Background: In early February, 2003, Dr. Nawaz put my father on a trial of Dyazide for better control of hypertension.

I took him back to the doctor on February 27 because he’d been feeling weak for a few days; less than normal energy & orientation and a cold. Dr. Nawaz ordered a stat BMP & CBC which showed my father to be hyponatremic (Sodium=125 Chloride=88) and revealed a worrisome WBC of 14.3 with left shift. Dr. Nawaz asked me to discontinue the Dyazide but made no mention of the elevated WBC.

On March 5 a repeat BMP showed sodium and chloride back to normal range, but no repeat CBC was ordered. When informed of the results by phone I told Dr. Nawaz that my father’s weakness and cold were not improving; that he was not his usual self. (I recall his homecare assistant, Nomeda, postponing his haircut each day that week, telling me he was still sick.) Dr. Nawaz replied “Well, his sodium level has come back so everything is OK.”

Two day later, early Friday morning, my father fell in the living room. He suffered a bruise on his head and lip but appeared otherwise to be unhurt. (He didn’t trip over anything, saying he just had a dizzy-spell.) Over the weekend he seemed to be even less energetic, able to complete only half his walk around the building on Sunday. That evening I found he was running a fever of 101.4.