Mother: Nurse at Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School neglects child who had severe asthma attack

A mother is criticizing a Brooklyn school after she says her daughter suffered a severe asthma attack and was hospitalized.

Marissa Santorelli

Jun 6, 2024, 9:55 PM

Updated 125 days ago

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Artazia Jackson dropped off her daughter, Savannah, at Excelsior Charter School on Friday, May 16. Jackson told News 12 that her daughter suffers from asthma, and carries an inhaler with her daily. She told News 12 that Savannah visited the nurse's office complaining of a cough and a hard time breathing. Savannah was told to return to her classroom. The nurse never placed a phone call to Jackson.
"I'm her parent. You were the one that was supposed to call me. My daughter, she's struggling to breathe, and she's the one calling" Jackson said.
Jackson rushed to the charter school to find her daughter wheezing and unable to speak. She says she sought medical attention at AG Urgent Care Bushwick. Jackson says they also neglected to give Savannah the immediate care she needed, so Jackson rushed her daughter to a local hospital where she was transported to Maimonides Medical Center for extensive care.
"If she even is this bad, why wasn't the police call? Why wasn't nobody called? Like, why is she still in the school and is this bad?" Jackson questioned.
Jackson told News 12 that her daughter spent one week in the ICU under constant care. She received steroid treatments and oxygen. What began as an asthma attack quickly turned into acute respiratory distress. Savannah left the hospital with a caved-in chest from the trauma and memory loss.
Savannah recounted her experience saying, "My brain wasn't given, like, enough oxygen, so I couldn't really remember what happened, really."
Jackson is demanding answers after she said the charter school has been inconsistent with their investigative efforts. She said the nurse who neglected her daughter's care has since been removed from Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School, but was placed at another location. She said, "That's not somebody that I would want around other kids because I wouldn't want this to happen to nobody else's child."
News 12 reached out to the school for a statement and a spokesperson responded stating, "While privacy rights limit the details I can share, what I can say is we are thankful the student is okay. Nurses at schools in New York are contracted by the state; therefore, we cannot comment on the protocols related to their student care. The safety and well-being of our school community remains one of our highest priorities, and we continue to work with this family to ensure their child receives the best care available while at school."
Jackson said she's lucky her daughter is alive.
"I'm blessed and I'm so happy that my daughter is sitting right here next to me. Because if I didn't know so much about asthma and I didn't know the signs, seeing as she wasn't able to breathe on her own, we wouldn't be here right now together," she said.