Pflugerville widow struggling with support year after husband died of medical negligence

For K. Lynn Samerigo, the hardest part of her husband's death a year ago is the loss of her support system. She said her husband was integral in helping their children and herself cope with their medical conditions.

"I feel kind of at a loss because now I don't have that support," said Samerigo, who suffers from prosopagnosia, which causes difficulty in recognizing people's faces. The condition is so bad, she said, she even has trouble recognizing her children.

When they went grocery shopping, he would help her recognize her longtime neighbors and even to recognize their children. School pickups are now terrifying, Samerigo said, as she lives with the constant worry she might be taking home the wrong kid.

"With my face blindness, John was my advocate for that," she said. "A lot of people don't understand how difficult it is to navigate life when you are facially blind."

John Samerigo, 42, died on Jan. 6, 2023, due to improper treatment received from a medic after a head injury from a fall at home, according to an autopsy report. The medic worked for Allegiance Mobile Health, which provides ambulance service in Pflugerville.

In the autopsy report, pathologist Satish Chundru said Samerigo received a cricothyroidotomy, an incision through the skin on the throat, to open an airway that he did not need. It also said that after Samerigo received two doses of the nerve-blocking agent midazolam intranasally, he could have only survived if an airway was established. When one was not established, it compromised his heart and led to his death, according to the report.

More: Autopsy report: Private ambulance company paramedic responsible for Pflugerville man's death

The Texas Department of State Health Services investigated the Jan. 6, 2022, incident and found that the paramedic, Hiram Edmundo Ortega, violated state codes related to providing emergency medical services. On Sept. 13, the department sent Ortega a notice of intent to revoke his license. On Oct. 11, he surrendered his certification, according to documents from the health services department. In two years, he can apply for re-certification.

Allegiance representatives did not respond to a request for comment.

Longtime EMS woes in Pflugerville

In response to concerns about the medical care provided to Pflugerville residents by Allegiance, the City Council on Sept. 12 approved an agreement with the city of Austin to supervise the private ambulance company.

However, Austin-Travis County EMS officials said this week that the agency had not yet signed on.

"Austin-Travis County EMS supports the City of Pflugerville in their mission to provide high-quality pre-hospital care to their residents," the agency said in a statement. "While discussions are ongoing as to how ATCEMS can assist them in this mission, no agreement has been signed at this time."

Under the plan, an Austin-Travis County EMS would oversee Allegiance's operations in Pflugerville and report to its city manager.

Pflugerville has long been wrestling with its ambulance services. ESD No. 2, also known as the Pflugerville Fire Department, used to provide EMS services to the city until it said it could no longer afford to because of increased call volume. In November 2021, voters in the area outside the city limits approved creating ESD No. 17 to handle ambulance calls in the ESD No. 2 service area. City officials said the district's stipend of about $2.8 million for EMS calls was unsubstantiated and did not put the creation of ESD No. 17 on the ballot. Instead, the city hired Acadian Ambulance Services on Jan. 1, 2022, to provide service in Pflugerville.

The city ended its contract with Acadian after only two months, citing dissatisfaction with its quality of service, including inadequate response times. In May 2022, the City Council voted to begin contract negotiations with ESD No. 2 to again provide EMS services, but later that month it also opened negotiations with Allegiance after a few council members said the ESD price tag would be much more than they had been led to believe.

From 2022: Allegiance to provide EMS services in Pflugerville

Allegiance began providing services to the city on July 1, 2022. The agreement with Allegiance will end June 30.

Desire for change

K. Lynn Samerigo said her husband was the most introverted person she has ever met, but also the best listener and extremely charismatic. Despite suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder due to a traumatic childhood and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, she said he helped her become the best version of herself. She said he would encourage her to do volunteer work, such as teaching Word, Excel and PowerPoint and resume classes at the Wells Branch Public Library, and took care of the kids while she did so.

She said her husband loved music of all types, from Celtic, Tibetan throat singing to heavy metal. He had created over 60 playlists each with more than 1,000 songs. Now, a year after his death, his wife is creating a playlist of songs she thinks he would have liked to share with their two sons, ages 11 and 5.

From 2022: Pflugerville to begin negotiations with ESD No. 2 to again provide EMS services

"He was a huge musicophile," she said. "That's the bit I really miss. I miss his excitement over music because he was really into it."

To commemorate the one-year anniversary of her husband's death, Samerigo placed a cross in front of their house. She has a locket that holds a piece of her husband's hair instead of an image. She said the locket represents a half-moon, as they each made each other whole.

The couple celebrated their 20th anniversary in November 2022, two months before he died. They met when they were both 20, a month after she moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area from Georgia. A year later, they had an outdoor wedding in Arlington and then moved to Pflugerville to be close to her family.

Samerigo said she does not understand why there are not more safeguards to prevent deaths like her husband's. She said she reached out to a law firm, which has taken her case. Sean McConnell, of Winckler, Harvey & McConnell, said he intends to file a suit and has sent a letter of notice to Allegiance but has not received a reply.

Under the advice of her lawyers, Samerigo said she would not discuss what happened the night her husband died.

Samerigo said the issue of inadequate medical care is systemic and she wants people to know about it, perhaps by helping to make new laws.

"If there needs to be a face to the movement to try and help legislation, I don't mind being that face," she said. "It's not something I really want to do, but I don't mind."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas widow struggling year after husband died of medical negligence