"Whenever I think about Ben, I start to cry," said his mother, Tammy Kolb.
Hospital officials and Fred Hobin, the area's medical examiner, initially suspected the boy died from a bad reaction to the drug epinephrine, or adrenaline, a heart stimulant that also constricts blood vessels and reduces bleeding during surgery.
But this week, Martin Memorial took responsibility for the Port St. Lucie boy's death, saying a surgical team mistakenly administered a lethal dose of stimulants during the operation.
The acknowledgement was made after a laboratory analyses of samples of the drugs used during the operation concluded that Ben received an epinephrine overdose in a "medical accident."
The analyses were conducted by the University of Georgia and National Medical Services in Philadelphia as part of Martin Memorial's own investigation of the death.
Martin Memorial officials said they have settled all legal claims with the Kolb family for an undisclosed amount of money.
"We think Martin Memorial did a good job in investigating," said Tammy Kolb. "We don't have any hard feelings. They're just as hurt as we are. It was devastating to everyone who knew Ben."
Pat Austin, a medical center spokeswoman, agreed.
"There's been only one day sadder at Martin Memorial, and that was the day Ben died," she said. "People here are very caring and they feel very deeply for this family. We would never pretend we could feel the same pain as the family, but it's certainly been the saddest occasion in our history."
Kolb said her son's death was explained to her by Martin Memorial this way: Two syringes of epinephrine were used in the operating room. One contained a topical solution of the drug to be used externally around Ben's ear. The other contained a dosage of epinephrine that was supposed to be injected to constrict blood vessels and lessen bleeding.
