4.Benjamin Kaufman — Direct
54 linesMS. SPRAGUE: Commonwealth will call Dr. Benjamin Kaufman.
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: I do.
COURT CLERK: Thank you, sir. You may take a seat.
BAILIFF: Watch your step, please.
THE COURT: All right. Good afternoon, doctor.
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Good afternoon.
MR. REDDINGTON: Just for the record, Your Honor, I'd like to just note the same objection.
THE COURT: Okay. Same ruling.
MS. SPRAGUE: Thank you, Your Honor. Good afternoon. Could you please state and spell your name for the record?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: It's Benjamin Kaufman. B-E-N J-A-M-I-N K-A-U-F-M-A-N.
MS. SPRAGUE: And your date of birth, sir?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: September 10th, 1984.
MS. SPRAGUE: What do you do for a living?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: I'm an emergency medicine doctor.
MS. SPRAGUE: How long have you been doing that?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: About 12 years.
MS. SPRAGUE: Could you briefly describe for the jurors your educational and training background that qualifies you for that role?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Yeah. I went to Boston University for medical school, and then Kings County for residency training, and then Columbia for fellowship in global emergency medicine.
MS. SPRAGUE: And where do you currently work?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Beth Israel in Plymouth.
MS. SPRAGUE: And back in January of 2023, did you work there?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: I did.
MS. SPRAGUE: And specifically on January 24th, 2023, were you working that evening?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: I was.
MS. SPRAGUE: And while you were working that evening, did you treat a patient named Callan Clancy?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Yes. That was my patient.
MS. SPRAGUE: And do you recall how he arrived at the hospital?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Yes, with the EMS, with CPR ongoing.
MS. SPRAGUE: And is it typical that when EMS arrive with a patient, they give you kind of a summary or a rundown of the patient's condition?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: It is.
MS. SPRAGUE: And did they give you that rundown on Callan's condition?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: They did. He, at the time, his heart had stopped, and CPR was ongoing, and he was not breathing. He was receiving breaths via bag valve mask ventilation.
MS. SPRAGUE: And what did you do in terms of treating Callan?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: So as soon as he came in, basically, we put in a breathing tube. And we were able to get an IV established. The first thing that we do is give a dose of epinephrine, and in this case, you can look directly at the heart with an ultrasound. And his heart started beating after we were able to give that dose. At that point, we continued compressions, continued giving him breaths through the breathing tube. And Plymouth Hospital does not have pediatrics or the ability to care for that level of pediatric patient, so we're on the phone with Boston Children's Hospital, making preparations basically to get him to the more definitive care.
MS. SPRAGUE: And about how long into your care of Callan did he regain a heartbeat?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Probably from the time that he got to the ER, maybe like 10 minutes or so, I'm guessing.
MS. SPRAGUE: At any point in time did he regain the ability to breathe on his own while he was in your care?
MS. SPRAGUE: Did you do any examination or testing to determine Callan's brain function?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: So, at no point did he exhibit any brain function. I'm not, like, a neurologist, so we are not the definitive person, but in emergency medicine, there's a scale called the Glasgow Coma Scale, which is generally from 3 to 15. There's different variations for pediatrics, but he scored the lowest, which basically is you're in a coma or have no brain response during the entire time that he was in my care.
MS. SPRAGUE: So on that scale, the 3 to 15, 15, would that be someone who's walking and talking and acting normally?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: That's correct.
MS. SPRAGUE: And a 3, is that someone with no brain function?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: That is correct.
MS. SPRAGUE: And you testified that Callan was at a 3 when you treated him?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: At no time during his care did he have any brain function that was evident on my exam.
MS. SPRAGUE: And at some point in time, was it decided to transfer his care to Boston Children's Hospital?
BENJAMIN KAUFMAN: Yes. We were in contact with them basically immediately, and then he was flown by helicopter to Boston Children's Hospital, and they... The whole time the ICU doctors were on the phone reviewing the case and making recommendations.
MS. SPRAGUE: And at any point in time, to your knowledge, from the time he entered the emergency department at Beth Israel Deaconess Plymouth until he arrived at Boston Children's Hospital, was he able to breathe on his own?
MS. SPRAGUE: Thank you, Doctor.
THE COURT: All right, counsel.
MR. REDDINGTON: I have no questions. Thank you, sir.
THE COURT: Thank you, Doctor. Attorney Buckingham.