Leila Navidi Photography

Gabrielle Johnson, 17, who suffered from the genetic disorder Friedriech's ataxia, was revived at a local hospital after suffering cardiac arrest, and then taken to another local hospital with a trauma unit. There, Gabrielle's mother, Iris, believes she was unnecessarily sedated because her only method of communicating, kicking her legs, was misinterpreted as combativeness. The teenager never woke up and died nine days later. Seen is Gabrielle's mother, Iris Johnson, and brother, Dominic Johnson, 10.

Sern Englestead waits on his bed so that wound treatment nurse Terri Yates can change his dressing and apply ointment to his open sore at his home in October 2010. Englestead developed a large pressure sore on his buttocks after heart surgery at Sunrise Hospital in January 2009. The wound is still being treated every other day and has not fully healed.

Amanda Cicatello was undergoing a routine appendectomy at St. Rose Dominican Hospitals - San Martin Campus when Dr. Charles Walton punctured her aorta, causing her to bleed out into her stomach cavity. Walton repaired the wound with another surgeon, but the surgery left a scar from Amanda's breastbone to below her navel.

Shirley Shayne's bowel was ruptured during the insertion of a feeding tube while she was recovering from a stroke in a local hospital. She died within a month of peritonitis caused by the rupture. Seen is her husband, Barney Shayne.

Michelle Butts and her son Dennis, 15, watch a movie during a break between chores inside their Mountain Grove, Mo. home in July 2010. Michelle's husband David Butts died at Spring Valley Hospital in 2003 from an overdose of narcotic painkillers. The nurse who administered the drugs did not observe him after the injection. Dennis has battled depression since his father died.

David Butts died at a local hospital in 2003 from an overdose of narcotic painkillers. The nurse who administered the drugs did not observe him after the injection. Seen is his wife, Michelle Butts, center, and their children, from left, Stephanie Hilaman, 21; Lisa Butts, 12; and Dennis Butts, 15, in their home in Mountain Grove, Mo.

Lisa Butts, 12, lays on an ATV outside her Mountain Grove, Mo. home July 2010. Lisa's father David Butts died at Spring Valley Hospital in 2003 from an overdose of narcotic painkillers. The nurse who administered the drugs did not observe him after the injection. Lisa was five when he died and barely remembers her father.

Dennis Butts, top center, walks outside during a family July 4 BBQ at their Mountain Grove, Mo. home in 2010. Dennis' father David Butts died at Spring Valley Hospital in 2003 from an overdose of narcotic painkillers. The nurse who administered the drugs did not observe him after the injection. Dennis has fought depression since his father's death.

This man, who asked not to be identified, contracted a dangerous infection at a Las Vegas hospital where he had heart surgery. A second surgery was required to fix his lungs after they were ravaged by the infection, which left a large scar on his back.

Don Carlson looks at memorabilia from his biking days inside his home in July 2010. Carlson’s surgery to remove a tumor from his esophagus was successful in July 2009, but he became infected with the deadly bacteria Acinetobacter during his recovery. The infection almost killed him and added six weeks to his hospital stay, resulting in the loss of his job and then bankruptcy. He had to sell his motorcycle as a result of the bankruptcy.

Harold Abramowski developed an open wound in February 2009 after a chemotherapy port on his chest leaked, causing the toxic drugs to seep into his flesh during cancer treatment at a local hospital.

David Spendlove has recently finished treatment for the MRSA infection that he caught at Valley Hospital following a coronary angioplasty and stent placement. Spendlove's wife Pam has had to take care of her weakened husband.

Ron Serino, a retired Army Captain with a Master's degree in hospital administration, suffers from a bedsore he acquired on his buttocks at a local hospital. He shows his wound, which is attached to a wound vac, while recovering in a local rehab hospital two months after acquiring the wound.

Sharon Schoeppner developed pressure sores on her heels after knee replacement surgery at a local hospital. Her complaints about the pain in her heels were ignored, allowing them to turn black. She is still healing and will walk with a cane for the rest of her life.

Jack Rode holds his two-year-old grandson Latreovion Mendoza after putting away groceries in the kitchen of his Las Vegas home. The mother of Rode's children and his 28 year companion Donna Wendt died after an accident at Sunrise Hospital Medical Center. Her windpipe was torn open when they inserted a breathing tube, causing oxygen to be pumped into her body instead of her lungs. The torn windpipe was not immediately detected, allowing air to be pumped into her chest cavity for about 24 hours. Just before her death, they had finished remodeling their kitchen to be accessible for Wendt, who was wheelchair-bound, with low countertops, a raised dishwasher and oven, and pull out drawers and cabinets for easy access.

Georganne Mumm holds onto the ostomy bag she wears all the time. During surgery Sept. 4, 2007 to remove a cancerous kidney, Dr. Victor Grigoriev cut out part of Georganne Mumm's pancreas and clamped a vein, strangling the blood supply to her spleen. Both had to be removed in a follow-up surgery. Georganne Mumm now lives in constant pain, wears an ostomy bag and rarely leaves her home in Bullhead City, Arizona.

Dennis Butts, 15, holds a chicken that he just cut the head off of outside his Mountain Grove, Mo. home. Dennis' father David Butts died at Spring Valley Hospital in Las Vegas from an overdose of narcotic painkillers. The nurse who administered the drugs did not observe him after the injection. Dennis has battled depression since his father died.

Julie Rich contracted MRSA, a bacterial infection resistant to antibiotics, after undergoing an outpatient procedure at Sunrise Hospital in 2005. Her body was disabled by the infection and she now lives on oxygen.