COLUMBIANA COUNTY Judge approves dismissal of lawsuit

A hospital and a doctor were among those sued in the case.
By NORMAN LEIGH
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- A judge authorized the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the mother of a West Branch High School student who died during the 2001 meningitis outbreak.
No reason for the dismissal was given in a judgment entry made earlier this week by Judge C. Ashley Pike of Columbiana County Common Pleas Court. A court official said dismissals sometimes occur after an out-of-court settlement is reached.
Spokesmen for some parties in the case were unavailable to comment. A spokeswoman for Salem Community Hospital, which was named in the suit, said the hospital was dismissed as a defendant in June.
M. Lynn Coblentz of Carey Road, Salem, filed the lawsuit in 2002 over the May 28, 2001, death of her daughter, Kelly, 15.
Besides Salem Community Hospital, original defendants were Dr. James Siglow and Emergency Professional Services Inc. of Middleburg Heights.
About the suit
Coblentz alleged in the lawsuit that the hospital and Dr. Siglow were negligent in their handling of Kelly when she was brought to the hospital May 27, 2001, for an evaluation for meningitis.
The lawsuit states that Dr. Siglow and the hospital delayed administering antibiotics to Kelly until many hours after she appeared in the emergency room.
Dr. Siglow worked at the time for the hospital and for Emergency Professional Services, the lawsuit said.
When she filed the lawsuit, Coblentz sought a jury trial and more than $25,000 in damages.
Kelly was one of two West Branch High School students who died as a result of meningitis.
The West Branch deaths, followed quickly by the hospitalization of an Alliance teen who contracted the disease, sparked widespread community fear and led to some area school districts closing early for the summer in 2001.
The outbreak also prompted the mass vaccination of nearly 6,000 students and staff members at some area high schools, including those at West Branch and Salem.