"Feeling Good" Middle School Student Falls from Rooftop During Walk... Court Rules "Hospital Not Responsible"

Bereaved Family Loses 500 Million Won Lawsuit
Court: "Allowing Walks Was Not an Improper Measure"

A teenager suffering from depression and anxiety due to school violence died after falling while hospitalized in a psychiatric ward, but a ruling found no hospital negligence.

According to Yonhap News Agency, on the 20th, the Incheon District Court Civil Division 14 (Presiding Judge Kim Young-hak) announced that it ruled against the parents of the deceased boy A in a damages lawsuit filed against the medical corporation.

After experiencing school violence in elementary school, A suffered from depression and anxiety. Although he seemed to improve after receiving hospital treatment, two years later, he was bullied by classmates and received medication for the same symptoms. In 2021, after being beaten by high school seniors he met for the first time while visiting a junior's house, his depression worsened and he experienced panic attacks.

Eventually, A was hospitalized for nearly ten days in the psychiatric ward of a mental health hospital. That year alone, he was admitted and discharged three more times; whenever he was discharged, panic symptoms appeared the next day, and he was readmitted for treatment.

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Three days before his discharge, while on a phone call in his hospital room, A suddenly shouted loudly. The medical staff, alarmed, checked what was wrong, but A said, "I shouted out of frustration," and "I don’t want to disclose the content because it’s private." The next day, seeming to be in a better mood, he told the hospital staff, "I slept well." He also said, "I think I can be discharged now," "I feel very good," and "I think I can do well even after going home."

Later that day, A took two walks of about ten minutes each after 8 a.m. and returned to his room, but after 10 a.m., he went out for another walk and fell from the hospital’s fourth floor. About ten minutes after the accident, A was found on the first-floor floor of the hospital and was transferred to the psychiatric department, but he ultimately died two hours later. The cause of death was hypovolemic shock due to a pelvic fracture.

A’s parents filed a damages lawsuit seeking 590 million won against the medical corporation, claiming the accident was caused by the hospital staff’s negligence. They pointed out that although their son showed signs of anxiety, such as shouting loudly during phone calls, the hospital did not prohibit him from taking walks. They also argued that after the accident, the hospital lost the golden hour by transferring him to the psychiatric ward on the ninth floor instead of the emergency room.

In response, the medical corporation stated, "At first, walks were allowed only with a guardian accompanying him, but as A’s condition improved, autonomous walks were permitted." They also insisted, "Emergency treatment was neither delayed nor inappropriate."

The court ruled that the hospital could not be held responsible for A’s death and sided with the hospital. The court stated, "After being admitted to the hospital, A did not attempt any extreme actions, and on the day of his death, he showed no particular signs during a psychiatric interview, saying he 'slept well.' There is no basis to consider the hospital’s decision to allow walks while he was living stably in the ward as improper."

Furthermore, the court said, "After identifying A’s leg fracture following the fall, the hospital requested a joint consultation with neurosurgery and orthopedics, and when A did not respond to sounds, he was transferred to the intensive care unit. The hospital followed the usual medical procedures until A’s death."

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