If I Did What This Doctor Did, I’d Be in Jail

By Reasa

Let’s be honest: if a parent ignored what this doctor ignored, they’d be in handcuffs.

On December 23, 2023, we brought our 11-year-old son, Nicholas, to Methodist Southlake Medical Center with clear symptoms of a serious medical condition: vomiting, dizziness, high fever, and an inability to urinate.

The ER physician, Dr. Teresa A. Proietti, DO, at Methodist Southlake was the ER doctor on staff. She ordered labs and reviewed his vital signs. What she saw should have triggered immediate, aggressive care:

• Creatinine: 1.45 – elevated, indicating kidney dysfunction

• Bilirubin, AST, and glucose: high signs of systemic organ stress

• Heart rate: 130 (tachycardia)

• Blood pressure: 104/49 (hypotension)

• Inability to urinate – a red flag for renal compromise or sepsis

• Abnormal EKG suggesting anterior ischemia

  
  

She documented in her physician note that Nicholas’s condition posed a “threat to life or bodily functions" three times. But she never told us that. No warning. No mention of abnormal labs. Instead, we were told—by a nurse—that everything was “fine,” and we were sent home with nausea medication.

No sepsis protocol. No antibiotics. No hospital admission. Just discharge instructions—and a time bomb ticking in our child’s bloodstream.

Less than 48 hours later, Nicholas was in septic shock, admitted to the Pediatric ICU at Cook Children’s Hospital, requiring vasopressors to keep him alive. He would go on to need four surgeries, over a month-long hospitalization, and face lifelong consequences.

And here’s the most terrifying part: Had we followed Dr. Proietti’s instructions as presented, without seeking further clarification or second opinions, our son likely wouldn’t have survived. And if he had died at home under those circumstances?

**As his parents, we could have been the ones investigated. We might be the ones in jail. **

Let’s Talk About Duty—And Double Standards

Doctors have a legal and ethical duty to inform patients of critical findings and to stabilize emergency conditions. That duty was not fulfilled here.

If I, as a parent, had seen my child unable to urinate, with a 102-degree fever and dizziness, and did nothing, what would happen?

Let’s be real:

• Child Protective Services would be notified.

• I could be charged with medical neglect or injury to a child (Texas Penal Code §22.04).

• I could lose custody. I could go to jail.

  
  

Yet when a doctor sees the same signs—plus has lab proof of organ dysfunction—and chooses not to act or inform the parents?

They face… nothing?

This is a dangerous double standard. One where a parent is held to a higher standard than the licensed professional entrusted to save lives.

What Laws Apply Here?

• Texas Penal Code §22.04 – Injury to a Child by Omission: Knowingly failing to act on a risk that causes serious bodily harm.

• Texas Penal Code §22.05 – Reckless Endangerment: Placing a child in imminent danger of serious bodily injury through grossly negligent conduct.

• Texas Family Code §261.101 – Duty to Report: Mandates that any professional suspecting risk to a child’s health must act or report it. Failure is a Class A misdemeanor or worse.

• EMTALA (42 U.S. Code §1395dd): Federal law requiring stabilization of emergency medical conditions. CMS has already cited Methodist for violating this law.

• Texas Medical Practice Act §164.051(a)(6): Prohibits substandard medical care.

• Texas Administrative Code §190.8(1)(A-C): Defines failure to meet standard of care, failure to disclose, and misrepresentation as violations.

• Common Law Negligent Misrepresentation: Occurs when a professional gives false reassurance or omits critical facts, causing harm.

• AMA Code of Ethics: Requires full and honest disclosure of abnormal findings. That didn’t happen.

  
  

And here’s what’s even worse: this wasn’t accidental. It wasn’t a misunderstanding. It was willful. It was wanton. It was a conscious choice to withhold life-saving information and care from a family and a child in crisis.

If this isn’t criminal negligence, what is?

This Wasn’t Just a Miss. It Was a Breach.

Dr. Proietti had the data. She documented the threat. But she failed to act on it—or even communicate it.

That isn’t a “clinical error.” That’s willful omission of critical medical facts, and it put a child’s life in jeopardy.

We aren’t claiming malice. We’re asserting the truth: a physician’s legal duty was abandoned, and a child nearly died because of it. Most would have.

So we ask:

If a parent would be jailed for ignoring these symptoms, why isn’t a doctor held to the same standard when they knowingly conceal them?

Make no mistake, we have proof. And a lot of it.

This isn’t just a medical failure, this is a case of reckless gross negligence.

Willful and Wanton. Under Texas law, 'willful and wanton' conduct means more than simple negligence; it describes behavior that shows a conscious disregard for the safety and well-being of others. It is action (or inaction) taken with reckless indifference, knowing that serious harm is likely to result.

In this case, Dr. Proietti had direct evidence of life-threatening abnormalities and chose not to act or inform us. That is not a lapse. That is willful, wanton, and dangerous. 

We trusted the ER.

We trusted Methodist.

We were lied to.

And our son may never be the same.

We won’t stop until someone is held responsible.