes-Jewish Hospital complaining of severe chest pain. This time he was accompanied by one of the firemen at CCFR, the firemen informed David’s wife. When Sadie got the phone call, she feared that he was taken to the same hospital that already turned David down twice a few days ago.
When David’s wife got to the Barnes-Jewish Hospital the scene she encountered was heartbreaking. Outside the hospital, her husband was in a wheelchair being denied medical attention a third and final time. Sadie pleaded, begged the doctors to please look at David, to save him, that he was not well.
David Bell, Sadie’s husband and father to their three children was not well. Sadie, losing all hope that David was going to be taken care of at the Barnes-Jewish Hospital, prepared to take him to another hospital. Then, while in the parking lot, David said his last words… “Oh Sadie”… and he died.
Doctors Not Properly Addressing Pain Levels of Black Patients
Unfortunately, David Bell’s tragic death is not the only one like it. However, it can and should be prevented at all costs. Something like this no one should have to experience. No person, no family, no community should go through the pain of losing a loved one because of the lack of proper assessment by medical personnel.
The American Medical Association (AMA) revealed in a study that the mortality rate in black Americans is higher by 24% compared to white Americans. They also concluded that one of the elements that contribute to this problem is the failure of assessing black patients’ pain levels by doctors. The Barnes-Jewish Hospital did not comment on the case of David Bell, the father who died in their hospital parking lot. (2)
A GoFundMe is in place to help to cover David Bell’s funeral expenses and to help his family in this hard time. (3)
