Above is a copy of a photo of premature baby Alyssa Shinn, who died in November at Summerlin Hospital. The Shinns are seeking more information about her death. Richard and Kathlene Shinn appear at a news conference Wednesday at the office of attorney Richard Harris. Photo by Gary Thompson.

Richard and Kathlene Shinn were eager to visit their first-born baby the morning after physicians removed breathing tubes from her delicate 21-day-old body.

But they weren't prepared for what they witnessed when they entered the intensive care unit at Summerlin Hospital at 9 a.m. that November day.

"Alyssa's hands and feet were white. She was critically ill," Richard Shinn said Wednesday.

Within hours, their daughter was pronounced dead.

A coroner's report said the prematurely born Alyssa died from cardiac failure caused by zinc intoxication and zinc overdose. The report listed "extreme prematurity" as a significant condition of the infant at the time of death.

Now, the Shinns said they are desperate to learn what happened to their baby between the night of Nov. 8, when they left the hospital, and the morning of Nov. 9, when they returned. Alleging hospital officials have not answered their questions, the couple hired attorney Richard Harris.

The trio spoke to the media Wednesday to notify the community of their ordeal and warn others to beware of what could happen to their infants.

"People need to know what happened to Alyssa. They need to hear her story," a sobbing Kathlene Shinn said.

Harris acknowledged that he and the couple know little about the tragedy but speculated that the nursing shortage and overcrowding in the neo-natal intensive care unit might have contributed to Alyssa's death.

"Most people come to see me because they want to have answers," he said. "I urge the hospital to be forthcoming."

In a statement Wednesday afternoon, Summerlin Hospital officials acknowledged the death.

"We are aware and saddened by the situation and extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family," the statement said. "As is the case with any adverse outcome, we take this very seriously. Therefore, we are thoroughly investigating the circumstances of this case."

Alyssa was born at 26 weeks on Oct. 19, after Kathlene Shinn struggled with her pregnancy. The baby weighed 1 pound, 4 ounces but was growing and gaining strength by the day, the parents said.

Hospital staff administered intravenously Total Parenteral Nutrition, a common nutrient mix that includes zinc, to help Alyssa's metabolism.

A pharmacist sent a new dose of the solution for Alyssa on Nov. 8, and nurses began the drip about 10 p.m., Harris said. At 6:30 a.m., the pharmacist sent a memo to the nurses notifying them of a possible error in the prescription.

"Send new TPN stat," Harris said, reading from the memo.

But the IV was not changed until 1 p.m. on Nov. 9, when the nurses began flushing her body with an antidote, Harris said.

That morning, Kathlene Shinn called the hospital before visiting hours to see how Alyssa was coping without the breathing tube. She said nothing was mentioned of Alyssa's condition.

The Shinns were not told of any problems until after they arrived at the hospital at 9 a.m., walked into the intensive care unit and saw their ailing daughter.

"They didn't tell me to come in ASAP and spend the last three hours of her life with her," Kathlene Shinn said.

Hospital officials escorted the Shinns away from their baby and shut down the intensive care unit, kicking out other parents, Richard Shinn said. The couple then sat in a conference room for hours with no information.

The Shinns, who both work in the health care field, said hospital staff continued to tell them their baby was alive after her skin turned blue and cold.

"Some days it's hard for me to realize this actually occurred," Richard Shinn said. "It seems so senseless. It really does."

After reviewing the prescription by Alyssa's physician, Harris said the requested dosage appeared to be appropriate. How the lethal dosage of zinc was included in the solution or why no one at the hospital caught the mistake before it was administered was unclear, the Shinns said.

"There's five, six, seven people that have their hands on the TPN and review the dosage," Kathlene Shinn said.

Harris said the Shinns simply want answers for closure, but he did not rule out the possibility of legal action.

"I'm not here to point fingers," Kathlene Shinn, a registered nurse, said as she sat near a tiny pair of black shoes and photos of her only child. "I am urging the public, anyone who has been treated at a hospital or who has a family member or friend who has been hospitalized to listen. As health care consumers, we need to insist that hospitals institute all the technology that can prevent these types of medication errors."