Fight For Nicholas

05/08/2026

One year ago today, The The Dallas Morning News shared our family's story. Four days later, it was on the front page.

At the time, I thought our story was about an eleven year old boy who almost died.

A year later, I realize it is about something much bigger.

It is about trust.

Watching Nicholas fight for his life was the hardest thing we have ever experienced. Nothing will ever compare to standing beside your child's hospital bed and wondering if he will survive.

When he finally came home, I thought our focus would be helping him heal.

I never imagined we would spend the next several years searching for answers.

What surprised me most was not that the legal process is difficult.
It was realizing how differently families and institutions often view the same event.

As parents, we believed that asking questions would lead to understanding, transparency, and meaningful conversations about protecting future patients.

Instead, we learned that litigation can become something very different.

That realization changed me.

This journey has never been about revenge.

It has never been about headlines.

It has never been about trying to destroy anyone.

It has always been about one simple hope:

That another family never has to ask the same questions we did.

If sharing Nicholas' story helps one parent trust their instincts...
If it encourages one healthcare professional to pause and ask one more question...

If it helps protect even one child...

Then every difficult day has had a purpose.

Thank you to everyone who has stood beside our family over the past year. Your prayers, encouragement, and support have meant more than you know.

We are still here.

We are still fighting.

And we are still asking the same question we asked on day one:

How do we make sure this never happens to another child? ❤️

➡️ Today I am sharing a more personal reflection on everything we have learned over the past year. I hope you will take a few minutes to read it. https://www.methodistsouthlaketx.com/post/one-year-later-what-i-thought-would-happen-and-what-actually-did

14/06/2026

The death of NASCAR driver Kyle Busch from sepsis is renewing calls for Congress to pass the bipartisan SEPSIS Act aimed at saving lives.

14/06/2026

Most people think sepsis happens to someone else.

We did too.

Nicholas was sent home from an emergency room and nearly died. Darren never got a second chance.

Now we are asking Texas lawmakers to take a simple step that could help save lives through earlier recognition, better communication, and stronger sepsis safeguards.

It takes about 30 seconds to sign.

Your signature could help protect another family from hearing the words no family should ever hear.

Sign the petition today:
https://c.org/2zbPh8qYXH

11/05/2026

The Texas Medical Board's punishment for an ER doctor whose failure to consider bacterial infection led to the death of a 22-year-old?

12 hours of continuing education.

No suspension. No probation. No fine. No restriction on her practice. The order ends the day she submits her certificate.

That 22-year-old was Darren 'DJ' Stanley Jr. On October 3, 2023, he walked into the ER at Methodist Charlton Medical Center with a week of severe headaches and vomiting. His labs showed elevated procalcitonin, a known marker for bacterial infection. A recent CT showed sinus disease. He was sent home with a handout titled 'Home Headache Remedies.'

Less than 24 hours later, he was rushed to another hospital with bacterial meningitis, cavernous sinus thrombosis, and septic shock. He died two days after that.

The Board's own order says the treating physician failed to meet the standard of care, failed to consider bacterial infection, failed to escalate care, failed to keep adequate records, and that her decisions resulted in the patient's eventual death.'

12 hours. That is the State of Texas's answer.

This is exactly why we are fighting for the Nicholas and Darren Sepsis Safety Act, standardized sepsis protocols at every Texas hospital, real training, and real accountability when standards are ignored.

Read the full breakdown: https://www.methodistsouthlaketx.com/post/dr-melinda-threlkeld-and-methodist-charlton-medical-center-texas-medical-board-sanctions-emergency

Sign the petition: https://www.change.org/texassepsisact

Texas Medical Board End Sepsis, The Legacy of Rory Staunton Sepsis Alliance Methodist Dallas Medical Center

https://www.methodistsouthlaketx.com/post/dr-melinda-threlkeld-and-methodist-charlton-medical-center-texas-medical-board-sanctions-emergency

Protect Texas Patients: Pass the Nicholas and Darren Sepsis Safety Act

18/03/2026

WFAA This is exactly why we cannot stay silent.
Another Texas child. Another family whose life changed in hours.
What starts as something “common” flu, infection, strep can spiral into sepsis, and when it is missed or not treated fast enough, the consequences are catastrophic.
Amputations. Organ failure. Death.
We lived this.
My son Nicholas was sent home from the hospital with signs that should have raised concern. Within days, he was fighting for his life. He survived, but his life will never be the same.
And here is the uncomfortable truth:
Hospitals are not consistently required to follow enforceable sepsis protocols and there are often no real consequences when they do not.
That is what we are working to change.
The Nicholas and Darren Sepsis Safety Act will:
• Require standardized sepsis screening and treatment protocols
• Mandate training for medical staff
• Create real accountability when protocols are ignored
Because “best practices” mean nothing if they are optional.
No parent should have to learn about sepsis like we did.
No child should lose their future because of preventable delays.
👉 Sign the petition and help us push this forward:
https://c.org/Tj96KDxNwT
And please share this. Awareness is not enough anymore. We need action.

“IT’S DEVASTATING” | The 13-year-old’s family initially believed it was the flu. It quickly turned into a severe, life-threatening illness that caused organ failure and led to the amputation of three of her limbs -> http://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/kerville-teen-flu-organ-failure-amputation/285-30c58d81-2613-4a60-8ebb-6bad0a80c6de?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook_WFAA

07/03/2026

My son Nicholas was 11 years old and a healthy football player when he started showing signs of infection. We took him to the hospital, but he was sent home despite symptoms that should have raised concern for sepsis.

Within days, he was fighting for his life.

Nicholas survived, but sepsis caused permanent damage. He has already undergone multiple surgeries and his life has changed forever.

Around the same time, another young Texan, Darren “DJ” Stanley Jr., was treated at a different Texas hospital and discharged with similar warning signs.

DJ did not survive.

Sepsis is one of the leading causes of preventable death in hospitals, yet hospitals face no real consequences when life-saving sepsis protocols are not followed.

We are working to change that.

The Nicholas and Darren Sepsis Safety Act would require Texas hospitals to follow standardized sepsis protocols, provide training for medical staff, and create real accountability when those standards are ignored.

No family should have to learn about sepsis the way we did.

Please sign and share the petition to help protect patients across Texas.

Protect Texas Patients: Pass the Nicholas and Darren Sepsis Safety Act

14/01/2026

Sepsis does not just test the body. It tests the healthcare system.

In this episode of Bridge Builders Podcast, I talk about our experience moving from the ER to full-scale advocacy, what families face when care falls short, and why transparency and accountability matter in emergency medicine.

This is not just our story. It is a system issue.

Listen here:
👉

The Becoming Bridge Builders podcast covers a variety of topics that are dividing us. Each week on the podcast, I invite innovative thought leaders to share how they build bridges in their areas of expertise.

12/01/2026

If a restaurant failed repeated health inspections, would you eat there?
If a daycare had ongoing safety violations, would you enroll your child?

So why do we apply a different standard to hospitals?

This blog looks at public CMS deficiency data for Methodist hospitals in DFW, explains what those records actually mean, and why repetition across facilities deserves attention.

Read more here:
👉 https://www.methodistsouthlaketx.com/post/how-many-deficiencies-are-too-many Methodist Southlake Medical Center

Services indicate that multiple Methodist hospitals in the Dallas–Fort Worth area have repeatedly received deficiencies.

12/01/2026

In this episode, Dr. Hennessy reviews Methodist Southlake Medical Center hospital billing tied to Nicholas's ER visits and explains why itemized bills matter and how discrepancies between the severity billed and the care delivered raise serious red flags. As he explains, hospitals do not automatically provide itemized bills. Patients have to demand them, even though, under federal law, those bills are the patient’s property.

Dr. Hennessy walks through specific examples of charges, explains how hospitals upcharge routine care, and why insurance EOBs often hide more than they reveal. The result is a system where families are expected to pay, without ever seeing what they are paying for.

This episode is not just about what went wrong medically.
It is about what happens after and when hospitals obstruct access to records, billing lacks transparency, and families are left to fight billion-dollar systems alone.

🎥 Watch the follow-up episode: https://youtu.be/fOBETm7yLB4

FOLLOW UP EPISODE: The Angry Alan Show, revisits one of the most disturbing medical negligence stories he has ever covered—this time with new evidence. Guest...

19/12/2025

This episode was not easy to record but it was necessary.

This episode was not easy to record, but it was necessary.e, to talk about what happens when a child is sent home from the ER despite clear warning signs… and how fast everything can unravel after that.

In December 2023, my 11-year-old son was discharged.
Two days later, he was in septic shock.
He spent over a month in the pediatric ICU and lives with permanent injuries today.

What happened to him was preventable.

This conversation is about more than our story. It is about:
• recognizing sepsis early
• holding hospitals accountable
• and empowering parents to speak up when something feels wrong

Pain changes you.
Purpose is what you decide to do with it.

🎧 Episode 281: From ICU Trauma to Advocacy: Turning Pain into Purpose
Listen here 👇
https://professorofperseverances.podbean.com/e/ep-281-from-icu-trauma-to-advocacy-turning-pain-into-purpose-with-reasa-selph/

Thank you, Dr. James Perdue, for giving space to stories that push for change, not comfort.

Reasa Selph, mother, and advocate for patient safety. In December 2023, her 11-year-old son, Nicholas, was discharged from a Dallas-area ER despite clear signs of sepsis. Just two days later, he collapsed in septic shock and spent over a month in the pediatric ICU at Cook Children’s, undergoing mu...