Derby Woman Dies In Oxford Dentist's Chair, Lawsuit Claims

OXFORD, CT — An 81-year-old Derby woman went to Swan Lake Dental in Oxford for a procedure in December 2021 but never came home due to alleged negligence by her dentist, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed in May at Derby Superior Court and first obtained by the CT Post.

The family of the patient, Maureen Scott, are requesting a jury trial after Scott went to have four teeth extracted and implants put in place and died during the procedure, according to a State of Connecticut Superior Court filing last month.

Before the procedure, Scott provided Swan Lake Dental with her detailed medical history, which included heart failure, COPD, and vital valve prolapse and previous health complications while under sedation, the lawsuit said. However, no call was made to Scott's primary care doctor for clearance before the dental treatment, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit states that during the procedure, the dental team first became aware that something was wrong when they removed an oral retractor and asked Scott to close her mouth but she did not respond. It was then that the dentist checked her throat and could not feel a pulse, according to the lawsuit.

"I then screamed 'Call 911,'" the lawsuit quotes the dentist, Chukym Alexis-Johnson, as saying.

When EMS arrived four minutes later, Scott had no pulse, heart, or lung sounds, the lawsuit said.

Scott was attached to machines monitoring her vital signs, but the dentist could not say when she died, according to the lawsuit.

The attorney representing Scott's family, Michael D'Amico, told the CT Post Tuesday that to prevent these kinds of deaths, "there has to be eyes on the patient during an operative procedure like this."

"The delay in realizing there were concerns with her vitals for an extended period of time beyond the time it should have been recognized is alarming," D'Amico told the outlet.

According to the lawsuit, other errors made by the dentist and her colleagues include administering an excessive amount of nitrous oxide during the procedure.

The lawsuit, filed by Scott's son, does not outline the damages he is seeking.

In a response Aug. 9, the attorney representing the dentist and other defendants denied the allegations of carelessness and negligence. When the CT Post asked for comment, the attorney did not reply, according to the outlet.

>>>Read more on the case at Hearst CT.

>>>You can read the entire lawsuit here.

>>>You can read the defendant's full response here.