Posted on 11/27/2007 8:55:05 PM PST by bshomoic
Category: Medical Malpractice
A Rhode Island hospital has been fined $50,000 and reprimanded by the Department of Health after a doctor performed brain surgery on the wrong side of a patient's brain. While this sounds terrible it gets even worse. This is the third time this has happened this year at this hospital alone. Last Friday marks the most recent occurrence when the chief resident began operating on the wrong side of an 82 year-old patient's head. The health department says the patient was not badly injured by the mistake.
In February a different physician preformed neurosurgery in the wrong side of another patient's head. The patient here was also said be ok despite the careless and negligent actions of the doctor.
Evidently the scare earlier in the year did not make a grand impression and increase awareness as in August another patient fell victim to a doctor performing surgery on the wrong side of his brain. The patient in this instance was not as lucky as the others have been and died just weeks after the blunder. The patient's death sparked controversy and a state ordered review of the hospital's procedures, neurosurgery practices, and better verification from doctors of surgery plans.
The most recent mishap tells me that the review has not accomplished anything. I cannot believe mistakes of this nature have been allowed to happen three times in one year at the same hospital. How is this possible? Its not rocket science, or better yet brain surgery, they only need to understand the difference between right and left.
The not-for-profit hospital is making efforts to ensure this does not happen again. Only time will tell if they are successful.
Left, right. What’s the difference? [insert Simpson’s Dr. Nick graphic here]
“It’s never a good sign when you hear a surgeon say ‘Oops’ “
— Bill Cosby
Just can’t imagine this happening. When I had knee surgery several years ago, the doctor came in and circled the knee in question with a magic marker and had me agree with the markings. Every person that approached me there after asked me if the knee circled was the knee that would be worked on. I even think the janitor approached me with the same question.
Just before I was put under the anesthesiologist asked me to point to the offending knee.
Best thing you can do going into surgery is to get marked up with indelible magic markers that point to the correct stuff, and away from the wrong stuff.
Everyone I know who has undergone surgery has done that and they've never had a problem.
I work in a hospital for a living. I was not being paranoid. In one of the local hospitals (not mine) they took out the wrong kidney on a patient. That meant he had no functioning kidneys and was on dialysis until he died.
Well, c’mon people, it’s not brain surgery - oh wait, it IS!!!
Doctors need to lose license and be sued for a lot of money. Especially the doc whose patient died from their mistake.
Yeah, sorry. Our bad.
In one of the local hospitals (not mine) they took out the wrong kidney on a patient.<<<<
In my former life, I worked at a local hospital where a doctor indeed took out the wrong kidney and left the cancerous one in the patient back in the 80’s! Not good at all.
The Janitor!
I
I sure hope you checked afterwards to make sure the correct knee was still circled.
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