No one managed to find the infection before Alyssa died. 9 Richard Smith Died From Receiving A ParalyticRichard Smith, 79 years old, had kidney disease, which required him to receive dialysis. According to Andrew Yaffa, the Smith family lawyer, the case was “the worst case of medical neglect” he had ever seen. To have given Smith the wrong drug, the nurse would have had to fail to follow numerous protocols: She “failed to look and read what medication he was taking [ . After having the wrong surgery, her health deteriorated.