On Aug. 16, 2010, plaintiffs’ decedent Madelyn Schultz, 66, was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center, in Wildomar, arriving one hour after ingesting three handfuls of approximately 100 aspirin. Shortly before midnight on Aug. 15, 2010, Schultz attempted to commit suicide at her home in Menifee. After ingesting three handfuls of approximately 100 Aspirin, Schultz allegedly realized the gravity of her decision, changed her mind, and asked her husband to call for an ambulance. Schultz was subsequently taken to Inland Valley Medical Center, where she came under the care of Dr. Brent Jacobsen. Schultz was reported as being alert and oriented, and in no acute distress. The hospital’s staff, particularly, Andrew Townley, R.N., made contact with the Poison Control Center, which communicated a course of treatment to be used for Schultz. Part of the course of treatment was to perform dialysis if the patient’s salicylate level — which was monitored by Jacobsen — rose to a critical level. However, the hospital did not have in-house dialysis. At 3:05 a.m., on Aug. 16, 2010, Schultz was noted to have a salicylate level of 156, which should have been considered a critical level. Jacobsen became aware of the critical level at 4 a.m., and immediately communicated it to Poison Control and Dr. Jorge Martinez, who was the hospitalist on call at the time of Schultz’s presentation to the emergency room. Dr. Weng-Lih Wang, a nephrologist, was also called in to evaluate and prepare Schultz to receive the emergency dialysis. Wang inserted a right femoral catheter into Schultz shortly after 5 a.m., and at 5:21 a.m., he placed an order for STAT dialysis through Renal Treatment Centers – California Inc., an outside acute dialysis service. The dialysis was ordered to begin at 6 or 6:30 a.m. While waiting for the dialysis to occur, Schultz was ordered to be admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at approximately 4 a.m., but since no beds were available in the ICU, Schultz remained in the emergency room with an ICU nurse present. At that time, Schultz was on suicide watch. Schultz became increasingly tachypneic, diaphoretic, restless and anxious during the early morning hours and at 8:40 a.m., a Code Blue was called. According to the time card produced for Ernest Fernandez, a dialysis nurse, by Renal Treatment Centers, Fernandez did not appear at the hospital until 8:16 a.m., almost three hours after Wang ordered the STAT dialysis. Schultz died at 9:09 a.m. on Aug. 16, 2010, some nine hours after presenting to Inland Valley Medical Center and some six hours after registering a critical salicylate level. The decedent’s widowed husband, Michael Schultz, and two adult children, Tiffany Dozier and Kim Bogdan, sued Jacobsen; Martinez; Wang; and the operator of the Inland Valley Medical Center, Universal Health Systems of Rancho Springs Inc. (which also does business as Southwest Healthcare System). The decedent’s family then amended their complaint to include Renal Treatment Centers – California Inc. The decedent’s family alleged that the defendants failed to timely treat the decedent’s condition and that this failure caused the decedent’s wrongful death and constituted medical malpractice. Jacobsen, Martinez, Wang, and Universal Health Systems of Rancho Springs Inc. ultimately filed motions for summary judgment, which the plaintiffs did not oppose. Thus, the matter continued against Renal Treatment Centers only. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that Renal Treatment Centers’ administrative employees failed to reach one of its nurses in a timely fashion to communicate the urgency of the situation. Counsel also contended that Renal Treatment Centers’ dialysis nurse, Ernest Fernandez, took far too long to leave his home and arrive at the hospital. Counsel for Renal Treatment Centers contended that the standard of care in the dialysis industry was to arrive to a STAT call within two to four hours. Counsel argued that even if Fernandez had arrived earlier and started dialysis, it would not have changed the outcome and the decedent still would have died., Madelyn Schultz died of a drug overdose at 9:09 a.m. on Aug. 16, 2010, after her salicylate raised to critical levels. She was 66. The decedent is survived by her husband and two adult daughters. The decedent’s family sought recovery of non-economic wrongful death damages. They also sought recovery of economic damages for the loss of the decedent’s household services, as well as funeral and burial expenses. Renal Treatment Centers refused to stipulate that it was a division or subsidiary of DaVita Healthcare Partners Inc. — a kidney care, dialysis company — which had purchased Renal Treatment Centers – California Inc. in early 2000. Thus, plaintiffs’ counsel argued that Renal Treatment Centers could not prove it was licensed pursuant to the California Business & Professions Code. It was also plaintiffs’ counsel’s position that Renal Treatment Centers was not entitled to a reduction for MICRA, as it cannot prove it was licensed.