1 /5 Natalia Salazar: Review/Complaint: Negligence and Poor Follow-Up at Tanner ER (Carrollton)
On Wednesday, April 9th at approximately 8:30 PM, my mother experienced a traumatic fall at Tanner Medical Center in Carrollton while under the care of the ER staff. She was brought in for severe chronic abdominal pain and administered three heavy doses of pain medication. During our 4–5 hour stay, I assisted her to the restroom multiple times myself, as staff were largely unresponsive when we called for help.
At one point, I had to leave briefly to pick up my son (less than 10 minutes away), and during that time, my mother told the attending nurse twice that she needed to use the restroom. The nurse simply said, “I’ll be right back,” and left the room. Unable to wait any longer due to the fluids given, my mother attempted to go on her own and ended up falling in the restroom.
I returned to find her being attended to after her fall. Her face, both knees, and legs were severely bruised. The attending nurse and charge nurse both admitted fault and apologized. Because of her past orthopedic issues, we made an appointment to have her knees checked out. I called the ER Director, Mr. Donny Hightower, to explain the situation and request that Tanner cover the cost of this follow-up.
Mr. Hightower initially sounded understanding but passed the matter on to someone else. A woman named Sarah called me back and immediately stated they would not be covering any costs, based on their review of the incident report — which claimed that my mother refused help to the bathroom. This was absolutely false and contradicts what both nurses admitted to me the night of the incident. Had that been true, I would have understood and spoken to my mother accordingly.
I asked that camera footage be reviewed, as it would clearly show that I had been assisting her throughout our stay. Instead, they doubled down on the false narrative and have since stopped responding to my calls and messages. I’ve left multiple voicemails for Mr. Hightower with no return communication.
I am deeply disappointed not only by the initial negligence that led to my mother’s fall and injuries, but also by the hospital’s refusal to take accountability and their failure to follow up as promised. This kind of behavior — dismissive, evasive, and dishonest — is unacceptable, especially from a medical institution.
All I asked for was honesty and responsibility. What we received instead were false reports, shifting blame, and silence. This situation deserves to be addressed, and I hope this review encourages accountability before someone else gets hurt due to similar neglect.
